Kansas Municipal News
Municipal Bond Trends for August 29, 2022
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.
Fed rate hikes won’t bring down inflation as long as government spending stays high, paper says
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell proclaimed Friday that the central bank has an “unconditional” responsibility for inflation and expressed confidence that it will “get the job done.” But a paper released at the same Jackson Hole, Wyoming summit where Powell spoke suggests that the Fed can’t do the job itself and actually could make matters worse with aggressive interest rate increases. In the current case, inflation is being driven largely by fiscal spending in response to the Covid crisis, and simply raising interest rates won’t be enough to bring it back down, researchers Francesco Bianchi of Johns Hopkins University and Leonardo Melosi of the Chicago Fed wrote in a white paper released Saturday morning.
Source: CNBC – Bonds
Governor Laura Kelly Touts Kansas as a Wind Energy Leader
Governor Laura Kelly today touted Kansas as a leader in wind energy, citing the recently released Wind Energy Market Report from the U.S. Department of Energy. “The latest report from the Department of Energy confirms that Kansas is a national leader in wind energy and is poised for even more growth in the coming years,” Governor Kelly said. “My administration will continue supporting our businesses and our nation in meeting aggressive and imperative energy goals.”
Source: Kansas Department of Commerce
Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway gets state OK to start sports betting
Hollywood Casino at Kansas Speedway is set to begin offering sports betting beginning at noon Thursday. The Kansas City, Kansas, casino said Friday that it has received approval from the state to offer sports betting from a temporary space overlooking the Kansas Speedway and through a mobile app. Kansas will open sports betting at approved operators on Sept. 1 — in time for the Sept. 8 start of the NFL season and the Sept. 9 start of three days of racing at the Kansas Speedway. The capstone of the racing weekend will be the Hollywood Casino 400 presented by Barstool Sportsbook, part of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.
Source: Kansas City Business Journal – The Business Journals
Lawrence’s land development code getting updated
A lot has changed in the past 16 years — but that’s not reflected in the document that lays out the regulations meant to help the city implement its goals and visions. Aging it further, Lawrence’s land development code, adopted in July 2006, was based on the city’s comprehensive plan that was adopted in 1998 — Horizon 2020. What is Lawrence’s land development code? In simplest terms, the 559-page code basically says what can be built where. It’s a lot more complex than that, however. It covers everything from how closes together houses can be to whether you can raise livestock in your backyard; from how many parking spaces different types of housing and businesses must have, to how many trees and different tree species must be planted — just to name a few examples.
Source: The Lawrence Times
Sportsbooks open Thursday in Kansas
Legalized sports betting in Kansas is set to officially launch on Thursday. Gov. Laura Kelly signed a bill into law in June that legalized sports betting in the state, paving the way for casinos to establish sportsbooks. Kelly has called the move a “common-sense solution” that will keep Kansans’ money in the state while supporting businesses in the leisure and hospitality industry. Dustin Gouker, an analyst from the industry website PlayUSA.com network, told The Center Square that the new law is a positive “in terms of creating a competitive market that should be good for both the state and the consumer.”
Source: Atchison Globe Now
New Seaman superintendent Brad Willson focuses on making sure students are learning and safe
One of the first things Brad Willson learned when he took the USD 345 job is that he wouldn’t be moving to Topeka. He’d be coming to Seaman. “It’s a very tight-knit community,” he said. “We’re north of Topeka, but that’s not what this community is built on. This community is built around its schools and considers itself a small town even in the larger metropolitan area.” As he starts the job, Willson says one of his priorities is building a reputation for communication. He’s modeling that by taking the first few months on the job to meet with families, parents, teachers, staff and anyone else with a stake in the district’s mission to educate and develop kids.
Source: CJonline
Wildfires growing in size, number
After years of largely ignoring a legislative audit identifying problems and solutions to wildfire response, Kansas has a new task force set to rekindle the efforts. If the system needs more money and less bureaucracy — as the audit found four years ago — will the lawmakers who hold the purse strings push for change this time? The governor’s task force comes after wildfires have grown, both in number and size.
