Kansas Municipal News
Scott County Hospital has protocols, ventilators ready if … or when … COVID-19 arrives
Ever since the coronavirus first emerged in the U.S. and even as it has evolved into a pandemic, many Western Kansas residents have been ambivalent to the risk.
Few have chosen to practice social distancing. Many thought the governor’s decision to close schools for the remainder of the year was an overreaction.
But the Scott County Hospital has taken the threat seriously.
“I’m proud of how our staff has responded in preparing for this situation,” says Scott County Hospital CEO Mark Burnett. “We hope that, if anything, we’ve over-prepared and that we won’t need all the measures that we’ve ut into place.”
(Read more: Scott County Record)
Johnson County says church gathering size restrictions still in effect after clarification from state
The 10-person limit on gathering sizes will still apply to religious services, Johnson County officials said Friday night after receiving clarification from the governor’s office.
The statewide stay-at-home ordered issued by Gov. Laura Kelly March 28 led to some confusion here in Johnson County about whether churches and other religious institutions were still subject to the gathering size limit of 10 people instituted as part of the CORE 4 partners’ stay-at-home order, which was announced a week prior.
The metro-area order did not provide a blanket exemption for religious institutions. However, Kelly’s order made gun shops and churches exempt from the gathering size limits along with essential businesses like grocery stores and pharmacies.
(Read more: Shawnee Mission Post)
Mission votes to ‘take care’ of full and part-time city employees during COVID-19 stay-at-home order
The Mission city council during a special called meeting on Wednesday evening unanimously approved employee compensation and benefit amendments to the city’s state of emergency and disaster proclamation, which was originally issued on March 13 and first amended on March 18.
The amendments ensure full-time and part-time city workers are compensated for hours worked or hours scheduled, and employees that must physically show up to work will accrue extra vacation time. These plans differ from the neighboring community of Overland Park, which ordered that 200 part-time employees be furloughed.
(Read more: Shawnee Mission Post )
Rural Kansas’ Ambulance Crews Will Be Doubly Strained By Coronavirus
The Finney County Emergency Medical Service department, with its staff of 23, is conserving its N95 masks and only using them when a patient is positive for COVID-19. Like large hospitals, U.S. cities and entire European countries, rural EMS workers aren’t shielded from the medical supply shortage. And that’s just one of the challenges rural EMS agencies across Kansas stare down as COVID-19 is being confirmed in their communities. They’re stretched thin, covering hundreds of miles, and seeing the ripple effects from the pandemic that’s shut down communities — something emergency plans hadn’t accounted for.
(Read more: RSS Feed)
Kansas counties to receive portion of Strategic National Stockpile
FEMA has delivered Kansas’ portion of the Strategic National Stockpile and the Kansas Division of Emergency Management will coordinate distribution of these critical resources to all 105 counties starting this weekend to help communities respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Strategic National Stockpile is the nation’s largest supply of potentially life-saving pharmaceuticals and medical supplies for use in a public health emergency severe enough to cause local supplies to run out.
(Read more: KSN-TV)
Kansas City area has spent years planning for a disaster like this one. Is it ready?
Parked at hospitals and secret locations across the region, dozens of trailers are jam-packed with hundreds of cots, masks, gowns and other medical supplies.
Except for routine inspection, the doors to many are never opened and haven’t been widely used since Kansas City-area emergency planners acquired them nearly two decades ago with federal assistance. Only a few have ever rolled out. Once to provide aid after an ice storm in St. Louis, and once to help out New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina nearly 15 years ago.
Now, for the first time the hospital trailers — and all the planning and coordination in the bi-state disaster response process they support — might be needed for an expected surge in coronavirus cases in eastern Kansas and western Missouri.
(Read more: KC Star Local News)
Sedgwick County residents concerned about toilet paper in price gouging complaints
Toilet paper has been a concern in price gouging complaints, the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office said.
The Kansas Attorney General’s Office put the Kansas price-gouging law into effect on March 12, less than a week after Kansas’ first novel coronavirus case was announced. Since then the AG’s office has received at least 157 reports, a spokesperson said this week.
