News – Page 2434 – Ranson Financial Group LLC

City of Hutch asks department heads for more cuts

info2018-06-27T09:33:04-05:00June 27th, 2018|

After asking for major cuts to the budget, the Hutchinson City Council has asked department heads to find another $1 million in cuts, which could amount to about three percent. The request came during the latest budget meeting held Tuesday. The city recently asked the departments to cut five percent from the budget requests after numbers showed the city with an ending balance of less than $900,000. The cuts further pushed that number to around $3.2 million. (Read more: Hutch Post)

Saline County Commission considers televising all public meetings

info2018-06-27T09:29:47-05:00June 27th, 2018|

Saline County commissioners are considering televising all of their public meetings. Currently, only the commission’s weekly public forum is recorded by Access TV of Salina, so members of the public may watch the meeting on television or on the computer screen if they can’t attend in person. Commissioners also meet in study sessions, typically held immediately after the weekly public forum. The study sessions are open to the public, but they are not recorded for Access TV. Commissioner Bob Vidricksen estimated that it would cost the county an extra $1,500 a year to record the study sessions. Karen Shade, Salina Area [...]

Sales tax increase discussed in Salina as way to fund capital projects

info2018-06-27T09:28:53-05:00June 27th, 2018|

The city of Salina has a lot of capital improvement projects lined up for the next five years, commissioners learned at a study session before their regular meeting Monday. How will they be funded? “I think there’s an element of the community that would support a small increase in sales taxes,” Mayor Karl Ryan said. Salina city sales taxes are on the low end, compared with other Kansas cities, City Manager Jason Gage said. The combined sales tax is 8.75 percent in Salina, Abilene and Hays. On a list compiled by Gage, Junction City has the highest combined sales tax, at [...]

Partnering agencies discuss ramifications of possible county budget cuts

info2018-06-27T09:27:03-05:00June 27th, 2018|

Representatives from six partnering agencies that could potentially have their funding cut told Douglas County commissioners on Tuesday that county support was important in allowing them to provide needed services to residents. Commissioners didn’t disagree. “We knew they were important when we funded them,” Commissioner Mike Gaughan said. But he said everything in the 2019 budget was on the table as commissioners looked for money to address overcrowding at the county jail. But it wasn’t clear what the immediate ramifications would be from a county funding cut, since some nonprofits might have the ability to partner with other organizations to continue [...]

Reno county register of deeds office to implement electronic filing

info2018-06-27T09:25:06-05:00June 27th, 2018|

The goal of the Reno County Register of Deeds office is start accepting real estate sales records via electronic filing on Aug 2. Currently, county residents must fill out paper documents, and then either deliver them in person or mail them into the office, Reno County Registrar Michelle Updegrove advised the Reno County Commission on Tuesday. With the switch to eRecording, people will be able to fill out and send in those same forms online. Updegrove explained that even though the process is changing, the majority of rules and regulations will still apply. According to Updegrove, there was a large demand [...]

Lawrence and Douglas county sue Australian animal health firm that received local incentives

info2018-06-27T09:22:47-05:00June 27th, 2018|

The city and county are suing an Australia-based animal health company that received startup funding from both local governments to begin operating in Lawrence. The City of Lawrence and Douglas County filed a lawsuit against the company, Integrated Animal Health, in Douglas County District Court on Monday. The lawsuit alleges that the company breached its incentives contract, and the city and county are seeking to recoup one-third of a $100,000 grant provided to the company as part of the agreement. Integrated Animal Health announced it would move its global headquarters to Lawrence in 2015. The city and county subsequently approved incentives [...]

Every Wichita high school has an armed police officer. Should their roles change?

info2018-06-27T09:20:48-05:00June 27th, 2018|

Wichita won't be pulling its police officers out of Wichita high schools, but plans to retool the program to make it less about security and more about mentoring and counseling, the city manager said Tuesday. City Manager Robert Layton told the Wichita City Council he's not going to recommend ending the program, an idea that had been floated in a series of possible cuts to close a $1.7 million budget gap. The idea of eliminating school resource officers was not popular during a social media town hall last week, particularly amid ongoing concerns over school shootings. "As a result of that [...]

Douglas County expenses for Proposition 1 referendum expected to be about $177,000

info2018-06-27T09:13:42-05:00June 27th, 2018|

When all the bills are paid, Douglas County will have spent about $177,000 to conduct this spring’s mail-in ballot for Proposition 1 and to provide educational material to voters. In January, the Douglas County Commission agreed to conduct the mail-in ballot election asking voters to approve a half-cent sales tax to fund an expansion of the county jail and to create a behavioral health campus. Douglas County Clerk Jamie Shew said he still had not received a bill for what was by far the biggest expense from the mail-in ballot. The clerk’s office hired the Omaha, Neb., firm of Election Systems [...]

Wichita tackles another drinking emergency, legalizes champagne breakfast

info2018-06-27T08:34:21-05:00June 27th, 2018|

Want to start your daily drinking at the crack of dawn? Beginning this weekend, you’ll be able to do that in Wichita bars and restaurants. On Tuesday, the City Council approved an emergency ordinance to allow eating and drinking establishments to start selling alcohol at 6 a.m., rather than the current 9 a.m. The change in the city code brings Wichita into line with House Bill 2470, passed by the state Legislature, expanding the hours that bars and restaurants can serve alcohol. As an emergency ordinance, the change could be enacted as final action without a second vote at the next [...]

Douglas County to consider water district annexation, plan for transitioning service

info2018-06-27T08:33:00-05:00June 27th, 2018|

The request before the Douglas County Commission from Douglas County Water District No. 5 to annex a small area south of the Wakarusa River has prompted Lawrence City Manager Tom Markus to suggest it is time to start planning how the area eventually will transition to city water service. More than 50 percent of property owners in the area, which is currently unserved by any water utility, have petitioned to be annexed by Water District No. 5. The 77 acres are within a three-mile fringe growth area of Lawrence, which has a water utility. That required that the city be notified [...]