Area legislators gave local citizens a preview of this years state Legislative session at a meeting Monday night sponsored by Allen County Farm Bureau.
Representatives Kent Thompson, rural LaHarpe, and Ken Collins, Frontenac, were there in person while Sen. Caryn Tyson addressed the audience via speakerphone.
Thompson is serving on the Local Government Committee as chair, the House Transportation Committee, and the House Agriculture Committee. He expressed concern over the labeling of food products, specifically meat and milk.
Collins is serving on the Rural Revitalization and Health and Human Services Committees. He likewise expressed concern over food labeling, and pointed out what he considered misleading images on food packaging.
Tyson also expressed concern over the labeling of meat and milk products.
Examples of the kinds of products the legislators were concerned with, more specifically, are items like vegetarian/vegan protein sources being labeled as meat and products like almond, soy, or coconut drinks being labeled as milk.
Thompson then discussed how soils are currently appraised in Kansas, mentioning that many different types of soils can be present in the same field, all with different values and tax rates. He then raised the question as to whether there should be new standards.
But Tyson said it doesnt make sense that [the standards] are changing so rapidly.
At this point a question from the audience from a parent whose child had died by accidental gunshot in the home sparked discussion on how to reduce gun-related deaths across the state.
Thompson said he was unsure of what to do beyond stressing personal, individual responsibility.
Collins suggested changing insurance laws to help increase access to in-patient psychological health so as to prevent suicide.
Bruce Symes, an Allen County Commissioner, pointed out the recent expansion of psychological health services in Allen County schools.
Discussion then shifted to punishment for certain gun-related crimes. Thompson pointed out that weve got an incarceration problem in Kansas, saying that there are too many people being imprisoned for non-violent crimes.
Tyson added that it is necessary to support law enforcement so they can enforce the laws that we have, though it is unclear specifically what form this support should take.
A heated exchange then ensued when an audience member asked Tyson why shed voted against the confirmation of David Toland for Secretary of Commerce. Whereas Thompson had said its good for us, its good for the state that Toland was ultimately confirmed, Tyson doubled down on claims that Toland, when CEO of Thrive Allen County, had accepted problematic grant funds from the Tiller Family Foundation.