Sedgwick County cases had been referred back to it.
(Read more: Local News |)
Kansas, Wichita do better than most in coronavirus economy, but it likely won’t last
In these days of coronavirus closures, about 103,000 of us are in essential industries in Sedgwick County and 117,000 are classified as non-essential.
And while Kansas is suffering less than most from the COVID-19 economic crisis in the short term, the state and Wichita in particular will likely have a harder time bouncing back than other areas that are bearing a bigger brunt now.
Those are among the key findings of economic research released in the past week by Wichita State University.
(Read more: Local News |)
Special assignment: Lindsborg police deliver 96th birthday party
Thursday Lindsborg police chief Michael Davis had a special assignment for officer Terry Reed — one that would put a smile on more than just a few faces.
The police department had received a tip to follow up on. There was a 96-year-old woman in town that needed a special welfare check.
“They told me that Aleda [Penn] had a birthday today, and that she was feeling lonely,” Davis said.
She was feeling lonely because she’s stuck at home — like so many others — due to COVID-19 and stay at home orders at the state level. Restrictions on groups of 10 or more made a party out of the question. There was, apparently, no one to visit her on her birthday,.
(Read more: McPherson Sentinel)
New system helps many needing food in Pratt
A line of vehicles snaked their way through the parking lot at the Pratt Community Center as new guidelines went into effect for distributing Retired and Senior Volunteer Program commodities.
Tiffany Ailstock, RSVP director, said the new system worked well although more families showed up than expected and a few families did not receive supplies.
Ailstock said there were 224 families at the event and that is an increase of about forty families over the 166 families that were signed up in February. The 2020 numbers are an increase over the 149 families that were signed up in November 2019. Those 224 families account for about 440 people.
(Read more: News – PrattTribune – Pratt, KS)
Mural takes shape in St. John
An old, blank wall in St. John is being transformed into a history lesson as a gifted artist brings the history of the founding of the town to life on a canvas of mortar.
Artist Inga Ojala climbs a scaffold and draws in the likeness of William Bickerton, a member of the The Church of Christ, that founded the town in 1875.
The wall is roughly 15 feet tall and 55 feet wide. The mural will be a depiction of Bickerton and his wife Dorothy arriving at Ion Valley, the site where St. John would be established, Ojala said.
(Read more: News – PrattTribune – Pratt, KS)
Sedgwick County’s dash for supplies to protect against COVID-19 tangled in red tape
Wichita hospitals are facing a shortage of personal protective equipment as the coronavirus pandemic continues its community spread in Sedgwick County.
But a worldwide scramble for supplies, layers of red tape and a lack of coordination are making it increasingly difficult for those supplies to get to the front lines of the fight against COVID-19, according to local and state officials.
To gear up for a surge of patients, estimated to reach Kansas later this month, Sedgwick County is pushing the Robert J. Dole Veteran’s Affairs hospital to hand over a stockpile of respiratory protective gear and medical supplies to help local hospitals and first responders fight the coronavirus.
(Read more: Kansas City Breaking News, Crime & Sports |)
Wyandotte County ramping up stay-at-home enforcement after rapid increase in cases; UG employee dies
Officials in Wyandotte County are stepping up enforcement on the stay-at-home order after seeing a rapid rise in coronavirus cases, including the death of a Unified Government employee.
According to the county’s chief medical officer, there have been 137 cases of in Wyandotte County as of Friday night. Dr. Allen Greiner said that’s a 191% increase from one week ago.
…County health officials are stressing that residents and businesses need to take the stay-at-home order seriously. …Residents can report any businesses or individuals whom they believe are not complying with the order by calling the KCK Police Department’s special reporting line …
(Read more: fox4kc.com | FOX 4 – WDAF)
Shawnee County’s health officer thrust into spotlight after years of relative anonymity
In 1994, Gianfranco Pezzino had a decision to make. As one of his mentors put it, he would have to choose between being a “big fish in a small pond” or a small fish in a bigger — but possibly nicer — pond.Pezzino chose Topeka. Today, Shawnee County’s health officer calls it “the best decision ever” and takes exception to those who once questioned his move or even said they felt sorry for him.
