News – Page 1095 – Ranson Financial Group LLC

Even with elimination of state sales tax, local governments must continue to tax groceries

info2022-05-13T08:08:38-05:00May 13th, 2022|

Even when the state’s 6.5% sales tax on groceries eventually ramps down to zero, Lawrence shoppers will still be paying close to 3% in sales taxes on groceries. The overwhelming majority of Kansas cities and counties — Lawrence and Douglas County included — charge local sales tax in addition to the state sales tax, and state lawmakers ensured that would not change. The recently passed changes not only don’t affect local sales taxes on groceries, but also prohibit local governments from reducing or eliminating their local sales taxes on groceries. Source: LJworld

It’s easy being green: Library branch in this JoCo city to offer an innovative roof

info2022-05-13T07:58:50-05:00May 13th, 2022|

The new Johnson County Library branch in Merriam will be nothing like the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City, but when you go there, you will want to look up. Why? Because the library roof, arguably the building’s most distinguishing feature, will be home to prairie grasses that will help insulate the structure and provide a visual extension of the landscape surrounding the Merriam Community Center, on which the new library is expected to open in early 2024. Source: Joco 913 News

Kansas legalizes sports betting, then gets sued

info2022-05-13T07:58:12-05:00May 13th, 2022|

Kansas has legalized sports betting. But the state was sued almost immediately Thursday by a state-owned casino operator over an unrelated part of the law designed to revive a long-closed greyhound track in its area. ... The lawsuit is from the Kansas Star Casino operated by Boyd Gaming about 15 miles south of Wichita. The casino has a contract with the lottery and says that contract has been breached because the new law allows improper competition from new gambling devices at Wichita Greyhound Park. Source: KSN-TV

Parsons PD adds a furry-faced officer to the team

info2022-05-13T07:57:33-05:00May 13th, 2022|

The Parsons Police Department is celebrating a new addition. The department gained national attention at the end of last year after the brutal killing of an officer's dog. "If the community is going to put forth the money to give us these nice things to enhance our performance, I'm going to do everything I can to do that performance as best I can," said Christian Smith, Parsons Police K9 Handler. Morgan, the black Labrador, is the newest member of the Parsons Police Department. She completed her training earlier this year. Source: KSNF/KODE

Smaller, rural communities in danger of missing out on infrastructure boom

info2022-05-13T07:44:30-05:00May 13th, 2022|

As federal officials hail a coming infrastructure decade, tens of thousands of mostly smaller, rural communities may miss out because they lack capacity to compete for the funds. That's according to data from Headwaters Economics, a nonprofit research firm focused on community development and land management that developed a rural capacity index to analyze which and how many communities may have a hard time snagging infrastructure funding. “It’s hard to advocate for resources, it’s hard to navigate complicated grant applications and meet compliance requirements, all of that is very difficult for smaller communities, so it’s logical that the communities that are [...]

Municipal Bond Trends for May 12, 2022

info2022-05-13T07:41:36-05:00May 13th, 2022|

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.

Legal sports betting is coming to Kansas

info2022-05-13T07:39:40-05:00May 13th, 2022|

Legal sports gambling is officially coming to Kansas. Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly on Thursday signed a sports wagering bill into law, setting the stage for fans to place bets on teams like the Chiefs, Royals and Jayhawks as soon as this summer. It will also bring in some money to the state government. The Kansas Lottery estimates taxes on legal sports betting would bring in up to $10 million a year by 2025. ... The law comes as dozens of other states had previously made betting on sports legal ever since the U.S. Supreme Court in 2018 struck down a federal [...]

City of Hillsboro prepares to auction off thousands of museum items

info2022-05-13T07:38:35-05:00May 13th, 2022|

From classic cars to unique samples of taxidermy, roughly 2,500 items will be auctioned off at the Marion County Fairgrounds this Saturday, May 14. It's all a part to clear out the city's museums and storage facilities, which city officials say are so full, a number of them have actually become unsafe. "Everything that you see here represents a multiple, in some cases, many multiples of items that we have that are still on display in our museums," Hillsboro Mayor Lou Thurston said. Dozens of volunteers across multiple city departments helped make this weekend's auction possible. Source: KSN-TV

Inman USD-448 bond passes by six votes

info2022-05-13T07:37:14-05:00May 13th, 2022|

Tuesday night, there was no clear winner for the Inman USD-448 bond election. Unofficial results list 377 yes votes and 379 no votes. On Tuesday night, there were still two mail-in ballots that were dropped off at a polling site that needed to be processed and 14 provisional ballots that were investigated before the final count, and results were recorded on Monday, May 9. Mail-in ballots that arrived between May 4 and May 9 and were postmarked by May 3, were counted, bringing the total to 383 yes votes and 380 no votes. ... The final vote count listed 387 yes [...]

Working for Lenexa: assistant city attorney uses life experience from the farm to find solutions at work

info2022-05-13T07:34:26-05:00May 13th, 2022|

Growing up on a family farm in the outskirts of Independence, Mo., Lenexa Assistant City Attorney Steven Shrout learned how to care for animals, work with his hands and find solutions to problems. Summertime meant spending a lot of time outside doing chores like moving hay bales and scooping manure in the barn. ... Watching his dad do the daily chores around the farm ingrained a work ethic that Steven has exercised in other areas of his life. “Having that role model just kind of instills in you that work ethic that maybe some of us might not see or may [...]