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Racially restrictive deeds and exclusionary covenants are still scattered across the Kansas City metro, embedded deep in the bylaws of homes associations and subdivisions’ rules, even though they can no longer be enforced. Now, property owners have a way to remove the language from the documents.
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Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed legislation that would have blocked teenagers from receiving hormone therapy and other gender-affirming treatments recognized as necessary by medical professionals. The Senate voted to override her veto, but the House fell short.
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Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly signed the Kansas law that denies civil asset forfeiture in cases of lower level crimes like simple possession of drugs. It also forces police to return seized property faster.
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A Kansas judge went against a foster care agency’s recommendation when she placed a girl with a foster parent rather than her grandparents. Critics say the case represents chronic problems with Kansas' heavily privatized foster care system and lack of state oversight.
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It's Election Day in Missouri, and Jackson County is finally voting on the much-discussed stadium sales tax proposal. Plus: Kansas lawmakers sent a bill to Gov. Laura Kelly last week to ban gender-affirming health care for minors. Kelly has vetoed similar measures in the past, but this time, the legislature's GOP supermajority might have the power to override any decision she makes.
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Kansas lawmakers are set to receive a substantial pay raise next year. Some say that's key to recruiting more young and working class people to run for office.
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The bill crafted by Republican Rep. Steven Howe wouldn’t apply to private or parochial colleges and universities in Kansas. Originally, the financial penalty was $100,000 per offense. Critics say the measure is vague and violates academic freedom.
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In the wake of last year's contentious fight over zoning laws in Prairie Village, new bills in the Kansas Legislature would threaten local control over rezoning and limit cities' ability to stop citizen petitions. The proposals are being fiercely opposed by cities across Johnson County.
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The two Kansas Senate bills appear to be a direct response to last year’s contentious fight over zoning that played out in Prairie Village. One bill would sharply curtail a city’s ability to rezone private property, and the other would strengthen petitioners’ efforts to put a question on a local ballot.
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The bill is supported by Sedgwick County and the city of Wichita, but a local advocacy group focused on ending homelessness is concerned about the language around enforcing ordinances about camping and vagrancy.
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Kansas could be the first state in the U.S. to allow foster youth ages 16 and above to pick the adults who help support and make decisions for them. The SOUL Family program aims to help create a network of support as foster teens transition into adulthood.
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Kansas could be the first state to pilot the SOUL Family Legal Permanency Option, which would give foster youth 16 and up a say in who supports them as they transition into adulthood. A bill that would implement the program has a hearing in a Senate committee tomorrow.