(Read more: Local – The Topeka Capital-Journal)
Kansas Supreme Court balks at price discrimination against home solar producers
The Kansas Supreme Court said Friday state regulators engaged in illegal price discrimination by allowing utility companies to assess higher electric fees on residential customers who generated their own wind or solar power. The decision means Kansas utility companies can’t charge customers producing their own energy more than the companies charge other customers based on that distinction.
(Read more: Local – The Topeka Capital-Journal)
Gov. Laura Kelly signs bill for new transportation program
Gov. Laura Kelly on Friday signed legislation to launch a 10-year transportation program. The Legislature before adjourning in March adopted the $9.9 billion Eisenhower Legacy Transportation Program to replace the expired T-Works program. The new plan includes completion of T-Works projects left marooned by a decade of annual funding sweeps."Investing in Kansas’ infrastructure means putting people to work," Kelly said. "It means fixing our roads and bridges.
(Read more: Local – The Topeka Capital-Journal)
Hospitals, cities suffer revenue shortfalls
Arkansas City commissioners were warned Friday to expect a big financial hit to the city and hospital due to the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.
During a study session Friday, City Manager Nick Hernandez predicted serious problems in the next few months.
The city does have reserves, but might also have to borrow from other sources to cover expenses.
“I’m telling you straight up right now, we’ll probably have to transfer some of our utility funds over to help cover the offset in lost revenue,” he said. “If sales tax decreases 50 percent, you’re talking about a $1.6 million hit to the budget.”
Hernandez added that he doesn’t expect to see that big of a drop. His guess is a 20 to 25 percent drop overall due to the loss of local sales.
(Read more: www.ctnewsonline.com)
Reno Commissioner offers challenge to community in video
In a brief video recorded Thursday in the Reno County Commission chambers, Commissioner Bob Bush challenged he community to keep the county’s death toll from the novel coronavirus at zero by everyone staying at home and, if people must go out, practicing the oft-repeated health guidelines of social distancing and good hygiene.
Bush touches on the efforts being made by local public and health agencies, who gather on a conference call each morning to “talk about how to unity and come together so we have the resources when people get sick,” as well as the county’s burn ban and the need to conserve medical resources.
(Read more: Local – The Hutchinson News)
Early projections have Johnson County government losing $18-$38 million in tax revenue due to pandemic
The county could lose anywhere from $18 million to $38 million in tax revenues due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to the earliest projections prepared by budget director Scott Neufeld. And that doesn’t even include parks and library budgets.
Johnson County commissioners got a sobering look at the potential impact of the business shutdowns on sales and other taxes collected for the rest of the current budget year. Biggest losses were estimated to come from lagging sales tax, but the county could also expect to lose substantially on investment income because of cuts to interest rates by the Federal Reserve, he said.
Meanwhile, the county manager’s office furloughed 46 motor vehicle registration employees, since those offices are now closed to the public. The furloughs save about $240,000 a month.
(Read more: Prairie Village Post )
Gardner forgives many March electric bills for residents, businesses
With many residents and business owners hurting financially because of the new coronavirus, the city of Gardner is forgiving many of the electricity charges it billed during March.
The move, which will cost Gardner about $790,000 in lost revenue, eliminates the entire monthly bill for residential customers and will grant credit for the first 5,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity used by businesses.
“We know we have residents who are financially struggling with bills and other obligations due to the impacts of COVID-19,” Gardner Mayor Steve Shute said in a news release. “We are fortunate that we own our utilities, so we can authorize these changes and provide this much-welcome relief for all in our community while they wait for federal government assistance.”
(Read more: Joco 913 News)
“Pittsburg Strong” shirts aimed at helping local businesses affected by COVID-19 outbreak
The Pittsburg Area Chamber of Commerce has come up with a unique way to help local businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
he chamber has partnered with Jake’s Fireworks to sell “Pittsburg Strong” t-shirts.
