News – Page 1266 – Ranson Financial Group LLC

Hillsboro golf course superintendent to retire after 32 years

info2021-12-01T06:51:16-06:00December 1st, 2021|

Almost anyone who has golfed in Hillsboro anytime in the past 30 years or so knows who Gary Andrews is, because he is always around the golf course and always friendly. “Gary has done amazing things for the Hillsboro Golf Course,” Hillsboro City Administrator Matt Stiles said. “Gary works as hard as anyone I’ve ever known and has devoted himself to making sure Hillsboro has a superb golf course. Gary is also the first one to offer a hand or advice on other projects around the city. Expertise and work ethic like that don’t come around very often, and the city [...]

Take a look at recent changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program

info2021-11-30T06:56:34-06:00November 30th, 2021|

The United States Department of Education recently announced sweeping (and welcome) changes to the troubled Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. These changes make it easier for government and nonprofit workers to gain tax-free forgiveness on their federal student loans when working for a qualified employer. This is welcome news for public servants. Forgiveness has no cap and could reach into the tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars for qualified individuals. PSLF in its original form requires four criteria to achieve forgiveness... Source: Joco 913 News

Crazy home prices hit rural Kansas and Missouri

info2021-11-30T06:55:27-06:00November 30th, 2021|

All across the United States, the pandemic has sparked high housing prices in places long insulated from them, even rural Kansas and Missouri towns with historically low real estate values. As KCUR’S Frank Morris reports, a surge of interest in some of these markets is squeezing out long-time residents. Source: KCUR News (Audio Report)

Prairie Village measured its city’s carbon footprint — here is what the report said

info2021-11-30T06:52:44-06:00November 30th, 2021|

The city of Prairie Village emitted more than 227,000 metric tons of green gas emissions in 2020, according to the city’s first-ever study of its overall carbon footprint. Last year, Prairie Village entered an agreement with Kansas City-based Dynamhex to track the city’s greenhouse gas emissions — with the goal of ultimately using that data to come up with ways to reduce emissions. Prairie Village along with Roeland Park are the only Johnson County cities so far to get such an emissions report. Source: Shawnee Mission Post

Municipal Bond Trends for November 29, 2021

info2021-11-30T05:57:05-06:00November 30th, 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.

Wichita Public Library now has 250 internet bundles, hoping to bridge digital divide for residents

info2021-11-29T23:24:49-06:00November 29th, 2021|

"One of our library pillars of operation is digital inclusion, making sure people have access to adequate digital resources, so internet, computers, printing, faxing, that sort of thing. We hope that with the internet bundles, people with low or no internet connectivity, who need access to the internet the most, whether to do school work or find jobs or for leisure activities, can utilize these bundles and connect and finish the work that they need to get done," Jones shared. All you need to borrow one of these internet bundles is a library card in good standing. If you do not [...]

Sedgwick County mulls doubling fine for hobby shooters whose stray bullets menace neighbors

info2021-11-30T05:55:37-06:00November 29th, 2021|

A month after passing a $500 fine for recreational shooters whose bullets stray onto neighboring properties, Sedgwick County is aiming to pass two measures that together could raise the penalty to $1,000. The companion proposals on the Dec. 1 County Commission agenda are a follow-up to the Nov. 3 passage of a law requiring backyard target shooters to confine flying lead to their own property. During debate on that measure, Commissioner Lacey Cruse argued that the $500 fine was not enough to deter unsafe shooting and may not generate enough money to pay for the law’s enforcement. Source: Local News | [...]

Rural setting is backdrop for unique cemetery in Sedgwick County

info2021-11-29T23:18:55-06:00November 29th, 2021|

A unique cemetery will soon offer a peaceful place to rest that at times looks and sounds like it did when wagons rolled across the vast Kansas prairie. Prairie Home Scattering Garden, in a rural part of Sedgwick County between Derby and Rose Hill, opens soon with the aim of offering an affordable and remote place for people wanting to bury their loved ones. The cemetery and almost all of the contiguous land around it were gifted in 2003 to two nonprofits by Raymond Fleming Jr., an oil and gas investor who died in 2015. One of the non-profits, Sunflower Land [...]

Governor appoints new KDHE secretary

info2021-11-29T23:14:08-06:00November 29th, 2021|

Governor Laura Kelly has appointed a former Topeka hospital executive as the new secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. Janet Stanek has most recently been director of the state employee health benefits program. She replaces Dr. Lee Norman, who announced his resignation Nov. 19. He’d been the health department’s top administrator since Kelly took office in January 2019. Kelly’s office said in a Monday news release that Stanek has held healthcare leadership positions in Pennsylvania, New York and Kansas. Stanek spent 21 years at Stormont Vail Health Topeka, where she last was chief operating officer and senior vice [...]

Riley County approves contract for company to archive social media communication

info2021-11-30T05:56:33-06:00November 29th, 2021|

Riley County commissioners on Monday approved a contract with Archive Social to keep records of the government’s social media interactions. Archive Social, a company based in Durham, North Carolina, will have access to the county government’s social media platforms, including Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, to archive communication between the public and the government. The company will archive the communication for public record and archival purposes or if a legal matter arises. The annual cost of $2,988 will be prorated for 2021. Without this service, officials said Riley County might not have access to all conversations with the public through social media. [...]