Kansas House of Representatives

Kansas House of Representatives
Kansas State Legislature

Type
Type	Lower house
Term limits	None
History
New session started	January 12, 2015
Leadership
Speaker of the House	Ray Merrick (R) since January 2013
Speaker pro Tempore	Peggy Mast (R) since January 10, 2011
Majority Leader	Jene Vickrey (R) since January 10, 2011
Minority Leader	Tom Burroughs (D) since January 12, 2015
Structure
Seats	125

Political groups	Governing party Republican (97) Opposition party Democratic (28)
Length of term	2 years
Authority	Article 2, Kansas Constitution
Salary	$88.66/day + per diem
Elections
Last election	November 4, 2014 (125 seats)
Next election	November 8, 2016 (125 seats)
Redistricting	Kansas Reapportionment Commission
Meeting place
House of Representatives Chamber Kansas State Capitol Topeka, Kansas
Website
Kansas House of Representatives

The Kansas House of Representatives is the lower house of the legislature of the U.S. state of Kansas. Composed of 125 state representatives from districts with roughly equal populations of at least 19,000, its members are responsible for crafting and voting on legislation, helping to create a state budget, and legislative oversight over state agencies.

Representatives are elected to a two-year term. The Kansas House of Representatives does not have term limits. The legislative session convenes at the Kansas State Capitol in Topeka annually.

History

On January 29, 1861, President James Buchanan authorized Kansas to become the 34th state of United States, a free state. The ratification of the Kansas Constitution created the Kansas House of Representatives as the lower house of the state legislature.

Members of the Kansas House voted to impeach Governor Charles L. Robinson in 1862, but the impeachment trial did not lead to his conviction and removal of office.^[1] The Kansas Senate did vote to impeach the secretary of state and state auditor for the unlawful sale of bonds, but only three state senators voted for the governor's impeachment.^[1]

In 1870, the Kansas House of Representatives first met at the Kansas State Capitol, which was not officially completed until 1903.^[2]

Populists and Republicans both claimed control of the Kansas House of Representatives in 1893, with the Populists accusing the Republican Party of election fraud.^[3] The dispute led to separate Populist-led and Republican-led Houses in 1893 until the Kansas Supreme Court sided with the Republicans and the Populist-led House disbanded.^[3]

In 1966, the state legislature began to hold annual general sessions and a constitutional amendment adopted at the 1974 general election extended the duration of the session held in the even-numbered years to 90 calendar days, subject to extension by a vote of two-thirds of the elected membership of each house.^[4]

An early legislator who served from 1875 to 1883, Robert M. Wright, was also one of the founders of Dodge City and later its mayor as well.^[5]

United States presidential candidate Bob Dole, the 1996 Republican nominee, began his political career with a two-year term in the Kansas House of Representatives after his election in 1950.^[6]

Legislative procedure

State representatives introduce a proposed law in the Kansas House of Representatives in the form of a bill, which must be approved by a standing committee, the Committee of the Whole and the entire membership of the chamber.^[7] Other state representatives can amend a bill in committee or on the floor of the chamber.^[7]

A bill must be approved by both houses of the Kansas Legislature in order to be submitted to the governor, who can sign it into law or veto the bill.^[7] State legislators can override the veto with the support of two-thirds majority of both houses.^[7]

Party composition

Republicans hold a supermajority in the Kansas House of Representatives, and have controlled the chamber for decades. The following is the official make-up for the 2015–2017 session:

Affiliation	Party (Shading indicates majority caucus)		Total

	Republican	Democratic		Vacant
End of 2009-2011 legislature	77	48	125	0

Begin	92	33	125	0
End of 2011-2013 Legislature	92	33	125	0

Begin	92	33	125	0
End of 2013-2015 Legislature	93	32	125	0

Begin	97	28	125	0
Latest voting share	7001776009999900000♠77.6%	7001224000000000000♠22.4%	7002100000000000000♠100%	5000000000000000000♠0%

Leadership

The Speaker of the Kansas House of Representatives is the leader of the chamber and is elected by his fellow state representatives.^[7] The speaker presides over the legislative process on the floor of the chamber or appoints a presiding officer in his or her place. He or she also decides the committee structure.^[7] The majority and minority leaders, are elected by their respective party caucuses relative to their party's strength in the chamber.

