.Our national debt is now soaring at more than $36 trillion dollars. Kansans and taxpayers across the country are already suffering the consequences of this recklessness and future generations are being burdened with debt. We need to use every tool at our disposal to rein in wasteful spending and be responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars and President-elect Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency will help do just that. I joined the newly formed House DOGE Caucus to support the President-elect in his mission to make the government work for the people again.

This week, I joined KNSS to discuss the DOGE Caucus, the upcoming legislative session and several other issues in Congress. You can listen to my full interview below.

.The Kansas Farm Service Agency (FSA) recently announced changes to give farmers more grazing options this winter. FSA granted Kansas a waiver that will allow Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) acres to be grazed from November to March on a case-by-case basis as approved by the FSA state executive director. The number of grazing days will be limited under existing policy and minimum cover requirements will still apply. Producers interested in receiving the waiver must apply at their local FSA office for the nonemergency grazing between Nov. 1 and March 1.

.For more than a year, seven Americans – three of whom are presumed to be dead – have been held hostage in Gaza following the horrendous Hamas attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. What these and other Americans held hostage by bad actors around the globe have suffered is unimaginable. Last week, I spoke on the floor of the House in support of a key bill to bring some relief to hostages when they return home and to prevent the support of terrorists who carry out the types of atrocities seen on Oct. 7. You can watch my full remarks below. 

H.R. 9495 – the Stop Terror-Financing and Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act – is a common sense bill that ends the tax-exempt status of organizations that support terrorist groups like Hamas. Second, the bill addresses a lingering issue for survivors and their families when they do return home – harassment from the IRS. Current law prevents the IRS from having the authority to extend relief to hostages beyond a single year, which is simply insufficient. The Americans held hostage in Gaza and elsewhere throughout the globe have suffered enough and don’t need their own government pursuing back taxes and fines upon their homecoming. I was proud to vote for this bill and see it pass on the House floor.