2007 marks his first term as Speaker of the Kansas House.  He currently is Vice-Chair of the Legislative Coordinating Council; Vice-Chair of the Joint Committee on Health Policy Oversight; Vice-Chair of the House Calendar and Printing Committee; and also serves on the House Interstate Cooperation Committee and the House Legislative Budget Committee.

Prior to becoming Speaker, he chaired the House Appropriations Committee, the House Legislative Budget Committee and the House Select Committee on Healthcare.

Since joining the Kansas Legislature, Speaker Neufeld has been a strong advocate for health care and early childhood development.  His dedication to these issues has made him a nationally-recognized expert.  He is one of nine state legislators from across the country who serves on the Legislative Working Group, a partnership of the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) and the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child. 

He also serves on the NCSL Executive Committee and the NCSL Legislator Nominating Committee.

Speaker Neufeld continues to serve as a board member of the Church of the Nazarene in Cimarron and vice-president of the Shepard of the Plains Foundation.  He belongs to Ingalls Lions Club, Kansas Farm Bureau, Kansas Livestock Association and Santa Fe Railway Historical and Modeling Society. 

Speaker Neufeld is a lifelong Ingalls resident.  He and his wife, Maxine, have two children, five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.  They own a farm near Ingalls.

You can learn more about Speaker Neufeld at his personal website, www.repmelvinneufeld.com