Press

   June 14, 2019                                                                          

TOPEKA—Statement by AFT-Kansas President Lisa Ochs and KOSE President Sarah LaFrenz on the Kansas Supreme Court ruling Friday on state school funding:

“Today’s Kansas Supreme Court ruling on state school funding appears to close a chapter in the long saga that has forced parents, educators—and students themselves—to fight for adequate and equitable support for the schools in every community across our state. This decision is a win for all of them and further recognition that supporting public education is the best investment we can make.

“Kansas teachers, many of whom are also school parents, are grateful to Governor Laura Kelly for her leadership on this crucial responsibility of our state government. She and the Legislature worked hard together to find a bipartisan solution that would satisfy the constitutional requirements laid out by the Supreme Court over the long history of this case.

“Public education must be one of our elected representatives’ top priorities. But for nearly a decade, the misguided policies under former Governor Brownback and a legislative majority that marched lock-step behind him shortchanged Kansas schoolchildren. The case decided today began in 2010. Over that time, many Kansas children began and completed their entire K-12 experience under education financing systems that the state Supreme Court has repeatedly found unconstitutional.

“The Kansas Supreme Court wisely retains jurisdiction over this case and the important issues involved. Along with the court, educators and parents will be monitoring compliance with this decision.

“Adequate school funding is essential under our state constitution, but it should not come at the expense of other public services that are critical to the well-being of all Kansans. Moving forward, this ruling means Kansans and their elected leaders can now turn to other priorities that cry out for our attention. We will continue to press officials for staffing at our correctional facilities that keeps the public, staff and inmates safe. Kansas must work to achieve a child welfare system that can protect kids’ safety and well-being. Staffing at our psychiatric hospitals must be adequate to guarantee positive patient outcomes. And our state higher education institutions must receive the funding that will keep them affordable.”

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AFT Kansas and Kansas NEA have released the following joint statement regarding the events of the televised debate on Tuesday, 25 October between Sharice Davids and Amanda Adkins. You can find a video of the debate at FOX4 Kansas City.

If you are unable to view the embedded pdf, you can download it at this link.

At Least One Inmate Hospitalized, 3 Staff Members Injured

Friday, 15 July, 2022

Topeka, KS – At approximately 7pm tonight, an altercation among several inmates on A Unit at Lansing Correctional Facility broke out. When Corrections staff responded to the incident, some inmates began to assault them as well. This fight has already resulted in the hospitalization of one inmate and injuries to three employees.

Corrections officers instructed inmates on A Unit to return to and remain in their cells. The rest of the prison is fully secured. Without sufficient staff to enforce a lockdown however, many

Kansas Senate bring failed Janus bill back for fourth try

Monday, 14 March, 2022

Topeka, KS – The Kansas Senate has introduced SB 511 - a word-for-word copy of last year’s HB 2354 - to try once again to tell Kansas workers what to do with their money. The state legislature has failed every year since 2018 to pass this unpopular, unnecessary bill due to overwhelming opposition from workers, businesses, and organized labor. AFT Kansas opposes this bill yet again.

SB 511’s purpose is to attack frontline workers in the most vulnerable moment of their careers as public servants. It is a blatant

Essential state workers abandoned again

29 October 2021

Topeka, KS – This week the Legislative Coordinating Council approved a 5% raise for all legislative staff during the 2022 session and a $250 retention bonus for all staffers who are continuing from this year's session. This decision comes after Kansas Senate and House leadership removed from the budget a modest and long-overdue 2.5% pay increase for all state employees. Said AFT-Kansas and KOSE President Sarah LaFrenz,

“All Kansas state agencies are facing major staff shortages. We have urged the legislature time and time again to provide

Employees have received only one general raise in over a decade

7 May 2021

Topeka, KS – In response to the Legislature's Budget Conference Committee failure to agree to a 2.5% pay raise for state employees, AFT Kansas President Sarah LaFrenz gave the following statement:

“For Kansans, and even most legislators in Topeka, it is clear as day that state employees have earned a modest 2.5% pay raise. This past year, they have worked harder and sacrificed more than ever in frontline essential jobs. In service to their state, workers have had to quarantine from their families, scramble to find

Frontline Service Pay Act Uses Authority and Funding from the American Rescue Plan Act to Help Workers and Businesses Through Final Stages of the Pandemic

7 April 2021

Topeka, KS – In an op-ed today published in the Kansas City Star, Senate Minority Leader Dinah Sykes (D-21) outlined why she introduced the Frontline Service Pay Act, which will provide swift, direct relief for workers on the frontlines of the pandemic who make less than $25 per hour at no cost to Kansas taxpayers. Sen. Sykes called on Republican Leadership and Governor Laura Kelly to work together to include the plan in upcoming