Officers

Position	Name	Party	District
Speaker of the House	Ray Merrick	Republican	27
House Leadership^[8]
Speaker Pro Tem	Peggy Mast	Republican	76
Majority Leader	Jene Vickrey	Republican	6
Assistant Majority Leader	Mario Goico	Republican	94
Majority Whip	Willie Dove	Republican	38
Caucus Chair	Travis Couture-Lovelady	Republican	110
Democratic Leaders^[8]
Minority Leader	Tom Burroughs	Democratic	33
Assistant Minority Leader	Louis Ruiz	Democratic	31
Minority Whip	Ed Trimmer	Democratic	79
Caucus Chair	Barbara Ballard	Democratic	44
Agenda Chair	Brandon Whipple	Democratic	96
Policy Chair	John Wilson	Democratic	10

Members of the Kansas House of Representatives, 2015–18

District	Representative	Party	Residence
1	Michael Houser	Republican	Columbus
2	Adam Lusker	Democratic	Frontenac
3	Chuck Smith	Republican	Pittsburg
4	Marty Read	Republican	Mound City
5	Kevin Jones	Republican	Wellsville
6	Jene Vickrey	Republican	Louisburg
7	Richard Proehl	Republican	Parsons
8	Craig McPherson	Republican	Overland Park
9	Kent Thompson	Republican	Iola
10	John Wilson	Democratic	Lawrence
11	Jim Kelly	Republican	Independence
12	Virgil Peck, Jr.	Republican	Tyro
13	Larry Hibbard	Republican	Toronto
14	Keith Esau	Republican	Olathe
15	Erin Davis	Republican	Olathe
16	Amanda Grosserode	Republican	Lenexa
17	Brett Hildabrand	Republican	Shawnee
18	John Rubin	Republican	Shawnee
19	Stephanie Clayton	Republican	Overland Park
20	Rob Bruchman	Republican	Overland Park
21	Barbara Bollier	Republican	Mission Hills
22	Nancy Lusk	Democratic	Overland Park
23	Linda Gallagher	Republican	Lenexa
24	Jarrod Ousley	Democratic	Merriam
25	Melissa Rooker	Republican	Fairway
26	Larry Campbell	Republican	Olathe
27	Ray Merrick	Republican	Stilwell
28	Jerry Lunn	Republican	Overland Park
29	James Todd	Republican	Overland Park
30	Randy Powell	Republican	Olathe
31	Louis Ruiz	Democratic	Kansas City
32	Pam Curtis	Democratic	Kansas City
33	Tom Burroughs	Democratic	Kansas City
34	Valdenia Winn	Democratic	Kansas City
35	Broderick Henderson	Democratic	Kansas City
36	Kathy Wolfe Moore	Democratic	Kansas City
37	Stan Frownfelter	Democratic	Kansas City
38	Willie Dove	Republican	Bonner Springs
39	Charles Macheers	Republican	Shawnee
40	John Bradford	Republican	Lansing
41	Tony Barton	Republican	Leavenworth
42	Connie O'Brien	Republican	Lansing
43	William Sutton	Republican	Gardner
44	Barbara Ballard	Democratic	Lawrence
45	Tom Sloan	Republican	Lawrence
46	Dennis Highberger	Democratic	Lawrence
47	Ramon Gonzalez, Jr.	Republican	Perry
48	Marvin Kleeb	Republican	Overland Park
49	Scott Schwab	Republican	Olathe
50	Fred Patton	Republican	Topeka
51	Ron Highland	Republican	Wamego
52	Dick Jones	Republican	Topeka
53	Annie Tietze	Democratic	Topeka
54	Ken Corbet	Republican	Topeka
55	Annie Kuether	Democratic	Topeka
56	Lane Hemsley	Republican	Topeka
57	John Alcala	Democratic	Topeka
58	Harold Lane	Democratic	Topeka
59	Blaine Finch	Republican	Ottawa
60	Don Hill	Republican	Emporia
61	Becky Hutchins	Republican	Holton
62	Randy Garber	Republican	Sabetha
63	Jerry Henry	Democratic	Cummings
64	Vern Swanson	Republican	Clay Center
65	Lonnie Clark	Republican	Junction City
66	Sydney Carlin	Democratic	Manhattan
67	Tom Phillips	Republican	Manhattan
68	Tom Moxley	Republican	Council Grove
69	J. R. Claeys	Republican	Salina
70	John Barker	Republican	Abilene
71	Diana Dierks	Republican	Salina
72	Marc Rhoades	Republican	Newton
73	Les Mason	Republican	McPherson
74	Don Schroeder	Republican	Inman
75	Will Carpenter	Republican	El Dorado
76	Peggy Mast	Republican	Emporia
77	Kristey Williams	Republican	Augusta
78	Ron Ryckman, Jr.	Republican	Olathe
79	Ed Trimmer	Democratic	Winfield
80	Kasha Kelley	Republican	Arkansas City
81	Blake Carpenter	Republican	Derby
82	Peter DeGraaf	Republican	Mulvane
83	Carolyn Bridges	Democratic	Wichita
84	Gail Finney	Democratic	Wichita
85	Steven Brunk	Republican	Bel Aire
86	Jim Ward	Democratic	Wichita
87	Mark Kahrs	Republican	Wichita
88	Joseph Scapa	Republican	Wichita
89	Roderick Houston	Democratic	Wichita
90	Steve Huebert	Republican	Valley Center
91	Gene Suellentrop	Republican	Wichita
92	John Carmichael	Democratic	Wichita
93	John Whitmer	Republican	Wichita
94	Mario Goico	Republican	Wichita
95	Tom Sawyer	Democratic	Wichita
96	Brandon Whipple	Democratic	Wichita
97	Leslie Osterman	Republican	Wichita
98	Steven Anthimides	Republican	Wichita
99	Dennis Hedke	Republican	Wichita
100	Daniel Hawkins	Republican	Wichita
101	Joe Seiwert	Republican	Pretty Prairie
102	Janice Pauls	Republican	Hutchinson
103	Ponka-We Victors	Democratic	Wichita
104	Steven Becker	Republican	Buhler
105	Mark Hutton	Republican	Wichita
106	Sharon Schwartz	Republican	Washington
107	Susan Concannon	Republican	Beloit
108	Steven C. Johnson	Republican	Assaria
109	Troy Waymaster	Republican	Luray
110	Travis Couture-Lovelady	Republican	Palco
111	Sue Boldra	Republican	Hays
112	John Edmonds	Republican	Great Bend
113	Greg Lewis	Republican	St. John
114	Jack Thimesch	Republican	Cunningham
115	Ron Ryckman, Sr.	Republican	Meade
116	Kyle Hoffman	Republican	Coldwater
117	John Ewy	Republican	Jetmore
118	Don Hineman	Republican	Dighton
119	Bud Estes	Republican	Dodge City
120	Rick Billinger	Republican	Goodland
121	Mike Kiegerl	Republican	Olathe
122	Russell Jennings	Republican	Lakin
123	John Doll	Republican	Garden City
124	J. Stephen Alford	Republican	Ulysses
125	Shannon Francis	Republican	Liberal

