Once again, the Kansas House and Senate have practiced their brand of governmental overreach by sending to the Governor, legislation to thwart local home-rule in Kansas. After public objections, the legislature has chosen to ignore the people, once again! I always hear from my Republican friends, about government overreach and local home rule, which sounds good in theory, but is not practiced by them.
After much debate and discussion a few months ago, the city of Lawrence instituted a plastic container ban, that includes plastic shopping bags. We all see far too many of those plastic bags up in tree limbs and caught in fences, blowing in the wind. The kind that livestock tends to choke on and kills wild life. It took effect on March 1st, and as stores shifted to paper bags, and encouraged people to use re-usable bags, things have gone smoothly for my household. I keep a few re-usable bags in the trunk for shopping, and it’s no problem.
Now the legislature says that despite the fact that the people of the community wanted it, the legislature knows what is best for the community, not the people. Now the Republican majority says, NO, YOU MAY NOT HAVE HOME RULE! You may not change the way things are done, because our big business donors do not like it. The house and senate are more concerned about what business interests want, than what the people want.
You can’t scream about the importance of home rule and then pass legislation to smash it. Time and again the voice of the people in Kansas is ignored by elected officials who are supposed to work for them. From home rule to a woman’s right to health care and everything in between, the legislative majority is out of step with Kansas.
It is time for a change!