Reno County Commissioners were critical Wednesday, Feb. 11, of legislation introduced last week in Topeka that would limit local governments’ authority regarding land use and taxation. Commission Chairman Ron Hirst said it was important enough that he brought it up before business items on the commission’s meeting agenda, citing two specific bills: House Bill 2728 and House Bill 2745. H.B. 2728 was introduced Feb. 5 by District 97 Rep. Nick Hoheisel on behalf of the Consumer Energy Alliance, a lobbying group whose members include Chevron, ExxonMobil, and Shell USA. H.B. 2728 would forbid counties, cities, and townships from adopting moratoriums on any energy facility development—including electricity generation and battery storage—longer than 30 days without approval of the Kansas Corporation Commission, and such moratoriums would require additional approval from the KCC to extend beyond 120 days. It was referred to the Committee on Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications. No hearing was set as of Wednesday.
Read more: The Hutchinson Tribune
