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Photo by Elliot J. Sutherland/The Ottawa Herald
Bill Otto, R-LeRoy, shakes hands with a Franklin County resident Tuesday night during a candidate forum at the Franklin County Office Annex, 1418 S. Main St., Ottawa. Otto, along with nine other candidates for state offices, turned out for the forum.
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Candidates talk policy, answer questions at forum
By JODIE GARCIA, Herald Staff Writer
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Coal-fired plants, illegal immigration and transportation were just some of the statewide issues discussed Tuesday night by legislators and hopefuls during a candidates’ forum in Ottawa.
The forum — sponsored by the Ottawa Area Chamber of Commerce’s Legislative Action Committee, the Franklin County Farm Bureau and the Ottawa Warren Black American Legion Post — attracted many candidates for local and state races, as well as a large crowd.
Members of the audience had an opportunity to submit questions to candidates.
Legislators and their opponents who attended Tuesday included:
Incumbent Rep. Bill Otto, LeRoy, and his Republican challenger, Sheila Lampe, Piqua, for the 9th House District, which includes southwestern Franklin County. Democrat Jon Dunbar, Colony, also attended.
In the 5th District, which covers southern Ottawa and Franklin County, incumbent Democrat Rep. Bill Feuerborn, Garnett, attended, but the two Republicans vying for the nomination, Cara Polsley, Ottawa, and Jeannie Plaisted, Osawatomie, did not.
Other races that will be decided in November, but whose candidates attended, included:
• 10th House District (north Ottawa and northern Franklin County) — John Coen, R-Wellsville; and Tony Brown, D-Baldwin City.
• 59th House District (western Franklin County) — Jim Irey, D-Melvern; and William Prescott, R-Osage City.
• 12th Senate District (all but southwestern Franklin County) — Pat Apple, D-Louisburg; and Andrew Rickel, D-Garnett.
• Robert Garrard, Libertarian candidate for the 2nd U.S. House District.
Some questions posed to the candidates Tuesday for discussion included:
• Whether they support coal-fired plants for electric power.
Rickel said he didn’t support such plants, calling coal a “dirty energy.” He said the state should look at other forms of energy like solar, wind and nuclear, and that the legislature spent too much time in the 2008 session on coal-fired plants.
Others cited the importance of considering alternative choices to coal, but they also noted the economic development opportunities such a plant would have brought to the state and especially western Kansas.
“We need to be open for business,” Coen said.
• What cuts should be made in state spending and what programs are most critical?
All candidates said taxes shouldn’t be raised, and several said all state programs should be scrutinized to determine where best to make cuts that would have the least impact on Kansans.
Irey said he’s most concerned about keeping adequate funding for education, along with transportation. He said cutting all programs across the board by a certain percentage might be the most fair way to handle cuts, if it comes to that.
• What, if any, new transportation program could be proposed next year?
Most candidates said the legislature should finish its current transportation plan before tackling a new one.
Feuerborn said the state should concentrate on maintenance and while discussions on a new plan can’t hurt, he didn’t anticipate any action in the coming year.
“My concern isn’t so much about a new comprehensive plan but finishing the one we have and paying for it,” he said.
Otto agreed. He said the next comprehensive plan should look at such aspects as carpool and bus lanes, as well as various sources of revenue in light of increasing fuel prices.
• What the state’s involvement should be with illegal immigration.
Prescott discussed a need for a streamlined visa program and a need to hold employers accountable for knowingly hiring undocumented workers, though he acknowledged that can be difficult.
“Illegal is illegal,” he said.
Several candidates said the state can’t do much with illegal immigration until the federal government does.
Herald staff writer Jodie Garcia can be e-mailed at jgarcia@ottawaherald.com.
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