GUEST COLUMN, Ron Ryckman, 38th District Senator
Welcome to the 2025 Session of our Kansas Legislature – and thank you for the honor and privilege of representing you in Topeka. As I start my 11th year in state office and 5th as your 38th District Senator, I will be helping lead the Committee on Local Government, Transparency and Ethics as its Vice-Chairman, along with membership on three other committees — Agriculture and Natural Resources, Commerce, and Judiciary. I am here to help you interact with your state government on any issue, however, so please stop by my Capitol Office in Room 236-E — right off the Rotunda; send me an email (
Chances are — if you call — the phone will be answered by my Staff Assistant, Ken Benjamin, who is a veteran of 12 years with the Legislature and can either schedule a meeting, take a message for me to call back, or directly refer your problem or question to the appropriate department or agency. Right now, in particular, I am hoping to generate interest in student constituents devoting a day of their time to being Senate Pages, so Ken is the one to get in touch with on that. We have secured initial openings for Wednesday, January 29 (Kansas Day.); Wednesday, February 19; and Thursday, February 27, so if you have a son or daughter or grandchild or close acquaintance you would like to see experience this special opportunity, let us know.Although the minimum age requirement is 12, the older kids seem to get a little more out of it, simply because they have taken classes on how our government works (or is supposed to.) The day typically ends around 3:30 p.m., leaving just enough time to get back home to Dodge or Meade or Liberal to put a post on Facebook telling friends about their “Day in the Life of a Legislator.”
My own “Days as a Legislator” have been relatively quiet this first week, especially with our going pro forma (no business conducted) and taking no votes. On Wednesday, we gathered jointly in the House Chamber to hear, first, a new “State of the Military” overview by Adjutant General Michael Venerdi, then the “State of the Judiciary” presentation by Chief Justice Marla Luckert, and finally that evening the “State of the State Address” from Governor Laura Kelly. There was a special tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr. at the Statehouse on Thursday, but — temperatures permitting — other local observances will be taking place “back home” on the official holiday this Monday as well. I hope you can find your own time during this first three-day weekend of 2025 to reflect on Dr. King's great legacy, especially his emphasis on “civility” in our public discourse, which was at the core of all for which he stood. While we hear a lot about that and “unity” and “common ground” these days, there just aren’t many leaders like him anymore. President Trump will undoubtedly make that same observation during his (First indoors since 1985.) Inauguration speech that happens to coincide.
While one would think both those goals could be achieved by our House and Senate Leadership working together with the Governor for something as uniformly sought as property tax relief, it all comes down to the details in how we get there. Right now, a constitutional amendment placing annual limits on valuations seems to have the most momentum, but that "big picture" approach often overlooks the important consequential impacts on local budget needs for basic services. Accordingly, even with increased Republican majorities, don’t look for anything too soon. Interestingly, our newly-created State Senate Committee on Government Efficiency, modeled after the federal-level Elon Mush-Vivek Ramaswamy Department of Government Efficiency or “DOGE,” is expected to have a lot of influence in developing both tax and budget solutions to our spending challenges. Do you suppose it will become so popular that in order to increase tourism our beloved “Dodge” will change its name to “DOGE City?”
Some interesting "tidbits” from our basically information-gathering three days of committee hearings came from Deputy Agriculture Secretary, Kelsey Olson, who reminded our Agriculture and Natural Resources panel that 90% of Kansas land is devoted to farming — and that leads to our being 7th nationally (33% or $4.64 billion of a total $14 billion) in Agriculture exports. As a former teacher, I often get fixated on facts and numbers, but simply find it fascinating and highly relevant to our area of the state that cattle, poultry, grain, processing, and machinery and equipment contribute so much to our economy. All of that is highly dependent on water, of course, causing me to be encouraged by the Governor’s budget proposal increasing annual spending on that resource by $30 million, while devoting $90 million to small-town infrastructure projects, conservation technology, and groundwater contamination clean-up. We’ll have to see where all of it goes — since her numbers still exceed projected revenues, but hey, it’s a start.
With more than a third (14) of the 40-Member Senate being new, I’m still getting acquainted with some of my colleagues, especially those who seek my advice. Not so with our very familiar Governor, however, whom I stopped in the hall briefly on Thursday to say “nice job” on her speech to us and ask whether she liked my tie. If my dear wife, Mary, whom I miss unceasingly, had been with me, I probably would have gotten an elbow. The Governor, though, for her part (sensing a probable “set up)” politely said “Not really: it’s a little bright and bold,” to which I responded while turning it over, “I was hoping you’d say ‘yes,’ because as you can see it is part of the (former conservative radio commentator) ‘Rush Limbaugh’ collection.” She smiled, as did the Lieutenant Governor’s Chief of Staff when I later pulled the same gesture during her stop by my office to request an appointment. Gotta have a sense of humor around here. None of that for our beloved Chiefs, though, as it will be strictly business during this weekend’s playoff game following the Sunflower Showdown. As always, I thank you again for allowing me to cheer with you as your “voice” in Topeka. Stay warm and safe.