References

↑ 1.0 1.1 Ewing, Cortez A. M. "Early Kansas Impeachments," Kansas Historical Quarterly, August 1932 (Vol. 1, No. 4), p. 307-325, digitized with permission of the Kansas Historical Society. (accessed July 25, 2013)
↑ Kansas State Capitol, Kansapedia, Kansas Historical Society. (accessed July 25, 2013)
↑ 3.0 3.1 Cool Things - Legislative War Artifacts, Kansapedia, Kansas Historical Society, November 1997. (accessed July 25, 2013)
↑ "Kansas Legislative Research Manual Kansas Legislative Procedures," March 12, 2009.
↑ "George Laughhead, Robert M. Wright (1840-1915), Dodge City, Kansas: Town President, founder, pioneer, September 23, 2009". kansashistory.us. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
↑ Kansas Legislators Past & Present-Robert Dole
↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 Legislative Procedure in Kansas, Kansas Legislative Research Department, November 2006. (accessed July 24, 2013)
↑ 8.0 8.1 House Leadership 2015–16 sessions

External links

Members of the Kansas House of Representatives

Speaker of the House: Ray Merrick (R) Speaker pro tempore: Peggy Mast (R) Majority Leader: Jene Vickrey (R) Minority Leader: Tom Burroughs (D)

