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Minutes for HB2541 - Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources
Short Title
Establishing the state conservation fund, the working lands conservation fund, the wildlife conservation fund and the Kansas outdoors fund, providing for the use of moneys from such funds, requiring certain reports to the governor and the legislature and authorizing certain transfers to and from such funds.
Minutes Content for Mon, Jan 22, 2024
Chairperson Rahjes opened the hearing on HB 2541. He asked David P. Wiese, Senior Assistant Revisor, Office of the Revisor of Statutes, who is not directly assigned to the Committee, to provide an overview. (Attachment 1) He stood for questions.
Chairperson Rahjes called upon the following individuals to give oral proponent testimony:
Representative Doug Blex, 12th District (Attachment 2) There were no questions.
Justin Cobb, Legislative Chair, Kansans for Conservation (Attachment 3) He stood for questions.
Josh Roe, CEO, Kansas Corn Growers Association/Kansas Farm Bureau/Kansas Association of Wheat Growers (Attachment 4) There were no questions.
Dan Meyerhoff, Executive Director, Kansas Association of Conservation Districts (Attachment 5) He stood for questions.
Erika Devore, Executive Director, Kansas Recreation and Park Association (Attachment 6) She stood for questions.
Abe Lollar, Biologist, Ducks Unlimited (Attachment 7) There were no questions.
Written-only proponent testimony was provided by the following:
Alfonso Leyva, Board President, Kansas Wildlife Federation (Attachment 8)
Barth Crouch, Chair, Ranchland Trust of Kansas (Attachment 9)
Ben Postlethwait, State Director, The Nature Conservancy (Attachment 10)
Clark H. Coan, Citizen (Attachment 11)
David J. Kraft, Executive Director, Kansas Grazing Lands Coalition (Attachment 12)
Dawn Buehler, Executive Director, Friends of the Kaw (Attachment 13)
Ellen Parker, Associate Attorney, WaterOne (Attachment 14)
Eran Sandquist, Director of Conservation Delivery - Midwest Region, Pheasants Forever, Inc. and Quail Forever (Attachment 15)
Floyd Schmidt, President, Kansas Forestry Association (Attachment 16)
Ginny Moore, Kansas State Director, The Conservation Fund (Attachment 17)
Jackie Augustine, Executive Director, Audubon of Kansas (Attachment 18)
James Millensifer, Board President, Ringneck Classic Inc. (Attachment 19)
Jennifer Simmelink, Coordinator, Kansas Soil Health Alliance (Attachment 20)
Kaitlin Stanley, Executive Director, Kansas Land Trust (Attachment 21)
Kurt Ratzlaff, Policy and Legislation Chair, Kansas Chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers (Attachment 22)
Laura Downey, Executive Director, Kansas Association for Conservation and Environmental Education (Attachment 23)
Mallory Lutz, Kansas Food and Farm Coalition (Attachment 24)
Matt Smith, Conservation Delivery Specialist, Playa Lakes Joint Venture (Attachment 25)
Nick Levendofsky, Executive Director, Kansas Farmers Union (Attachment 26)
Olivia Bergmeier, Executive Director, State Association of Kansas Watersheds (Attachment 27)
Sarah Hill-Nelson, The Bowersock Mills and Power Company (Attachment 28)
Tom Buller, Executive Director, Kansas Rural Center (Attachment 29)
William F. Bradley "Brad", President, FarmTender LLC (Attachment 30)
Zack Pistora, Legislative Director and State Lobbyist, Kansas Chapter of Sierra Club (Attachment 31)
Written-only neutral testimony was provided by:
Brad Loveless, Secretary, Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (Attachment 32)
Chairperson Rahjes introduced the following individuals to present oral opponent testimony:
Aaron Popelka, Vice President of Legal and Governmental Affairs, Kansas Livestock Association (Attachment 33) He stood for questions.
Angel (Georganna) Cushing, Allen, Kansas (Attachment 34) There were no questions.
Amy Siple, Private Citizen (Attachment 35) She stood for questions.
Marci Laffen, Private Citizen, Andover, Kansas (Attachment 36) There were no questions.
Testimony from written-only opponents was received from:
Dan Byfield, CEO, American Stewards of Liberty (Attachment 37)
Debbie Detmer, Citizen (Attachment 38)
Shad Sullivan, Property Rights Chair, R-CALF USA (Attachment 39)
Shanxi Omoniyi, Kansas Senate District 10 (Attachment 40)
Sheila Sumpter, Olathe, Kansas (Attachment 41)
Tracey Barton, Executive Director, The Kansas Natural Resource Coalition (Attachment 42), (Attachment 43)
Chairperson Rahjes closed the hearing on HB 2541.
Chairperson Rahjes announced the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee would meet tomorrow, January 23, 2024.
The meeting adjourned at 5:06 p.m.
Testimony received after the hearing on HB2541 closed:
Matthew T. Steele, CEO and Executive Director, Kansas Cattlemen's Association (Attachment 44)
