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The number of measles cases reported in Kansas more than doubled in the past week, and the outbreak may have a possible link to the outbreaks in Texas and New Mexico, a state health official spokesperson said Thursday. As of Wednesday, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment is reporting 23 positive cases of measles, up from 10 they reported last Friday. The measles outbreak is concentrated in the southwestern part of Kansas, with the disease spreading to three additional counties this past week. It now includes cases in Grant, Gray, Haskel, Kiowa, Morton and Stevens counties. Source: Wichita Kansas Local [...]

USD 410 Director of Nutrition Services Jeanie Guhr and UDS 410 Superintendent Clint Corby grill burgers for students during a “Hometown Burger” barbecue event the district recently held to thank contributors for making it possible to use local beef for USD 410 lunches. While many jokes are often made about school lunches and whatever “mystery” meat they are made of, There is no question about what the meat is or where it comes from for the students of the USD 410 Durham-Hillsboro-Lehigh School District. This is because the district has started a program where they connect with local farmers to provide [...]

The Rush County Sheriff's Office said 54 animals were rescued from "poor living conditions" during an investigation this week into a report of a stolen firearm. Two people were arrested. While at the La Crosse home, deputies discovered poor conditions and numerous animals inside. They obtained a search warrant, and the animals were removed with the assistance of a veterinarian and three animal control officers from Hutchinson. They were then placed in the care of six separate facilities. Deputies also found the firearm that had been stolen from a home in La Crosse. Source: KSNT 27 News

Topeka is rolling out a new communications tool to help locals find answers to their questions fast. The City of Topeka announced on Tuesday, March 25 that it has created a new hotline for people who have questions about city services. People will soon be able to call "311" for non-emergency needs. Callers will be sent directly to the city department best suited to answer the questions they have. City Manager Robert Perez said the 311 hotline should help streamline customer service. Source: KSNT 27 News

LaHarpe residents gathered Tuesday evening for a community conversation hosted by Thrive Allen County. The discussion focused on improvements to infrastructure, roads, housing, economic development, and civic engagement. Source: The Iola Register

Wichita is looking to cash in on its own waste. The city is moving forward with plans to sell off biogas, mainly methane, from one of its wastewater treatment plants. Waste that gets pumped into treatment plants creates biogas, which is known to be able to be converted into renewable natural gas, or RNG. Source: Wichita Kansas Local News, Crime & More |

Amazon is expanding its footprint in Kansas with plans to build a 176,000-square-foot last-mile facility that will create roughly 100 jobs in Bel Aire. The city said Tuesday that the online retail giant has bought 20 acres in the Sunflower Commerce Park in Bel Aire to meet growing customer demand. This marks the company’s third facility in the Wichita metro area, a city of Bel Aire news release said. Source: Homepage

Rep. Blake Carpenter (R-Derby) recently pitched a novel idea to lawmakers that he says could eliminate state property tax collections within eight years without cutting any services the state provides. In a nutshell, here’s how it works: The Legislature creates a board that is empowered to review and eliminate sales tax exemptions, boosting state revenues to the tune of $2 billion per year. That money flows into a Freedom From Taxes Fund, which grows until it reaches a point where annual interest is enough to fully offset the 21.5 mills the state assesses to fund public schools. Eventually, the fund could [...]

Harvey County decided to move forward with a City of Newton partnership for road improvements along East First Street from Spencer to Oliver. The county first heard the request in mid-March, when city commissioners approached the county, asking for a partnership on the project. The city commissioners said this would be a show of unity between the two governing bodies and would be a good signal for developers considering the area. Source: Harvey County Now

The Shawnee Mission school board could soon finalize new procedures aimed at addressing disparities in school-based donations. One goal of the move is to more closely scrutinize funds raised to pay for additional staff positions. To prevent inequity in donations that may allow some schools to gain educational advantages over others, the school board’s policy committee on Monday afternoon reviewed a draft of an updated district donation policy as well as a procedure for reviewing so-called community-funded staff positions. Source: Johnson County Post