Michael Houser (R) Adam Lusker (D) Chuck Smith (R) Marty Read (R) Kevin Jones (R) Jene Vickrey (R) Richard Proehl (R) Craig McPherson (R) Kent Thompson (R) John Wilson (D) Jim Kelly (R) Virgil Peck, Jr. (R) Larry Hibbard (R) Keith Esau (R) Bob Montgomery (R) Amanda Grosserode (R) Brett Hildabrand (R) John Rubin (R) Stephanie Clayton (R) Rob Bruchman (R) Barbara Bollier (R) Nancy Lusk (D) Linda Gallagher (D) Jarrod Ousley (R) Melissa Rooker (R) Larry Campbell (R) Ray Merrick (R) Jerry Lunn (R) James Todd (R) Randy Powell (R) Louis Ruiz (D) Pam Curtis (D) Tom Burroughs (D) Valdenia Winn (D) Broderick Henderson (D) Kathy Wolfe Moore (D) Stan Frownfelter (D) Willie Dove (R) Charles Macheers (R) John Bradford (R) Tony Barton (R) Connie O'Brien (R) William Sutton (R) Barbara Ballard (D) Tom Sloan (R) Dennis Highberger (D) Ramon Gonzalez, Jr. (R) Marvin Kleeb (R) Scott Schwab (R) Fred Patton (R) Ron Highland (R) Dick Jones (R) Annie Tietze (D) Ken Corbet (R) Annie Kuether (D) Lane Hemsley (R) John Alcala (D) Harold Lane (D) Blaine Finch (R) Don Hill (R) Becky Hutchins (R) Randy Garber (R) Jerry Henry (D) Vern Swanson (R) Lonnie Clark (R) Sydney Carlin (D) Tom Phillips (R) Tom Moxley (R) J. R. Claeys (R) John Barker (R) Diana Dierks (R) Marc Rhoades (R) Les Mason (R) Don Schroeder (R) Will Carpenter (R) Peggy Mast (R) Kristey Williams (R) Ron Ryckman, Jr. (R) Ed Trimmer (D) Kasha Kelley (R) Blake Carpenter (R) Peter DeGraaf (R) Carolyn Bridges (D) Gail Finney (D) Steven Brunk (R) Jim Ward (D) Mark Kahrs (R) Joseph Scapa (R) Roderick Houston (D) Steve Huebert (R) Gene Suellentrop (R) John Carmichael (D) Joe Edwards (R) Mario Goico (R) Tom Sawyer (D) Brandon Whipple (D) Leslie Osterman (R) Steven Anthimides (R) Dennis Hedke (R) Daniel Hawkins (R) Joe Seiwert (R) Janice Pauls (D) Ponka-We Victors (D) Steven Becker (R) Mark Hutton (R) Sharon Schwartz (R) Susan Concannon (R) Steven C. Johnson (R) Troy Waymaster (R) Travis Couture-Lovelady (R) Sue Boldra (R) John Edmonds (R) Greg Lewis (R) Jack Thimesch (R) Ron Ryckman (R) Kyle Hoffman (R) John Ewy (R) Don Hineman (R) Bud Estes (R) Rick Billinger (R) Mike Kiegerl (R) Russell Jennings (R) John Doll (R) J. Stephen Alford (R) Shannon Francis (R)

Republican (92) Democratic (33) Kansas Legislature Kansas House of Representatives Kansas State Senate

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State of Kansas

Topeka (capital)

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Largest cities	(1) Wichita (2) Overland Park (3) Kansas City (4) Olathe (5) Topeka (6) Lawrence (7) Shawnee (8) Manhattan (9) Lenexa (10) Salina (11) Hutchinson (12) Leavenworth (13) Leawood (14) Dodge City (15) Garden City (16) Junction City (17) Emporia (18) Derby (19) Prairie Village (20) Liberal (21) Hays (22) Pittsburg (23) Gardner (24) Newton (25) Great Bend (26) McPherson (27) El Dorado (28) Ottawa (29) Winfield (30) Arkansas City (31) Andover (32) Lansing (33) Merriam {34} Atchison {35} Haysville {36} Parsons {37} Coffeyville {38} Mission {39} Independence {40} Augusta {41} Chanute {42} Wellington {43} Fort Scott {44} Park City {45} Bonner Springs {46} Valley Center {47} Pratt {48} Bel Aire {49} Roeland Park {50} Abilene

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Lists	List of counties in Kansas List of townships in Kansas List of cities in Kansas List of unincorporated communities in Kansas List of ghost towns in Kansas

Coordinates: 39°02′54″N 95°40′41″W / 39.04833°N 95.67806°W / 39.04833; -95.67806