The House tax bill had support from lawmakers in both parties, including Democrat Rep. John Carmichael of Wichita, who said legislators need to get the state’s finances on solid ground.

“In the House of Representatives, there is a strong bipartisan coalition and commitment to try to fix this problem,” Carmichael said. “I’m willing to put my name on the line and vote yes even though it does represent an increase in taxes.”

Read the full story at http://kcur.org/post/kansas-house-approves-tax-increase-sends-bill-senate

“My compliments to people on both sides of the aisle for having the courage to take a hard vote today,” said Representative John Carmichael.

The tally on the vote was one person shy of being veto-proof. If it passes the final vote with the same majority, it will be headed across the hall to the senate.

Read the full story at http://www.kwch.com/content/news/Tax-bill-passes-in-the-house-413881223.html

Democratic Rep. John Carmichael added an amendment that classifies the records as investigatory. They would not be required to be released under an open records request but may be released if a court decides it’s in the public interest, he said.

Carmichael said he’s concerned about the decrease in transparency and that opening up the commission’s work to the public translates into confidence in the police. He said he understands the desire to protect officers’ privacy.

“I think some people will be justifiably disappointed at the compromises that we’ve reached here,” Carmichael said.

Read the full story at http://cjonline.com/news/2017-02-09/kansas-lawmakers-look-closing-police-commission-records

“There are a number of things that we can do to create jobs in Kansas through targeted stimulus of one type or another, and this bill is an example of that,” says Rep. John Carmichael, a Wichita Democrat. “But what I want to see us do is take a much broader look at the Kansas economy.”

That broader look, Carmichael says, should include rolling back the tax income cuts that Republican Gov. Sam Brownback pushed through the Legislature in 2012.

Read the full story at http://kmuw.org/post/vote-expected-bill-boost-aviation-employment-cost-concern

Then the committee members will vote. If no one gets a majority, the lowest vote-getter will be dropped and the delegates will vote again. That goes on until somebody emerges from a vote with a majority. In the Republicans’ case, that will be 64 votes.

Democrats are still working out their final rules, but the process will be similar to the one the Republicans are using, said state Rep. John Carmichael, D-Wichita, who is drafting the rules.

Read the full story at http://www.kansas.com/news/politics-government/article130968234.html

Rep. John Carmichael, D-Wichita, called this incident an “exemplification of why it is that amateurs should not be carrying guns.”

Read the full story at http://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article128885479.html

Rep. John Carmichael, a Wichita Democrat and an attorney, said local school boards have been making decisions on restroom use and should be allowed to continue. Under the bill, the attorney general, potentially hundreds of miles away, would be intervening in local situations, he said.

Carmichael also raised concern over the financial impact, saying the bill contains no offsetting funds for the additional work that would be generated for the attorney general’s office.

“It would impose a financial burden on the attorney general’s office to investigate and prosecute those complaints,” Carmichael said.

Read the full story at http://www.hutchnews.com/b96dc43b-bffa-5d65-9ac5-e159c121c80f.html

Rep. John Carmichael, D-Wichita, called this incident an “exemplification of why it is that amateurs should not be carrying guns.”

Read the full story at http://www.kansas.com/news/politics-government/article128885479.html

Rep. John Carmichael, D-Wichita, who has introduced a bill to strip Kobach of his prosecutorial power, said Kobach has dramatically overstated the frequency of voter fraud during his tenure as Kansas’ secretary of state.

Read the full story at http://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article128687579.html

Rep. John Carmichael, D-Wichita, who has introduced a bill to strip Kobach of his prosecutorial power, said Kobach has dramatically overstated the frequency of voter fraud during his tenure as secretary of state.

“He has claimed that voter fraud is rampant in this state, but he has little evidence to support that allegation,” Carmichael said. “He has brought charges now against, I believe, nine individuals, all of whom are United States citizens, most of whom are Republicans and the vast majority of them are white. And his office is now spending approximately a quarter of a million dollars a year prosecuting nine people and defending voting rights lawsuits.”

Read the full story at http://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article128754474.html