Kansas: It's time to put the brakes on the domestic partner ban

By Diane Silver

Very briefly: While I was gone, the House Federal and State Affairs Committee passed a bill banning domestic partner registries in the entire state of Kansas.

The Kansas Equality Coalition has put out a call for action:

HB2299, the domestic partner registry ban, now goes to the House floor. As the Legislature is in its final days of the 2007 session, there is a chance, though slim, that this bill will not be acted on by the House until next year. If and when HB2299 is passed by the House, it must then go to the Senate, where it will be debated in committee before final action by the full Senate.

The short version is: There is still a long way for HB2299 to travel before passage, and WE STILL HAVE A CHANCE TO STOP IT.

Stopping HB2299 will take effort from all of us and more. Please contact your state representative IMMEDIATELY and tell them to vote NO on HB2299. Ask your friends and supporters to make some calls and send notes also.

Phone calls and HAND-WRITTEN notes are best; emails and form letters are ignored and are often counter-productive.

If you don't know who your state representative is, you can find out here.

For contact information, the full House roster is here.

All written correspondence should be addressed to your representative (be sure to use the right room number from the link above), and mailed to:

Kansas State Capitol
300 SW 10th St.
Topeka, Kansas 66612

Immediate action can slow or stop this bill, but only if you act today!

This bill is an underhanded way to block the city of Lawrence from passing a proposed registry. This is brought to you by the Republican lawmakers who believe in freedom and the home-rule powers of cities, that is, as long as these same legislators agree with what the cities want to do. Contact your representative today.