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Stephen Morris
Stephen Morris is a former Republican member of the Kansas State Senate, representing District 39 from 1993 to 2013 and serving as president of the Senate from 2004 to 2013. Previously, from 1977 to 1993, he was the president and vice-president of the Unified School District 210 Board of Education.
Morris was defeated in the August 7, 2012, Republican primary. He was one of 20 Kansas legislative incumbents defeated that night.[1]
Committee assignments
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Morris served on these committees:
- Agriculture
- Federal and State Affairs
- Interstate Cooperation, Chair
- KPERS Select, Chair
- Joint Committee on Legislative Coordinating Council, Vice Chair
- Natural Resources
- Organization, Calendar and Rules, Chair
- Joint Committee on Pensions, Investments and Benefits, Vice Chair
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Morris served on these committees:
- Interstate Cooperation (Chair)
- Organization, Calendar and Rules (Chair)
- Joint Committee on Pensions, Investments and Benefits (Chair)
- Joint Committee on Legislative Coordinating Council (Vice Chair)
- Agriculture
- Federal and State Affairs
- Natural Resources
Issues
Sen. Morris did not list his issue positions on his website.
See: Stephen Morris' issue positions from Project Vote Smart
Legislation sponsored or co-sponsored by Sen. Morris included:[2]
- An amendment to create a budget stabilization fund[3]
Political positions
Debt negotiations
Morris was one of the members of a bipartisan group organized by the National Conference of Legislatures called the Task Force on Federal Deficit Reduction (TFFDR). Consisting of 23 state lawmakers from 17 states,[4] the group went to Capitol Hill on September 21, 2011 to urge the Congressional Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction to cut the nation's debt but not impose severe budget cuts on the states.
TFFDR urged the Committee to consider new revenue as a possibility, instead of just focusing on budget cuts as House Speaker John Boehner had proposed. The group specifically proposed passage of the "Main Street Fairness Act," which would allow states to tax online retailers.[5]
Education spending
Morris said one of the few options for legislators was to start cutting services that in the past had been off limits. In Kansas, about 85 percent of the state’s general fund budget is spent on education and Medicaid and another 6 percent goes to fund public employee pensions.
Morris said everything else is funded with the remaining 9 percent and many of those other functions, such as prisons, have very little flexibility.
"Some cuts have been made in programs, including education, but deeper cuts are inevitable," Morris said.
“At least in the near term, we will see reduced levels of services in most states and most programs,” Morris said. “The economy is improving, but it hasn’t improved to the point where there’s very much difference.”[6]
Elections
2012
- See also: Kansas State Senate elections, 2012
Targeted
Morris was one of eight Republican incumbents that the Kansas Chamber of Commerce Political Action Committee targeted for defeat in 2012. It saw the eight incumbents as being impediments to private sector job creation and made $1,000 donations and in-kind contributions to the Republican challengers.[7]
Morris ran for re-election in 2012. He was defeated by Larry Powell in the August 7 Republican primary.[8]
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
 Larry Powell |
51.9% | 5,106 |
| Stephen R. Morris Incumbent | 48.1% | 4,737 |
| Total Votes | 9,843 | |
2008
On November 4, 2008, Morris was re-elected to the 39th District Seat in the Kansas State Senate with no opposition.[9] He raised $184,420 for his campaign.[10]
| Kansas State Senate, District 39 (2008) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Stephen Morris (R)
|
18,215 | 100% | ||
Campaign themes
2012
On his campaign website, Morris listed three main issues:[11]
- Strong Economy: "Steve fights for jobs in southwest Kansas. He fought for the Abengoa Cellulosic Ethanol Plant in Hugoton, the Holcomb Sunflower Electric Power Plant and regulatory relief for irrigators to ensure prosperity in our region."
- Strong Schools: "Steve believes the future of our state and our economic growth relies on a quality public education. Steve supported additional funding for our K-12 classrooms, increased the focus on career and technical education opportunities and advocated targeted investments in our state’s colleges and universities."
- Strong for Southwest Kansas: "Rural Kansas needs Steve's leadership and integrity in Topeka. Steve's voting record in the Senate is consistently pro-life. As Kansas Senate President he serves the people of southwest Kansas with respect, integrity and pride."
Campaign finance summary
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Scorecards
Kansas Economic Freedom Index
The Kansas Economic Freedom Index is a project of Bob Weeks, creator of the blog Voice For Liberty in Wichita. The purpose of the Index "is to identify Kansas legislators who vote in favor of economic freedom — and those who don’t."[12] Legislators receive a rating from 0-100 percent based on their votes on bills promoting economic freedom.
2010
Stephen Morris received a rating of 7% on the 2010 Kansas Economic Freedom Index.[13]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term Stephen + Morris + Kansas + Senate
External links
- Sen. Morris' website
- Kansas State Senate Website
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Project Vote Smart Legislative Profile
- Campaign contributions: 2004, 2006, 2008
Footnotes
- ↑ Huffington Post, "Steve Morris, Kansas Senate President, Blames Moderates' Defeat On Conservative Attack Ads," August 8, 2012
- ↑ Legislation
- ↑ Bill 1614
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "Task Force on Federal Deficit Reduction," accessed May 15, 2014
- ↑ Stateline, "State legislators want revenue on table in debt talks," September 22, 2011
- ↑ "Kansas Senate Pres. Morris: Deeper Cuts Necessary, Including Education," Kansas Watchdog, December 10, 2010
- ↑ Lawrence Journal World, "Business lobby, aided by $36,000 from Koch Industries, targets eight Republican incumbents in state Senate for defeat," January 10, 2012
- ↑ Kansas Secretary of State, "2012 Primary Election - Official Vote Totals," accessed March 29, 2014
- ↑ Kansas Secretary of State, "2008 General Election - Official Vote Totals," accessed March 29, 2014
- ↑ Follow the Money, "Kansas 2008 - General Election Results," accessed March 29, 2014
- ↑ Steve Morris, "The issues," accessed July 26, 2012
- ↑ Kansas Economic Freedom Index, "Homepage," accessed January 13, 2012
- ↑ Kansas Economic Freedom Index, "2010 Kansas Economic Freedom Index," May 18, 2010
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Kansas State Senate District 39 1993–2013 |
Succeeded by Larry Powell (R) |
