Christopher
03-20-2009, 06:17 PM
Kansas lawmakers question whether Johnson County nonprofit benefited from political ties to Sebelius
By DAVID KLEPPER
The Star’s Topeka correspondent
(look, look, the Star actually dispatched a reporter instead of using AP!)
OPEKA | Kansas lawmakers want to know whether a Johnson County nonprofit used its political connections to Gov. Kathleen Sebelius to get a special funding increase last fall.
But a hearing into the matter Wednesday left lawmakers with more questions than answers.
Lenexa-based Community Living Opportunities was awarded nearly $713,000 in extra Medicaid funds. The group serves developmentally disabled Kansans, primarily in Johnson and Douglas counties.
At the time, the agency’s board of directors included Kansas Democratic Party Chairman Larry Gates, a Sebelius confidant, and his former law partner, Dan Biles, whom Sebelius appointed to the state Supreme Court this year. Lew Perkins, the University of Kansas athletic director, also serves on the board. Biles has since stepped down from the board.
More at the Star http://www.kansascity.com/115/story/1094370.html
By DAVID KLEPPER
The Star’s Topeka correspondent
(look, look, the Star actually dispatched a reporter instead of using AP!)
OPEKA | Kansas lawmakers want to know whether a Johnson County nonprofit used its political connections to Gov. Kathleen Sebelius to get a special funding increase last fall.
But a hearing into the matter Wednesday left lawmakers with more questions than answers.
Lenexa-based Community Living Opportunities was awarded nearly $713,000 in extra Medicaid funds. The group serves developmentally disabled Kansans, primarily in Johnson and Douglas counties.
At the time, the agency’s board of directors included Kansas Democratic Party Chairman Larry Gates, a Sebelius confidant, and his former law partner, Dan Biles, whom Sebelius appointed to the state Supreme Court this year. Lew Perkins, the University of Kansas athletic director, also serves on the board. Biles has since stepped down from the board.
More at the Star http://www.kansascity.com/115/story/1094370.html