Top 5 Kansas news stories
February 25 2026
Kelly Threatens State E15 Waiver as Congress Stalls on Year-Round Ethanol Sales
Kelly Signs Emergency Order to Speed Wildfire Relief Across Western Kansas
Kansas Senators Demand Three-Year Data Center Moratorium Amid Water and Power Concerns
Salina Voters Reject Pit Bull Ban Repeal, Locking Ordinance in Place Until 2036
Kansas House and Senate Swap Dozens of Priority Bills as Turnaround Deadline Passes
Kelly Threatens State E15 Waiver as Congress Stalls on Year-Round Ethanol Sales
TOPEKA, Kan. — Gov. Laura Kelly on Tuesday warned she will give "strong consideration" to seeking a state-level EPA waiver allowing year-round sales of E15 ethanol-blend gasoline if Congress does not act by an April 1 deadline, a move that would place Kansas alongside eight Midwestern states that have already secured such approval. Kelly said annual emergency waivers issued from 2022 through 2025 have left fuel retailers and farmers in limbo, while only about 150 of the state's roughly 2,000 fueling stations currently offer E15. The push comes as the Kansas Senate advances SB 498, a 5-cent-per-gallon retailer tax credit for E15 sales, and as bipartisan federal legislation backed by Sens. Jerry Moran and Roger Marshall and Rep. Sharice Davids remains stalled in committee.
Greg Loving
Kelly Signs Emergency Order to Speed Wildfire Relief Across Western Kansas
TOPEKA, Kan. — As dry conditions and high winds continue to threaten western and central Kansas, Gov. Laura Kelly signed Executive Order 26-0 to expedite emergency assistance for wildfire relief. The order waives certain licensing and hours-of-service requirements for commercial motor vehicle carriers and drivers actively assisting with wildfire relief efforts. "As Kansas communities work to contain wildfires and recover from their impact, we must remove any barriers that hinder our emergency response," Kelly said. The move allows utility trucks, heavy equipment haulers and supply vehicles to bypass standard regulations to reach affected areas more quickly. The executive action comes as the state endures a volatile fire season. The waiver is effective immediately and is designed to remain in place through the duration of the emergency response phase.
Greg Loving
Kansas Senators Demand Three-Year Data Center Moratorium Amid Water and Power Concerns
Kansas State Senator Michael Murphy (R-Sylvia) on February 24 called on the county commissions of Reno, Kingman, and Barber counties to adopt a three-year moratorium on new data center development, citing concerns over water consumption, electricity demand, and a lack of transparency from large out-of-state corporations that he said have left residents with unanswered questions. Murphy warned that a single data center could consume more power than a new plant planned for Reno County could produce, and called for "meaningful, thorough scientific studies" before further development proceeds, adding that he is prepared to join Senate Majority Leader Chase Blasi — who made a similar request of the Sedgwick County Commission a day earlier — in introducing state legislation if local moratoriums are not enacted. Sedgwick County Farm Bureau Executive Director Anthony Seiler said his organization wants answers about impacts to the electrical grid, roads, drainage, and emergency management before any projects move forward. The Sedgwick County Commission, which placed a 90-day permit suspension on data centers in January, has declined to comment.
Greg Loving
Sen. Murphy's Office
Salina Voters Reject Pit Bull Ban Repeal, Locking Ordinance in Place Until 2036
SALINA, Kan. — Unofficial results from the Saline County Election Office show that Salina voters chose to keep the city's breed-specific pit bull ban, with 5,329 votes against repeal and 4,123 in favor. The mail-ballot special election, held Tuesday, asked whether to remove all breed-specific language from Chapter 7 of the municipal code, effectively ending the ban enacted in 2004. Approximately 270 provisional ballots remain to be counted on Monday, March 2, at 9 a.m., though the margin makes a reversal unlikely. Saline County Clerk Jamie Doss encouraged voters who may have forgotten to sign their ballots to contact the election office. The result is binding for at least 10 years under state law, meaning the commission cannot revisit the ordinance before 2036.
Greg Loving
Kansas House and Senate Swap Dozens of Priority Bills as Turnaround Deadline Passes
TOPEKA, Kan. — The Kansas Capitol was a flurry of procedural activity as the House and Senate exchanged massive slates of legislation, signaling a pivotal shift in the 2026 session. With the turnaround deadline — the point by which most nonexempt bills must pass their chamber of origin — passed last week, both chambers spent significant floor time reading in bills from the opposite body. In the House, Speaker Dan Hawkins, R-Wichita, presided over the introduction of 20 Senate bills. The influx includes a wide range of policy proposals. The arrival of these measures sets the stage for House committees to begin the vetting process, where the Republican supermajority will decide which Senate priorities align with their caucus goals and which will stall before reaching the governor's desk. Across the rotunda, the Senate received an even larger volume of legislation, reading in more than 35 House bills ranging from agriculture to tax policy, reflecting the House's heavy legislative output in recent days. Senate leadership will now assign these measures to committees, where Senate Republicans often take a more deliberative — and occasionally more conservative — approach to House-passed measures.
Greg Loving
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