Harvey County employees will be receiving an additional $4 per hour in premium pay for the time they spent in their office during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Board of Harvey County Commissioners on Tuesday approved premium pay on a 2-0 vote, with Commissioner Randy Hague abstaining. The total for all employees could cost up to nearly $1.2 million, all of which will be funded by the America Rescue Plan Act. Hague said he thought employees deserved premium pay, but he noted that the proposal was the first time constituents had heard about it. He questioned whether the matter should be tabled a week to see what kind of feedback commissioners might receive.
Source: Harvey County Now

The City of Newton will change its sound ordinance, which will now be in effect 24 hours a day. The commission approved updating the ordinance at its Monday meeting, following complaints from a resident. The new ordinance establishes a rule to be in effect at all residentially owned properties limiting sound if: “It creates a nuisance or injures or endangers the comfort, repose, health or safety of others, or which interferes with the use or enjoyment of property of any person of reasonable sensibilities residing in or occupying the area unless the making and continuing of such noise is necessary for the protection and preservation of property or the health and safety of some individual.” Some sounds are exempt, including publicly approved parades, fireworks, sports events, festivals, or musical productions.
Source: Harvey County Now

Newton’s Amtrak hopes now just need a presidential signature. The House of Representatives voted this week to move forward on a $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill already approved by the Senate. The bill includes $120 million in funds available for rail improvements in Oklahoma and Kansas that would connect the Heartland Flyer, which serves Texas and the southern U.S., with the Southwest Chief in Newton. “As far as I’m concerned, we’re basically greenlit for Amtrak Service,” Newton Community Development Coordinator Zach McHatton said. Amtrak has indicated that the connection is a priority. Newton would become a hub for the two lines and a transfer station for riders. With the lines up and running, an estimated 100,000-200,000 people would be in the Newton downtown switching trains over a yearlong period. The hub status could mean a change in train times as well to the evening instead of the early morning, according to past reporting we’ve done on the issue. Some 340,000 people passed through Newton on the existing Southwest Chief line in 2019.
Source: Harvey County Now