Ranson Financial, Author at Ranson Financial Group LLC

Kansas electric rates are the highest in the Midwest — and it’s about to get worse

Kansas has been in an electric rate crisis since at least 2018. And it is about to get much worse, as our already sky-high regional electric rates are headed much higher. Evergy electric rates are the highest in the Midwest region. Multiple professional studies have shown this to be the case, and Evergy even briefed its board of directors about it in December 2019. In Wichita and every other Kansas community served by Evergy, electric rates are 20% to 40% higher for residential and industrial users than in the metropolitan areas of Oklahoma, Arkansas and Iowa.
Source: Wichita News

Ranson Financial2021-02-01T06:58:06-06:00January 31, 2021|News|

Wichita police, Broadway motel owner work to cut crime in area by 73%

Crime is noticeably down around a South Broadway motel where multiple people were shot and a successful drug raid occurred in 2020 after officials and the owner worked to make changes to the property and its tenants. Since a month-long injunction in Fall 2020, aggravated assault cases near Afton Motel, 855 S. Broadway, are down 73% compared to the same time period before the injunction, Officer Charley Davidson said in a news release Thursday. Davidson said there were 76 criminal cases and 200 calls at the motel over a period of roughly seven and half months.
Source: Local News | Wichita Eagle

Ranson Financial2021-02-01T07:00:37-06:00January 31, 2021|News|

Winfield park upgrade would include pickleball courts

New pickleball courts and other features could be coming to Albright Park in Winfield, if construction contracts are approved by the Winfield City Commission at its Monday meeting. The three contracts on the agenda are for construction of pickleball courts, restroom facilities and playground facilities as part of continuing improvements to the city’s park system. Park improvements were one of the priorities identified by residents in a citywide planning survey conducted in late 2019, with survey results used to help create the city’s 2020 Master Parks and Trails Plan. The park, at 15th Avenue and John Street, is in a residential neighborhood with a school and senior care facility nearby. Taking these elements into consideration, redevelopment will focus on intergenerational play in the community, according to Taggart Wall, Winfield city manager.
Source: The Arkansas City Traveler

Ranson Financial2021-02-01T07:02:30-06:00January 31, 2021|News|

Pittsburg PD working to help families

A Southeast Kansas Police Department comes together to help families in need. The Pittsburg Police Department is hosting a diaper drive for Crawford County DiaperStock. Over the next week the department will be collecting diapers and wipes to help families in need. Originally this was meant to help the Pittsburg community. Thanks to assistance from the Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas, donations will be going to the entire county. Diann Gambill, Family Response Advocate, said, “A lot of families are struggling right now, not just because of the pandemic but because of the extenuating circumstances. Diapers and wipes are an added cost that does add a lot of stress to the families, so if we can alleviate that stress, then we are helping the families in a way.”
Source: KSNF/KODE

Ranson Financial2021-02-01T07:02:39-06:00January 31, 2021|News|

Pittsburg Library offering Wi-Fi hotspots

Internet is about to become more accessible for one Southeast Kansas town. The Pittsburg Public Library is now offering mobile Wi-Fi hotspots for check out. This was made possible thanks to a grant from the Southeast Kansas Library System. The library wants to use these hotspots to help provide internet access to those in rural areas. Bev Clarkson, Pittsburg Public Library Director, said, “Considering how much virtual learning we’re doing, how many people are working from home, people having access to library resources remotely or health resources, just about everything you do now requires a computer and access to the internet.” Hotspots are available to check out for those 18 and older. All you need is a valid card from the Pittsburg Public Library and a photo ID.
Source: KSNF/KODE

Ranson Financial2021-02-01T07:02:50-06:00January 31, 2021|News|

Municipal Bond Trends for January 28, 2021

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of MBIS “investment grade” yields. Every issuer’s credit is different. For rates that may be applicable to your municipality, contact our Municipal Bond Advisors, Larry Kleeman and Beth Warren.

