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Lawmakers End First Week Of The Veto Session With Little Progress

Stephen Koranda
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KPR/File photo

House and Senate leaders had told Kansas lawmakers to be ready to work over the weekend, but Friday they decided to head home, putting off tax and budget work until next week.

Senate Majority Leader Jim Denning says the parties negotiating over taxes have yet to come up with a proposal that can pass.

“There’s no reason to come and just have everybody sit around if we’re not doing (anything). We’re right on schedule with the rest of our work. They can continue to work on what they want the tax policy to look like,” Denning says.

Lawmakers need to eliminate a budget shortfall and write a K-12 funding formula over the course of the veto session, but they've made little headway.

The wrap-up session is scheduled to run for two weeks, but the lack of progress means it may need to be extended.

Stephen Koranda is the managing editor of the Kansas News Service, based at KCUR. He has nearly 20 years of experience in public media as a reporter and editor.