The shirts are $10, and every dollar will help businesses affected by the current coronavirus outbreak.
Participating businesses will be provided t-shirts free of charge and will keep 100% of every sale, thanks to the generous support of sponsors.
(Read more: KSNF/KODE – FourStatesHomepage.com)
Munis again roiled by coronavirus-led volatility as spread-widening grows
The municipal market is facing never-before-seen challenges. A work-from-home workforce scattered about, liquidity constraints, ever-growing credit concerns and a mostly shut down economy that still somehow must provide market access.
Like the middle of March, the tone in the market has moved from a strong seller’s market to one where bidders could name their price.
Credit concerns are impacting the municipal market in a large way, according to Karel Citroen, head of municipal research at investment manager Conning.
“The spread widening is causing deals that were set to price, either get repriced or postponed, now showing up as day-to-day,” Citroen said Thursday before the close of trading.
“I believe two things are happening; at more attractive levels one is starting to see good crossover demand come in, and, at the same time, the traditional investor base is becoming more concerned with the credit implications of the COVID-19 virus,” Citroen said.
(Read more: The Bond Buyer)
Municipal Bond Trends for April 2, 2020
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.
Riley County Clerk pushing for all mail-in election; logistics still a huge question
Depending on the length of the COVID-19 pandemic, some questions are beginning to mount over what effect, if any it will have on the 2020 elections.
Current state law prohibits all mail ballot elections in an election with a candidate’s name on the ballot. They can only be used for special questions. Kansas State University Department of Communications Associate Professor Dr. Tim Shaffer says if a change is made, it will need to happen quickly.
“The reality is, voting by mail is going to require a lot of logistics if we were to do it on a national scale, at this level. The clock is ticking, the election’s in November, especially if we were to think about it from a logistical standpoint. When Amazon and everyone else can’t even mail you toilet paper, how do we do something like this.” he said.
(Read more: 1350 KMAN)
Kansas plans to increase testing soon in fight against virus
Kansas expects an influx of coronavirus tests in the compig weeks that should help with efforts to bring the pandemic under control, the state’s top health official says.
Dr. Lee Norman, Kansas secretary of health and environment, said Wednesday that he expects to have up to 64,000 test kits that can produce results in 45 minutes, the Lawrence Journal-World reports.
“Very clearly we need to do population studies, meaning testing people who are well,” Norman said. “It’s very fundamental work and will push the analysis (of the virus) upstream. But until that time, social distancing is the name of the game.”
(Read more: 1350 KMAN)
State tax revenue steady in March; Gov. Kelly expects ’huge hit’ in April
The calm-before-the-storm state revenue report for March revealed a narrow uptick in income and sales tax collections.
In one month, the April report from the Kansas Department of Revenue is expected to reflect economic damage of a massive business slowdown and the influence of a decision by Gov. Laura Kelly to extend the deadline for filing state income tax returns until July 15.
“As consumer spending patterns change, retail sales tax and compensating use tax collections could experience a major decline in the months to come,” said Mark Burghart, secretary of the state’s revenue department. “We expect the uncertain business and employment landscape to negatively affect withholding and estimated income taxes.”
Read more: Community – Cherokee County News Advocate)
State looks for compliance in GPS data gleaned from cellphones; infections at 552 with 14 deaths
A promotional flyer last week beckoned Norton-area residents to “get out of the house” and cruise the town’s main drag “like we used to do,” a welcome respite from increasing pressure by health experts to avoid transmission of the coronavirus by sheltering at home.
About 300 showed up for Friday Night Lights in the small western Kansas town near the Nebraska border, where revelers stayed in their car and practiced social distancing before, during and after the event.
Norton County’s rating for social distancing dropped from an A to a F in a trendy scorecard promoted by Unacast, a private company that collects and sells GPS data from cellphones. The company has deployed a free online graphic that grades counties and states by overall reduction in movement reflected in the GPS data.
