Paid for by Connie O'Brien for Kansas House; Medeana Knipp, Treasurer
District 42 is located in northeastern Kansas, incorporating parts of Leavenworth County, including the Cities of Linwood, Tonganoxie, Lansing, and Leavenworth, along with the Townships of Alexandria, High Prairie, Reno, Sherman, Stranger, Tonganoxie and Delaware.
District 42 has a total population of around 20,878.
District 42 has a total population of around 20,878.
June 24, 2010
To the People of the 42nd District and Kansas...
Connie O’Brien Announces for Re-election as State Representative, 42nd District.
I would like to thank the people of the 42nd District for giving me the honor of representing them in the Kansas legislature these past two years. The 2010 Kansas Legislature officially adjourned on May 28th , "Sine Die", and now it's campaign season for those of us who would like to return to Topeka in 2011. During the past two years there have been some successes and some very big failures. In 2009, after a hard-fought battle, we finally passed the Comprehensive Energy Expansion Bill. Passage of this bill will insure that Kansans have abundant and affordable energy far into the future. Expanding our energy production capabilities will keep us from having to import energy to meet our growing demands. Consumers in states that import energy pay a much higher rate for the energy they use. While Sebelius was governor, opposition from the Democrats and a few Republicans remained strong. We had the votes to pass the energy bill, but we didn't have the votes to override her threatened veto. When Governor Sebelius left town to become Health and Human Services Secretary for the Obama administration, the opposition left with her. I believe in developing our energy resources and passage of the "Comprehensive" Energy Expansion Bill was one of our greatest successes in 2009.
The top issue facing legislators these past two years has been the budget. The declining economy has resulted in job loss and declining state revenues. Couple that with the fact that spending in Kansas increased by 48% from 2005 to 2009. By law Kansas must have a balanced budget, so the question for legislators became: would they choose to balance the budget by reducing the state's runaway spending, or would they choose the easy fix of raising taxes? Kansas legislators were not alone in facing this problem. Virtually every state in this great country of ours is experiencing tough economic times. In 2009 the Kansas legislature failed to adequately reduce spending, but they avoided the temptation to raise taxes. Unfortunately that was not the case in 2010. Instead of reducing spending, Governor Parkinson called for a one-cent increase in sales tax in order to balance the Kansas budget. There were not enough conservative legislators to prevail in stopping the second largest tax increase in Kansas history. The vote to raise the state sales tax from 5.3 cents to 6.3 cents passed in the Kansas House by a vote of 64 to 61. It was close, but fiscal moderates prevailed. A majority of the democrats were joined by a few republicans forming a coalition which gave us additional spending and a tax increase. One cent may not seem like much until you realize that it equates to a 19% increase in taxes on everything we will purchase starting in July. Kansas citizens now have the distinction of being the highest-taxed citizens in the mid west. This tax increase puts Kansas businesses at a great disadvantage. They must now compete with neighboring states, all of which have lower taxes than Kansas. If you are like me, you're tired of the runaway spending and taxation that is infecting Washington and Kansas. For me, the apparent lack of resolve, on the part of a very slim majority of legislators, to balance our budget without increasing taxes was the biggest disappointment in 2010. I am renewing my pledge to do everything in my power to reduce government spending and lower taxes. There are many other important issues facing Kansas, but the economy and the state budget remain at the top of the list. I would like to return to Topeka to fight the good fight for fiscal responsibility.
During these past two years I have enjoyed the support of family, friends and neighbors. I have truly been blessed. Without the help of those who gave of their time, energy, and resources, this would not have been possible. THANK YOU! And now I ask for your continued encouragement, advice, support, and more importantly, your prayers. Kansas is going to have a new governor, and I believe we will actually begin to move Kansas in a positive direction.
I hope to be back on the front line with those who will have the task of finding equitable solutions to the many problems facing Kansas. I'm looking forward to serving the people of the 42nd District and the people of Kansas. You can reach me at: connie@connieobrien.net.
Please, keep me in your prayers.
- Connie O'Brien
To the People of the 42nd District and Kansas...
Connie O’Brien Announces for Re-election as State Representative, 42nd District.
I would like to thank the people of the 42nd District for giving me the honor of representing them in the Kansas legislature these past two years. The 2010 Kansas Legislature officially adjourned on May 28th , "Sine Die", and now it's campaign season for those of us who would like to return to Topeka in 2011. During the past two years there have been some successes and some very big failures. In 2009, after a hard-fought battle, we finally passed the Comprehensive Energy Expansion Bill. Passage of this bill will insure that Kansans have abundant and affordable energy far into the future. Expanding our energy production capabilities will keep us from having to import energy to meet our growing demands. Consumers in states that import energy pay a much higher rate for the energy they use. While Sebelius was governor, opposition from the Democrats and a few Republicans remained strong. We had the votes to pass the energy bill, but we didn't have the votes to override her threatened veto. When Governor Sebelius left town to become Health and Human Services Secretary for the Obama administration, the opposition left with her. I believe in developing our energy resources and passage of the "Comprehensive" Energy Expansion Bill was one of our greatest successes in 2009.
The top issue facing legislators these past two years has been the budget. The declining economy has resulted in job loss and declining state revenues. Couple that with the fact that spending in Kansas increased by 48% from 2005 to 2009. By law Kansas must have a balanced budget, so the question for legislators became: would they choose to balance the budget by reducing the state's runaway spending, or would they choose the easy fix of raising taxes? Kansas legislators were not alone in facing this problem. Virtually every state in this great country of ours is experiencing tough economic times. In 2009 the Kansas legislature failed to adequately reduce spending, but they avoided the temptation to raise taxes. Unfortunately that was not the case in 2010. Instead of reducing spending, Governor Parkinson called for a one-cent increase in sales tax in order to balance the Kansas budget. There were not enough conservative legislators to prevail in stopping the second largest tax increase in Kansas history. The vote to raise the state sales tax from 5.3 cents to 6.3 cents passed in the Kansas House by a vote of 64 to 61. It was close, but fiscal moderates prevailed. A majority of the democrats were joined by a few republicans forming a coalition which gave us additional spending and a tax increase. One cent may not seem like much until you realize that it equates to a 19% increase in taxes on everything we will purchase starting in July. Kansas citizens now have the distinction of being the highest-taxed citizens in the mid west. This tax increase puts Kansas businesses at a great disadvantage. They must now compete with neighboring states, all of which have lower taxes than Kansas. If you are like me, you're tired of the runaway spending and taxation that is infecting Washington and Kansas. For me, the apparent lack of resolve, on the part of a very slim majority of legislators, to balance our budget without increasing taxes was the biggest disappointment in 2010. I am renewing my pledge to do everything in my power to reduce government spending and lower taxes. There are many other important issues facing Kansas, but the economy and the state budget remain at the top of the list. I would like to return to Topeka to fight the good fight for fiscal responsibility.
During these past two years I have enjoyed the support of family, friends and neighbors. I have truly been blessed. Without the help of those who gave of their time, energy, and resources, this would not have been possible. THANK YOU! And now I ask for your continued encouragement, advice, support, and more importantly, your prayers. Kansas is going to have a new governor, and I believe we will actually begin to move Kansas in a positive direction.
I hope to be back on the front line with those who will have the task of finding equitable solutions to the many problems facing Kansas. I'm looking forward to serving the people of the 42nd District and the people of Kansas. You can reach me at: connie@connieobrien.net.
Please, keep me in your prayers.
- Connie O'Brien