Government

It's looking more like Kansas lawmakers may not work through the weekend to finish the legislative session and could instead leave and return next week. It's getting to the point where lawmakers may not be able to finish by the end of the weekend, even if agreements on taxes and the budget are reached soon.

After a budget compromise is formed, there's a delay to prepare the bill before the chambers can vote on it. Senate President Susan Wagle, a Republican from Wichita, says it would be a stretch to wrap up the session this weekend.

The last day of this year's Missouri legislative session has arrived.  Lawmakers will be pushing to get several more pieces of legislation across the finish line.

The House passed a package of tax credits on Thursday that's still awaiting action in the Senate.  The two chambers still differ on where to cap the state's most widely used incentives - for historic preservation and low-income Housing.  Ron Richard, the Senate's Republican Floor Leader, says he hopes to get some sort of economic development bill passed.

Legislation that would revive Missouri's ailing Second Injury Fund and seek to reduce the number of occupational disease lawsuits was passed Thursday by the Missouri House.  It had already passed the Missouri Senate during pre-dawn hours on Wednesday.

An ad hoc group trying to preserve the current building layout at KCI Airport is trying another tack to halt major changes at the complex.

After making little progress for weeks, public negotiations on taxes have continued in the Kansas Statehouse. Legislative leaders and the governor had been meeting behind closed doors, but this week it appeared those talks had stalled. House and Senate negotiators held a public meeting Wednesday, and House members offered a new compromise.

A bill is on its way to Governor Jay Nixon that would forbid the Missouri Department of Revenue from scanning and storing source documents of driver’s license and non-driver’s license applicants. 

Last month, Governor Nixon ordered the agency to cease scanning documents of conceal carry weapons applicants, but scanning for other license applicants continues. 

The bill approved Wednesday was sponsored in the Senate by Republican Will Kraus of Lee’s Summit.  He says he thinks the Nixon will sign the bill.