(Read more: Community – Morning Sun)
How the CARES Act Will Benefit Local Government and School Districts
Last Friday, the president signed into law House Bill 748, the “Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act.” In it, the Federal government authorized more than $2 trillion in emergency relief aid for individual taxpayers, businesses, public health institutions, and state and local governments. We’ve looked through the bill to see where local governments might find some relief from the impact of the pandemic response and have identified a number of potential avenues.
The bill itself is little more than a list of authorizations for various expenditures with qualifications and formulas to determine where the money flows. There is still plenty of work to be done to create the mechanisms for distributing the money. Most of the appropriations are required to be invested on impacts related to the Coronavirus pandemic, although there are exceptions.
From what we see in the bill, there are a number of avenues for local governments and school districts to receive funds, both as pass-throughs from other agencies or as grants from specific programs, using pre-existing processes.
Below are areas of the bill that contain potential funding opportunities for counties, cities and school districts.
(Read more: ELGL)
Good Neighbor Program serves a need in Shawnee County
For those of you who are stuck at home, there is help nearby when it comes to getting your essential goods delivered. The Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office has a new program to deliver groceries and other necessities straight to your door.
Jackson, Geary and Brown County sheriffs’ offices are doing something similar. If you need assistance you can place your order with a participating store and then call the sheriff’s program number to provide them with the details.
The number for Shawnee County is 785-251-2444. The service is offered Monday through Friday from 8:00am until 4:00pm.
Sheriff Brian Hill said “the sheriffs’ office just wants to do what they can to help out during these difficult times. I know there’s a lot of people that are elderly, disabled or live out in isolated locations, maybe with minimal family contact, and we’re trying to assist those folks.”
(Read more: KSNT News)
Sedgwick County launches page to report Stay-at-Home order violations
Sedgwick County residents now have a way to report violations of Gov. Laura Kelly’s order to stay at home to slow the spread of COVID-19.
The county launched its Stay at Home Order Reporting page on Thursday.
The county says each report will be documented and reviewed. If it is determined that a non-essential business is operating or a non-essential activity is occurring, the appropriate parties will be contacted.
(Read more: KWCH News)
Coffey County is state’s hot spot for COVID-19
Although urban areas may have more cases, the number of confirmed cases per 10,000 residents is 2.7 times higher in Coffey County than in any other county and most of the counties with infection rates that high are near that county.
(Read more: Marion County RECORD)
Overland Park police group says city should enact pay raises for officers as planned
The Overland Park city administration’s move to suspend the planned increase in police salaries that was scheduled to go into effect this week has drawn a response from the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 21, which is made up of Overland Park officers.
In a letter to city officials, Lodge 21 President Mike Mosher said the group believes the move to suspend the raise was premature, and that the city’s financial position should allow it to be enacted as planned.
“Although we understand the speed that this COVID-19 pandemic came upon all of us, we also understand that our great city has taken steps in the past to prepare for such an event,” Mosher wrote. “This includes putting money into reserves, sometimes more than what was required. The reserves are strong. Any increase in pay for our members would reflect a fraction of a percent of those reserves.”
(Read more: Shawnee Mission Post)
Welcome to the ‘touchless golf’ experience in Olathe, Shawnee
The Johnson County parks system has found a way to reopen its two golf courses during the physical-distancing restrictions imposed because of the COVID-19 pandamic.
Officials call it a “touchless golf experience.”
The new measures, which apply to the Heritage Park Golf Course in Olathe and the Tomahawk Hills course in Shawnee, are aimed at maintaining the 6-foot physical distancing requirement and reducing the likelihood of picking up the virus from a surface.
(Read more: Joco 913 News)
Amid COVID-19, Shawnee Mission issuing trespass citations for crowds on school fields
Despite the risk of spreading coronavirus, large crowds continue to congregate and play team sports on Shawnee Mission school athletic fields, officials said. Now, the district is cracking down.
The district’s fields and stadiums remain open, even though schools are closed, officials said, to let the community exercise during the stay at home order. But officials said Wednesday that the district and local police departments have received numerous complaints about large groups playing organized sports and ignoring social distancing guidelines.
