Municipal News & Jobs

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, Beth Warren and Henry Schmidt.

City leaders will soon consider prohibiting landlords from denying prospective tenants based solely off their use of a government housing voucher or other forms of rental assistance, as well as other statuses. As part of its meeting Tuesday, the Lawrence City Commission will consider amending city code to “provide equal opportunity to obtain housing regardless of source of income or status as a survivor of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking or stalking,” according to a city staff memo. The commission will also receive a presentation from the Human Relations Commission regarding additional policy recommendations.
Source: LJWorld

In the past nine months, Jerome Powell has raised interest rates at the fastest pace of any Federal Reserve chair since the 1980s, triggering a market rout, bringing the housing market to a standstill and prompting fears of an imminent recession. That was the easy part. When inflation was hitting 40-year highs, Fed officials were unanimous that rates needed to rise aggressively. Now cracks are beginning to emerge among them over how stubborn inflation has become and what they should do about it. Some expect inflation to cool steadily next year and want to stop raising rates soon. Others worry inflation won’t ease enough next year, a scenario that calls for raising rates higher or holding them at that level for longer, boosting the chance of a sharp downturn.
Source: Wall Street Journal

Finding employees to fill openings in Reno County is difficult, but in some professions this task is daunting. The medical field is in need of some specialty doctors and technicians, but nurses are their top priority. Hutchinson is not alone in this matter. It is a global issue. The World Health Organization calculated that about 27 million people work in nursing or midwifery worldwide, representing half of the world’s global health workforce. There is a global shortage of nurses who, the WHO said, represents more than 50% of the current shortage in health workers.
Source: Hutch News

Working with Highland Park High School social worker Fred Willer, [Ryan] Rockwell is hoping to start esports and gaming communities at each of the local high schools, using the Gamers HQ gaming lounge, 2027 S.W. Gage Blvd. in Topeka, as a hub for it all. … While esports has blossomed into competitive professional and collegiate-level leagues and teams, high schools aren’t quite there — yet, said [Fred] Willer. It can be difficult for schools on tight budgets to afford the necessary computers, consoles and setups needed to host teams, but that’s why he loved Rockwell’s idea to have Gamers HQ step in to provide a space and equipment for students from local schools.
Source: CJonline

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, Beth Warren and Henry Schmidt.

Homelessness is a topic of concern for many people in Salina, and the city is providing a time for people in the community to learn more about what it and other agencies in the area are doing to address the situation. An open forum on homelessness has been announced by the City of Salina, scheduled for 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 14 at the Salina Grace Community Resource Center, 142 S. Seventh St. The Salina City Commission has been invited to attend the forum to learn along with the public, and the city said there will be time for public comment as part of the meeting’s agenda.
Source: Salina Journal

Lawrence officials don’t have plans to close or clean an unsanctioned East Lawrence homeless camp despite concerns that it is growing and is producing large amounts of trash near the Kansas River. A spokesman said City Hall leaders don’t yet believe they can feasibly shut down the camp because they don’t believe there are enough alternative shelter locations available in the city.
Source: LJWorld

The Lawrence school board will soon receive a report that compares the district’s teacher salaries to other nearby school districts and proposes various ways to change the district’s pay schedule to increase salaries. As part of its meeting Monday, the Lawrence school board will receive the report of salary comparisons for teachers and other certified staff. The report is a follow-up on a previous discussion about salaries in the district, in which board members were told the Lawrence salaries were lagging behind some nearby districts.
Source: LJWorld