2006 State Legislative Session: Summary
After an interesting and sometimes contentious session, the 2006 Kansas legislature adjourned on Wednesday evening. KUMC faired extremely well and our issues of concern were high profile; they included: new funding for the KU Cancer Center; a pay increase for faculty and staff; important flexibility and affordability for student health insurance; and -- despite a prolonged debate on human cloning -- no state specific prohibitions on stem cell research. Highlights of the session are outlined below. Should you have the opportunity, please offer your thanks to these various legislators who work hard to support us.
Cancer Center Funding
The Governor’s budget included a $5 million appropriation for the KU Cancer Center, which she requested be funded annually by the legislature. Notwithstanding considerable debate over how the funding would be distributed, both the House and Senate ultimately voted in favor of the appropriation. A number of House and Senator legislators were supportive of our efforts, including: Representatives Bonnie Sharp (Kansas City) and Ray Merrick (Stilwell) who led the efforts in the House, and Senators Steve Morris (Hugoton), Derek Schmidt (Independence), John Vratil (Johnson County), and Barbara Allen (Johnson County) who led the efforts in the Senate.
Breast Cancer Tax Check Off
Senator Barbara Allen (Johnson County) also introduced and was successful in passing legislation that creates a state income tax check off for breast cancer research, the funds of which will be distributed to the KU Cancer Center.
Faculty and Staff Salary Increases
The state budget includes a 4 percent pay increase for classified staff, a 3 percent merit pool for faculty pay increases, and a 2 percent pool for merit increases for unclassified staff.
Student Health Insurance
Senator Jean Schodorf (Wichita) was successful in pushing for and passing legislation to allow state educational institutions such as KUMC to procure health insurance directly for our students. This will provide important flexibility that will ensure more affordable and comprehensive health insurance benefits for KUMC students.
Stem Cells
A stem cell proviso was added to the House budget which would ban any state dollars from being used for SCNT. This proviso was the final issue of dispute in the House-Senate budget conference committee, but was ultimately stripped from the legislation. Senator Duane Umbarger (Neosho) and Senator Jay Emler (McPherson) were instrumental in ensuring that the onerous language was removed from the bill in the 11th hour. Also playing important roles in the debate in favor of KUMC was Representative Stephanie Sharp (Lenexa), Representative Carl Krehbiel (Moundridge), Representative Ed O’Malley (Roeland Park), Senator Derek Schmidt (Independence), Senator Vicki Schmidt (Topeka), Senator John Vratil (Johnson County) and Senator Anthony Hensley (Topeka).
Medical Student Loan Program
The medical student loan program was funded this year at $2.7 million dollars. In addition, another $400,000 from a provider assessment (tax) that was recently approved by CMS will be used for the Medical Student Loan program. The Kansas Academy of Family Practice (KAFP) is leading an effort to increase flexibility in the program and decided to push for legislative changes next year.
Nursing Scholarship Program
Senator Jim Barone (Frontenac) introduced and passed legislation that would add $5.2 million for state nursing programs to build capacity, which will include $200,000 at KUMC for scholarships to be given to those seeking an MS in Nursing or Ph.D. in Nursing.
Tuition Interest
KUMC will now be allowed to retain interest earnings on tuition paid by students beginning in 2008, which will result in an additional $300,000 in funding.
Deferred Maintenance
The legislature has not yet to affirmatively address the deferred maintenance needs of the Medical Center, which now exceed $67 million. Despite money being included in the Senate budget for some building KU and KUMC projects, this funding was ultimately stripped from the final budget.
Umbilical Blood Bank
Legislation was passed to require the Bioscience Authority and the Kansas Department of Health and Environment to establish protocols regarding umbilical cord blood bank operations in Kansas.
In-State Tuition Change
The House withdrew its proviso on an in-state tuition change that would have allowed students who completed their undergraduate degree out of state, but who attended a Kansas high school in Kansas (for at least five years) to receive in-state tuition for graduate school. This would have cost the School of Medicine approximately $370,000 each year.
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The University of Kansas Medical Center