Beginning Thursday, district police were to begin issuing trespassing citations for anyone violating the rules — which include staying six feet away from others and gathering with no more than 10 people.
(Read more: Joco 913 News)
How the Muni Market Became the Epicenter of the Liquidity Crisis
The coronavirus triggered a liquidity crisis in municipal bonds, but the volatility that resulted has been brewing for a decade.
Desperate sellers across most markets sold assets at deep discounts last month as the spreading new coronavirus left investors fearful and hungry for cash. Perhaps no investment flipped from coveted haven to spurned hot potato as quickly as municipal bonds.
Prices have started to recover as U.S. lawmakers authorized the Federal Reserve to prop up a wide swath of state and local government debt. But the marketwide breakdown exposed a new vulnerability in the nearly $4 trillion municipal market: a concentration of power and risk resulting from a fundamental shift in how muni bonds are bought and sold on Wall Street and on Main Street.
More money than ever is managed by a few financial behemoths that can swallow large chunks of debt at premium prices and don’t shy away from risk. Meanwhile, the banks and brokers that trade munis have become less inclined to warehouse debt.
That shift left the market susceptible to extreme volatility when worried investors fled bond funds, triggering waves of forced selling with few other buyers willing to pay top dollar. Yields on 10-year bonds doubled in three days, a price drop never seen before, according to Refinitiv, and the S&P Municipal Bond Index gave up more than a year’s worth of gains. State and local governments were locked out of the debt market for days and investors who cashed out likely suffered tens of millions of dollars in losses. Yields rise as bond prices fall.
(Read more: WSJ.com: Markets)
Selling pressure returns to munis as coronavirus-driven credit concerns grow
Another large wave of selling hit the market on Wednesday, with yields rising by more than a half percentage point on the long end, amid defensive bidding reminiscent of the mid-March sell-off.
March’s volatility has led to some of the widest price swings the market has seen since benchmark data was created and it continues as the second quarter begins.
Large block trades were showing massive swings in yield and AAA benchmark yields on various scales rose by 40 to 50 basis points from 10 years and out while the short end wasn’t spared either, seeing cuts of 16 to 35 inside 10 years.
(Read more: The Bond Buyer)
Johnson County dedicates $400,000 to COVID-19 tests
The Johnson County Commissioners decided March 30 to take a pro-active response to COVID-19 by offering testing for a random sample of 3,000 to 5,000 people in the county.
“We are not trying to test everybody in the county,” explained Dr. Sanmi Areola, director of the department of health and environment. “That is neither feasible nor necessary. Additional testing is necessary to understand what’s going on in the county to help us make informed decisions, so we can identify positives cases, see who their contacts are, and take action to prevent the spread of the virus.”
In a move that demonstrates commitment to public health and determination to set a high standard for county integrity, the Johnson County Commissioners voted unanimously to spend up to $400,000 on this testing.
(Read more: Gardner News)
Fort Scott businesses can apply for $10,000 in funding
Fort Scott commissioners are looking to take action their response to COVID-19.
Two proposals on Tuesday night’s agenda featured initiatives for disaster response — one adopting a local state of emergency and the other working to aid small businesses within the community. …
The Revolving Loan Program is an emergency tool for businesses in the form of grant funding. The City of Fort Scott has more than $260,000 through the Kansas Department of Commerce and will be able to help more than 25 local businesses.
Companies can apply online for the $10,000 grant, or can email their completed applications to Rachel Pruitt, the city’s Director of Economic Development. Although applications are submitted to the city, the State of Kansas will review the final paperwork and decide where the money will go.
(Read more: KSNF/KODE – FourStatesHomepage.com)
Ark City parks to remain open during stay-at-home order
Citizens advised to avoid equipment; obey social distancing guidelines, signs
Parks in Ark City will remain open to the public during Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly’s “stay at home” order, but this could change if safety guidelines are ignored.
