On Wednesday last week, the House passed H.R. 4118, the SIMPLE Fairness Act, by a vote of 250-160. The SIMPLE Fairness Act was introduced by my Kansas colleague, Rep. Lynn Jenkins, and would delay for one year the implementation of the penalty tax for failing to comply with the individual health insurance mandate. I voted "Yes" on this bill.

 

On the same day, President Obama granted another delay in the Affordable Care Act - giving insurance companies the ability to continue selling and providing insurance plans that do not fulfill the ACA's standards until 2016. The unilateral delay eliminates the chance that insurance companies would again send millions of Americans cancellation notices similar to what we've seen over the past few months.

 

The president continues to grant delays and exemptions to the Affordable Care Act, but has yet to grant the American people the same fair treatment under the law. The House passed the individual mandate penalty tax delay to again highlight the need for the American people to be given the same reprieve from penalties as has already been given to business and special interest groups.

 

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I was honored to speak on the House floor early last week about the legacy of Kansas native, and Jayhawk, Senator Bob Dole. Senator Dole is a true public servant in every sense of the word. Last Monday marked the 10-year anniversary of the Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics on the beautiful University of Kansas West Campus. The mission of the Dole Institute is to promote political and civic participation as well as civil discourse in a bi-partisan and balanced manner.

 

Thank you for all your service to Kansas and to our country, Sen. Dole. Click here, or on the image above to watch my full remarks from the House floor.

President Obama finally released the details of his 2015 budget proposal last week. It’s a month overdue, but as the saying goes, it’s better late than never.  But in this case, this is a budget that never should have been released. It is a blueprint that includes more government spending and higher taxes on Americans.

 

This is a budget that is out of touch with an economy that isn’t growing and with a workforce that is simply giving up on finding employment. We need to get back on the right track, with an agenda that will keep taxes low, curb out-of-control government spending and create an atmosphere that will add jobs and opportunities for families in Kansas.

 

As your Member of Congress, I’ll continue my work to bring fiscal responsibility back to Washington because it’s not too late to save our country.

Thanks to members of the Johnson County Board of County Commissioners for coming by my office last week to discuss their Johnson County legislative platform. They were in Washington, DC to participate in the National Association of Counties legislative conference. We visited about EPA mandates and storm water treatment, the upcoming highway bill and transportation needs in Johnson County, as well as mental health and juvenile justice collaboration.

 

It was good to visit about these important Johnson County issues with Chairman Ed Eilert, Commissioner Jim Allen, Commissioner Steve Kilka and Deputy County Manager Penny Postoak Ferguson.

Last week, I attended an Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture hearing with the Honorable Phyllis Fong, Inspector General for the US Department of Agriculture. As part of the hearing, we discussed the important oversight role the Inspector General’s office plays within federal agencies. The primary role of the Inspector General is to preform audits and investigations of their respective agencies, ultimately referring fraud cases for prosecution and providing the Administration and Congress with recommendations on how to make the Department more efficient.

 

As Vice Chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, these hearings provide me important information to ensure the Kansas agriculture community has a strong voice on the Appropriations Committee.

I spoke to a group of American Israel Public Affairs Committee members last week. We discussed how important our alliance with Israel is for our national security and stability in the world, the threat of an Iranian nuclear program, and the prospects for the peace process in Israel.

 

Thank you to those who came to Washington, DC from Kansas to focus on these important issues.

I enjoyed speaking with members of the National Kidney Foundation, Inc. – including Sharon Lagas, Mark Greene and 3rd District resident Nicole Harr - last week in my Washington, DC office. We discussed the importance of kidney disease research and the work being done at the National Institutes of Health.

 

Thank you for your important advocacy.

Thanks to several members of the Student Senate of the University of Kansas for stopping by my Washington, DC office to discuss higher education issues, including student loan rates, the costs of attending college, and job opportunities and the economic climate for new college grads.

 

As a former Student Body President at the University of Kansas, I enjoyed speaking with these student leaders about their experiences and encouraged them to remain involved. Thanks to Student Body President Marcus Tetwiler, Student Body Vice President Emma Halling, Eric Hurtt, Michael Graham, Marquise Paige and Morgan Said for their work at KU. Rock Chalk Jayhawk!

On Saturday morning, I attended the Johnson County Public Policy Council Legislative Breakfast in Overland Park. I spoke for a few minutes and gave a legislative update about current happenings in Washington, DC and how policies from the nation's capital will impact Johnson County residents. Several other members of the Kansas State Legislature attended as well to speak about legislative action from the statehouse.

 

Thank you to everyone who attended and for your work on behalf of all Johnson County residents.

I had the opportunity to meet U.S. Olympic gold-medal and silver-medal winning softball player Jennie Finch in Washington last week. She was on Capitol Hill with members of the Sports & Fitness Industry Association pitching Congressional support for initiatives that promote physical activity and wellness.

 

Thanks for all your work and advocacy on these important topics, Jennie.