News – Page 1103 – Ranson Financial Group LLC

Debate over KPERS rate of return heats up, despite $1 billion addition

info2022-05-06T07:28:16-05:00May 6th, 2022|

Major changes are being considered at the state's pension fund, ones that could impact its fiscal outlook and relations with the Legislature — even as lawmakers voted to add $1 billion to its coffers. The KPERS Board of Trustees is weighing a controversial decision to reduce the estimated profit generated by the pension fund's investments, a metric dubbed the assumed rate of return. Kansas currently projects its investments will bring in 7.75% each year. Officials voted to reduce the assumed rate of return in 2016, dropping it from 8% previously. But even with that move, Kansas has the highest assumed rate [...]

Winfield firefighters help with tornado recovery

info2022-05-06T07:26:14-05:00May 6th, 2022|

Winfield Fire/EMS Department personnel were among the first responders sent to help in the immediate aftermath of the tornado that struck Andover on Friday. Winfield Fire Chief Vince Warren said that Cowley County dispatchers received a call from Andover authorities on Friday night, requesting search and rescue aid. They relayed the call to the Winfield Fire Department, which sent five firefighters, a vehicle and a rescue trailer to help. Warren said they staged in the Andover Dillons parking lot, and the Winfield unit was assigned to do secondary residential searches, following teams who had done an initial search to ensure residents [...]

Wichita-area tornado survivors want a siren after EF-3 twister struck without warning

info2022-05-06T07:25:39-05:00May 6th, 2022|

Dale Angleton said he had just heard the “all-clear” from a Wichita TV news station when his nephew Ron Bradford burst through the front door. “Tornado!” Bradford said. It was the only warning Angleton would receive Friday night before a house on 31st Street that has been in his family since 1972 collapsed on top of him. Bradford grabbed his uncle and pushed him into a bedroom, where the two men hit the floor right as the tornado struck the house. Source: Wichita Eagle

One-dollar raise coming for Lyon County 911 dispatchers

info2022-05-06T07:25:09-05:00May 6th, 2022|

The big number for Lyon County emergency dispatchers Thursday may not have been 911, but $1.00. The county commission accepted a proposal to provide dispatchers with a one dollar-per-hour raise. The starting pay for some of them will increase as well. The commission did not vote on the raises, after hearing from Emergency Communications Director Roxanne Van Gundy. Chair Rollie Martin said it wasn't necessary. “As long as she can work it within her budget this year, we said go ahead,” Martin explained after the weekly meeting. ... She added that the raise “keeps us competitive for future applicants and also [...]

Wichita schools to discontinue universal free lunches, preserve free breakfast next year

info2022-05-06T07:24:03-05:00May 6th, 2022|

Wichita Public Schools will discontinue its universal free lunch program while preserving free breakfast for all students during the 2022-23 school year. School nutrition funding comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In March, Congress let a pandemic relief waiver program lapse that had provided for schools across the country to offer all meals to students for free over the past two school years. “I think we all want our kids to be able to come to school and get food, but this is not something that we had a choice in,” Wichita school board member Sheril Logan said at Monday [...]

Prairie Village to implement two 14-day limits per year on storage pods as of July 1

info2022-05-06T07:23:44-05:00May 6th, 2022|

Prairie Village will impose new citywide storage pod limits beginning July 1. Some residents and businesses are keeping portable storage units on their properties for extended periods, causing a recent increase in complaints. A newly approved ordinance means storage pods usage needs to adhere to the following starting July 1: A limit of two 14-day periods per year; Placed at least 10-feet back from the curb, in a spot that doesn’t obstruct traffic visibility. Source: Prairie Village Post

Municipal Bond Trends for May 5, 2022

info2022-05-06T07:23:09-05:00May 6th, 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.

Douglas County sheriff uses own trauma to encourage others to seek help

info2022-05-06T07:22:44-05:00May 6th, 2022|

May is mental health awareness month. The sheriff in Douglas County, Kansas, knows a healthy deputy means a healthy community. Studies show, 6% of the general population experience PTSD. That number is much higher among first responders at 20%. Sheriff Jay Armbrister takes his own trauma to encourage his employees to seek help. The sheriff's office has taken their Peer Support Program from six members to now 18.This voluntary group of people, both uniformed and civilians, stepped forward to be trained on peer support. Source: KSN-TV

ACLU settles diversion-agreement lawsuit with Montgomery County prosecutor’s office

info2022-05-06T07:22:02-05:00May 6th, 2022|

The Montgomery County attorney settled a lawsuit with the ACLU by agreeing to create new policies to inform defendants of their right under Kansas law to seek diversion agreements. The American Civil Liberties Union settled a lawsuit filed five years ago against prosecutors in Montgomery County for disproportionately seeking harsh sentences for defendants posing nominal risk to the public by declining to make available diversion program alternatives required under Kansas law. The ACLU and ACLU of Kansas said Thursday the settlement was finalized with Montgomery County Attorney Lisa Montgomery, who operates out of the county seat in Independence. She agreed to [...]

The pandemic shrunk Kansas public school enrollment and that means cuts in education budgets

info2022-05-06T07:21:21-05:00May 6th, 2022|

Kansas public schools feel the pinch of enrollment losses that came with the COVID-19 pandemic — and it could mean fewer teachers, bigger classes and widespread budget cuts. The number of students enrolled in Kansas public schools dropped by more than 15,000 since the start of the pandemic, according to state data. Some of those students may have moved out of state, but many likely turned to homeschooling or online education. Federal COVID relief money helped districts cover shortfalls at the start. But longer-term student losses will mean less state funding. “We will have to start to reduce the budget footprint, [...]