Under the stay-at-home order, open spaces and walking trails are recommended to remain open, and the use of these areas is considered an “essential activity” — as long as the appropriate 6-foot distance is maintained between individuals and gatherings do not exceed the state limit of 10 people.
However, the City of Arkansas City’s Public Services Department strongly discourages the use of any playground or exercise equipment, or park shelters, during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
(Read more: The Arkansas City Traveler)
Law enforcement still taking steps to make citizens law-abiding
Police and sheriff’s officers will not let the coronavirus stop them from enforcing the law, despite changes in procedures over the past two weeks.
Neosho County Undersheriff Greg Taylor said the jail is maintaining numbers so it can quarantine an inmate if necessary. He said some prisoners on misdemeanor charges without bond were released after a judge reviewed charges, and officers continue to make arrests.
“We’ll use some common sense as to who we bring in,” Taylor said.
(Read more: The Chanute Tribune)
Municipal Bond Trends for April 1, 2020
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 mayor Whipple, council clash on proposal to aid workers idled by coronavirus
Wichita Mayor Brandon Whipple is calling on the City Council to dip into its lunch and travel funds to help soften the blow on city workers as the budget faces a multi-million-dollar shortfall caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
But some of Whipple’s fellow council members are upset that he’s gone public with his ideas before the council has a meeting Tuesday to discuss the city’s entire budget. The city is projected to lose around $8 million of its $624.5 million budget, based on early staff estimates.
Whipple’s proposal came in response to City Manager Robert Layton’s decision last week to furlough 290 city employees for 30 days as Wichita grapples with the fallout from coronavirus disease COVID-19.
(Read more: Local News |)
Fleet of vans to begin collecting data on Lawrence road conditions
The City of Lawrence begins a project this week to assess and inventory the condition of all roadways within the city.
The city hired the firm Data Transfer Solutions to perform the assessment, which includes the use of vans with cameras to gather data on road conditions, according to a city news release. The project will last approximately six weeks and begins Wednesday.
To evaluate roadway conditions, DTS deploys a fleet of data collection vans equipped with digital cameras that will collect imagery on all pavement and transportation-related infrastructure located within the city right-of-way. The vehicles will be traveling all roads within the city to collect the required data, and some roads will need to be traveled several times. The imagery will be used to create a digital video inventory.
Read more: LJWorld.com.
Muni heavy infrastructure bill touted by House Democrats
A $760 billion infrastructure plan packed with help for the public finance sector is being offered by House Democrats as the legislative vehicle for fourth coronavirus emergency spending bill that would focus on economic stimulus.
The five-year spending plan Democrats originally proposed at the end of January calls for reinstating advance refunding, Build America Bonds and tax credit bonds. It also would expand qualified private activity bonds, allow a to-be-decided increase in airport passenger facility charges and $40 billion more for State Revolving Funds that finance water projects.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters in a conference call Wednesday that new additions that would increase the original price tag of the package include $10 billion for construction of new community health centers.
The coronavirus health emergency has exposed gaps in the nation’s healthcare system and the need for universal high speed broadband, Democrats said. The original package already set a goal of achieving universal high speed broadband.
(Read more: The Bond Buyer)
State groups urge Federal Reserve to buy wide range of munis
Groups representing states and localities are urging the Federal Reserve and Treasury to create new programs to buy a wider range of securities and help municipalities grappling with revenue delays due to the coronavirus.
In a letter sent to the Fed and Treasury this week, the National Association of State Treasurers, Government Finance Officers Association and the National Association of State Auditors, Comptrollers and Treasurers pushed for the Fed to buy munis on secondary market and create a financing program to help municipalities struggling with late revenues.
“As you know, an historic cash panic, prolonged paralysis in the primary municipal bond market, and impending budget shocks stemming from the pandemic have all culminated at once, forcing many businesses and nearly every state and local government into an unprecedented state of damage control,” the groups wrote in the letter. “Absent support for the municipal debt market, state and local government budgets will be further stressed at the most inopportune time, particularly as revenues decline as a result of business closures and rising unemployment.”
(Read more: The Bond Buyer)