Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee members met for an organizational session in which senators introduced themselves, committee staff identified roles, the chair outlined committee rules, and two bills were introduced without objection.

The committee’s chair, Senator Virgil Peck, opened the meeting by asking members to state their names, districts and backgrounds and by directing members to the committee rules, saying, “I will direct your attention, committee, to the rules that you should have in front of you.” Peck said he expects members to address colleagues and staff by title rather than first name, adding, “I expect you committee members to address conferees each other and staff by title not by first name.”

Why it matters: organizational meetings set procedures and staff relationships that affect how legislation is heard and debated. Committee leadership also scheduled a report from the Kansas Department of Agriculture at the next meeting, signaling a forthcoming informational briefing that could shape future hearings.

Most important actions

- Senator Kenny Titus requested introduction of 25RS03 100 regarding multi‑year flex accounts; the chair asked if there was objection and, seeing none, the bill was introduced as a committee bill.

- Sean Miller, representing the Kansas Association of Conservation Districts, requested introduction of 25RS0252 concerning the funding formula for aid to conservation districts. Miller said the measure previously passed the House and “got to the Senate very late” before being enacted for one year in a budget proviso; the committee introduced it with no objection.

Committee organization and staff

Members from across Kansas briefly described their districts and backgrounds. Vice Chair Senator Larry Alley, Senator Mary Ware, Senator Mike Fagg, Senator Ron Ryckman Jr. (identified in the transcript as Ron Reitman), Senator Doug Shane, Senator Brad Starnes, Senator Craig Bowser, Senator Marci Francisco (listed in the transcript as Marcy Francisco), Senator Tory Marie Blue, and others introduced themselves and noted experience ranging from production agriculture to urban constituencies and professional backgrounds in education, banking and construction.

Chair Peck also asked staff to introduce themselves. Patty Mills identified herself as the committee assistant; Elena Rutter and Jacob Quispy introduced themselves from the Kansas Legislative Research Department; Heather O’Hara and Tamara Lawrence each identified their roles in legislative research and the Office of the Revisor of Statutes. Peck emphasized staff are resources for members and noted that the Revisor and Research staff work for the legislature, not external interest groups.

Rules, floor decorum and procedure

Peck described a procedural difference for this committee: when he recognizes a member, he expects that member to treat the recognition as a transfer of the floor and to address colleagues and staff by title. He said he will step in if a member is wasting committee time and that announcements of meetings will generally be published on the legislative calendar unless there is a significant change.

Upcoming briefing

Peck announced the committee will hear a report from the Kansas Department of Agriculture the following day and said he expects Deputy Secretary Kelsey Olsen to present the department’s findings to the committee.

Ending

The chair concluded the meeting after the introductions and bill‑introduction requests, and the committee adjourned to reconvene the following morning.