News

The future of the Yates Center Police Department is decidedly murky after City Council members voted Tuesday evening to substantially downsize the department later this year. In a surprise vote, the Council voted 3-2 with one abstention to shrink the force down to a single position held by a police chief who would be on duty from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Law enforcement duties after hours would fall under the Woodson County Sheriff’s Department. The changeover is scheduled for April. However, that change may not come.  Read more: The Iola Register

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. Every issuer's credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. Every issuer's credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.

The interest rate table above illustrates recent changes in a sample of AA rated bond trades reported to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s EMMA® system. Every issuer's credit is different, and other financing sources may be available. To obtain comprehensive Financial Advisory services for your local government, contact your Ranson Financial Municipal Advisor, Larry Kleeman, or Henry Schmidt.

In small Kansas towns like Burrton, volunteer departments are often the closest option for people in danger. Read more: KSN-TV

If Wichita voters approve a 1% city sales tax in March, groceries won’t be exempt. Some supporters of the ballot initiative have pitched excluding transactions on food items from the $850 million plan as a way of reducing its burden on lower-income Wichitans. Read more: Wichita Eagle

Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Eric Rosen pressed the Kansas Legislature on Tuesday to expand funding for specialty courts tailored to special challenges of defendants and asked lawmakers to collaborate on solutions to the shortage of attorneys in rural Kansas. Rosen, delivering his first State of the Judiciary speech to a joint session of the Legislature, said the state must continue to move forward with initiatives to enhance access to justice, build public confidence in the judiciary and improve efficiency of state court operations. Rosen, with a father and father-in-law who worked at the Menninger Clinic in Topeka, said he had [...]

A new initiative announced by the Kansas Department of Commerce could open up possibilities for repurposing vacant and underutilized buildings in Lyon County into new housing. Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of Commerce David Toland announced Monday that the Department of Commerce is launching an initiative to identify vacant, abandoned, or underutilized buildings suitable for redevelopment into housing units. Local leaders, community organizations, and property owners are encouraged to submit information about buildings in their area that could be considered for conversion. Read more: www.emporiagazette.com

Tumbleweeds have taken over the High Plains. They thrive so well that they are part of the culture of the West. But this ample supply of blowing weeds can hurt farm yields, wreak havoc on neighborhoods and cause fire dangers. A minor but significant character in old western movies: the tumbleweed. In the midst of the gunslinging, often a lonely tumbleweed will roll across the screen. Today, if you drive across western Kansas on a windy day, you will often see not a lonely tumbleweed, but a swarm of them crossing the highway or congregating along a fence by the road. [...]

The newest Harvey County Drug Court graduate, Zack Walters, has been sober since April 19, 2024 (625 days and counting), which is his longest streak since he started smoking marijuana as a teenager. The county began drug court in October of 2021 as a way to reduce recidivism and celebrated its first graduate in March of 2023. The program takes 12 to 18 months to complete. Walters’s story is slightly different because he went from the county jail to county employee. Read more: Harvey County Now