Ranson Financial2021-01-29T07:53:56-06:00January 29, 2021|News|

Federal Reserve leaves interest rates and asset purchases unchanged, sees growth slowing

The Federal Reserve kept its foot to the floor Wednesday in terms of the help it is providing for an economy that central bank officials say has slowed down. Consistent with market expectations, the policymaking Federal Open Market Committee said it was keeping its benchmark short-term borrowing rate anchored near zero and maintaining an asset purchasing program that is seeing the Fed buy at least $120 billion a month. “The economy is a long way from our monetary policy and inflation goals, and it’s likely to take some time for substantial further progress to be achieved,” Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said at his post-meeting news conference. Policy will remain “highly accommodative as the recovery progresses,” he added. At the core of the move to keep policy historically accommodative was an economy in which the sectors most vulnerable to the pandemic are taking the hardest hit.
Source: Economy

Ranson Financial2021-01-29T07:47:34-06:00January 28, 2021|News|

Derby schools to stay in person through first half of February

Derby students will remain in classrooms for at least the first half of February. The gating committee for Derby Public Schools voted Wednesday to keep the district in the “yellow” column of its criteria chart, keeping students in person instead of a hybrid or online format. The gating committee’s latest decision lasts from Feb. 1 to Feb. 12. Committee members will meet again via Zoom at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 10 to determine operations for Feb. 16 to Feb. 26.
Source: Derby Informer | News

Ranson Financial2021-01-29T07:47:59-06:00January 28, 2021|News|

Kansas 911 administrator blames three-hour outage on ‘technological anomaly’

Rep. John Carmichael questioned the reliability of the state’s 911 call handling system during a hearing Thursday on why the system went down for 3 hours and 20 minutes on Nov. 29. The Wichita Democrat said the outage demonstrates the failure of a backup system that was flagged as a risk by state auditors in 2018. “The bottom line is my constituent standing on the street with her husband dying as a result of a traffic accident — she couldn’t get through to anybody,” Carmichael said. “So the system we have right now doesn’t work, does it?” Scott Ekberg, an administrator for the 911 system, briefed lawmakers in a House panel about the Nov. 29 outage, which lasted from 1:30 to 4 p.m. He blamed the problem on equipment and software provided by AT&T but for security reasons declined to provide a copy of the analysis report conducted by AT&T of the root cause.
Source: Kansas Reflector

Ranson Financial2021-01-29T07:48:49-06:00January 28, 2021|News|

Divided Johnson County commission extends COVID rules on restaurants and gatherings

The Johnson County Board of Commissioners on Thursday extended limits on public gatherings and a midnight curfew on bars and restaurants through the end of March. The order, which was previously set to expire Jan. 31, limits public gatherings to 50 people, or 50% capacity of a venue, whichever is less. The gathering limit exempts shops, restaurants, bars, nightclubs, fitness centers, health care facilities, churches and funeral homes, as well as private gatherings. Commissioners voted 5-2 to extend the order through March 31, with the hope that the number of new COVID-19 cases will drop in the coming months while the vaccine becomes more widely available. The public health order was first approved in November, after commissioners agreed to add broad exemptions and weaken some of the rules recommended by health officials.
Source: Joco 913 News

Ranson Financial2021-01-29T07:48:58-06:00January 28, 2021|News|

About Ranson Financial

Kansas electric rates are the highest in the Midwest — and it’s about to get worse

Wichita police, Broadway motel owner work to cut crime in area by 73%

Winfield park upgrade would include pickleball courts

Pittsburg PD working to help families

Pittsburg Library offering Wi-Fi hotspots

Municipal Bond Trends for January 28, 2021

Federal Reserve leaves interest rates and asset purchases unchanged, sees growth slowing

Derby schools to stay in person through first half of February

Kansas 911 administrator blames three-hour outage on ‘technological anomaly’

Divided Johnson County commission extends COVID rules on restaurants and gatherings

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