Dylan Lysen
Social Services and Criminal Justice Reporter, Kansas News ServiceAs the Kansas social services and criminal justice reporter, I want to inform our audience about how the state government wants to help its residents and keep their communities safe. Sometimes that means I follow developments in the Legislature and explain how lawmakers alter laws and services of the state government. Other times, it means questioning the effectiveness of state programs and law enforcement methods. And most importantly, it includes making sure the voices of everyday Kansans are heard. You can reach me at dlysen@kcur.org, 816-235-8027 or on Threads, @DylanLysen.
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The state is enacting a plan to overhaul its online security of sensitive information, partly in response to an attack on Kansas' courts last year. -
Demand for homes in Kansas is high, but construction of new homes has been slow for more than a decade. Kansas saw a significant drop in home construction after the Great Recession, contributing to a housing shortage today that drives up prices. -
Advocates say homelessness in Kansas is mainly caused by a lack of affordable housing, not issues like mental health. Efforts to increase housing stock have built thousands of new units, but it’s not enough, and some communities oppose new developments. -
Critics argue adding additional fees and interest on unpaid traffic fines is unfair to low-income drivers. And it may not even be legal under Kansas law. -
The Clay Counts Coalition is launching a program aimed at raising awareness and improving access to mental health services for its rural agricultural community. -
A bill in the Kansas Legislature would have provided millions of dollars to build homeless shelters across the state. But lawmakers let the bill stall in committee and left Topeka for the year without taking any meaningful action to address the growing problem. -
Kansas Turnpike Authority officials say the updated tollway will be more convenient for drivers because they don’t need to stop at a tollbooth when exiting the turnpike. -
The Kansas Department of Corrections is using opioid settlement funds to pay for a program aimed at reducing opioid overdose deaths. Opioids like fentanyl are a major driver of rapidly rising overdose deaths in Kansas. -
Kansas will be the first state to let foster teens pick a family without losing foster care benefitsOlder foster children in Kansas who face aging out of care will soon be able to choose their own families. In the past, they had to sometimes choose between being adopted or keeping important foster care benefits like free college tuition. -
Traffic tickets for low-income drivers can snowball into thousands of dollars of debt and revoked licenses. A new law aims to reduce fines and fees to help get them reinstated.
