Congress

Congress has approved free trade agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama, ending a four-year drought in the forming of new trade partnerships and giving the White House and Capitol Hill the opportunity to show they can work together to stimulate the economy and put people back to work. The House and Senate voted Wednesday on the three trade pacts, which the administration says could boost exports by $13 billion and support tens of thousands of American jobs.

Unless Congress takes a moment off of Fiscal Cliff deliberations to deal with the Farm Bill the price of milk could double.  Those in the industry are calling it the 'Dairy Cliff' and dairy farmers aren't happy about the lack of action. The way current law is written, if a new bill,  or an extension of the old one, isn't passed by the end of the year a 1949 law goes back into effect.  That would force the government to buy milk at twice the price it's selling for today and drive up the cost for everyone.

Factfinder 12 Scientific Survey: The 112th Congress has now taken office in Washington. Do you expect the new Congress will do an excellent job? a good job? A fair job? or a poor job? 6% - Excellent 23% - Good 43% - Fair 26% - Poor 1% - Not Sure Margin of Sampling Error for this question = ± 4.5% Asked of 500 Adults Complete Interactive CrossTabs -------------------------------------------- John Boehner is the new Speaker of the House of Representatives and second in the line of succession after the Vice President.

Eyewitness News wants you to hear all of the sides before you cast your vote in the November general election. This week, we are giving you the chance to meet the candidates running for the Fourth Congressional District. ROBERT TILLMAN (D) Hello, my name is Robert Tillman. I am a retired Kansas Supreme Court services officer. I am a proud Democrat running for the United States Congress. As a United States Representative for the State of Kansas District 4, I also ran for Congress in 2010 but you elected Republican Mike Pompeo.

Congress is considering a bill to allow states to charge sales tax on Internet purchases. That would bring online retail prices more in line with brick-and-mortar shops. Online companies are often able to undercut prices offered by traditional retailers because they do not collect sales tax in most states. Internet-based companies say charging the tax will affect their bottom line, and their ability to compete.Amazon.comis just one major Internet retailer to oppose taxing online purchases.

 For the second time in just weeks, Congress averted a government shutdown, but issues remain that divide the House and Senate and Republicans and Democrats.  How do you know who to believe?  I like to see what Politifact finds out when it does fact checking of claims by politicians and pundits.  Its team of reporters and editors tell you if something is true, false, or somewhere in between.   Check out Politifact .

In 2010, travelers left behind more than $375,000 at airport checkpoints.  Now there's a plan in Congress to give that money to programs supporting veterans and to also give clothing left behind to needy vets and their families. It's called the Clothe a Homeless Hero act. Read more about the proposal here .

If Congress does nothing about the fiscal cliff before the end of the year you will take home less pay.  But a local payroll company says that's just one of dozens of possibilities and it has to be ready for all of them. When your boss prints your first paycheck next year it may not be as big as you're used to.  Click here to calculate how the fiscal cliff could impact you "Without a renewal of the FICA credits of 2%, paychecks will go down right out of the gate," said Bill Maness, president of Syndeo Outsourcing.

Name: Tracey Mann Party: Republican Current Office : none Positions on Issues Education: Bachelor, Agricultural Economics, Kansas State University Wife: Audrey Children: n/a Birthplace: Quinter Hometown: Quinter Religion: n/a Professional Experience: Real estate agent Farmer Membership/groups: ...

The National Baseball Congress announced today the Fairbanks (AK) Goldpanners, from the Alaska Baseball League, will not be participating in the BaseballSavings.com 76th Annual National Baseball Congress World Series.  With Fairbanks decision not to participate the Kenai (AK) Peninsula Oilers will now move to game 16 as the Alaska Baseball League Champion in the bracket, and play their opening game on Wednesday, August 4th. The Hutchinson (KS) Monarchs, who were the Mid-Kansas Collegiate Regional Champion, will now move to game 6 on the bracket and take on the League City (TX)