Source: Hutch News
Powell warns of ‘some pain’ ahead as the Fed fights to bring down inflation
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell delivered a stern commitment Friday to halting inflation, warning that he expects the central bank to continue raising interest rates in a way that will cause “some pain” to the U.S. economy. In his much-anticipated annual policy speech at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Powell affirmed that the Fed will “use our tools forcefully” to attack inflation that is still running near its highest level in more than 40 years. Even with a series of four consecutive interest rate increases totaling 2.25 percentage points, Powell said this is “no place to stop or pause” even though benchmark rates are probably around an area considered neither stimulative nor restrictive on growth.
Source: CNBC – Bonds
Open street festival planned in Emporia
Empovía — pronounced Empo-vía — is a blend of the words “ciclovia” and “Emporia.” The concept? To bring an open street festival to Peter Pan Park. “The idea itself is not a new concept,” said Visit Emporia director LeLan Dains. “A ciclovia comes from Latin America and describes events that close down streets to automobiles so people can engage in human-powered activities within that space.” So, between 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. Sept. 17, a half-mile section of streets around the park will temporarily close to traffic to allow community members to safely ride, skate, rollerblade, scoot, walk, jog, run and more, in an environment completely closed to auto traffic.
Source: Emporia Gazette
Jackson County’s cities put ARPA funds to good use
Cities in Jackson County are putting American Rescue Plan Act funds – available through the county – to good use, it has been reported. Last February, the Jackson County Commissioners announced that each city was eligible to receive up to $25,000 in ARPA funds through the county. The county has received a total of $2,558,312 in ARPA funding. During recent county commission meetings, the commissioners received letters from city officials at Hoyt, Mayetta and Netawaka outlining how the funds will be spent in those cities. The letters are required for the cities to receive the funds. The Hoyt City Council reported that it plans to spend the funds to establish an emergency shelter at the community building. The funds will be used for structural improvements to the building and to purchase cots, water and food rations for citizens in the event the shelter is necessary.
Source: Holton Recorder
Supply chain issues impact Holton city projects
Supply chain issues are plaguing cities and counties across the country that need certain pieces of equipment to continue to operate smoothly and efficiently, and as the Holton City Commission was reminded on Monday, Aug. 17, the City of Holton is no exception. Commissioners approved a bid of $25,900 from the Harold K. Scholz Company of Ralston, Neb., for the purchase and installation of two electrical relays in the city’s electrical distribution system, but as Electrical Production Superintendent Ira Harrison told commissioners, the new relays would not likely be available for installation for about six months due to supply chain issues.
Source: Holton Recorder
Wellington testing thermal energy ceiling tiles
Wellington City Hall now has thermal energy-storing ceiling tiles to help reduce energy use. These Passive Thermal Energy Storage (PTES) ceiling tiles are similar to how gel packs for cold shipping functions. The tile is composed with a Phase Change Material (PCM) that will absorb heat as it changes from a solid form to liquid. After temperatures in the attic have dropped, the tiles release the stored heat. This project comes through the Department of Energy and aims to reduce cooling, heating, and electric demand. The goal with these tiles is a 10-20% reduction in use.
Source: KSN-TV
History explored during week of Little Balkans Days events in Pittsburg
An annual festival timed to the Labor Day holiday makes its return with a week full of events. Little Balkans Days, a festival of history and heritage, will begin with contests and classes Monday and work its way to a full festival of fairs, concerts and even a polka dance throughout Labor Day weekend. Mining activity throughout in the 1800s offered promises to immigrant families, attracting more of a diverse population than other regions of Kansas, according to the event’s website. Most of those immigrants hailed from the Balkans in southeastern Europe — an area that includes present-day Bulgaria, Albania, Bosnia, Montenegro and several other countries.
Source: www.joplinglobe.com
Kansas District courts in 34 counties to begin operating on new case management system September 12
Atchison and Leavenworth District courts are among district courts in 34 counties that will transition to the new Kansas eCourt centralized case management system between September 7 and 12. Collectively, the courts in these 34 counties are known as Track 6 in the Kansas eCourt statewide rollout plan. They are predominantly in southwest and southcentral Kansas, with the exception of the 1st Judicial District in the far northeast corner of the state. After Track 6 courts complete the transition, 95% of all trial courts in Kansas will operate on the eCourt centralized case management system.
Source: atchisonglobenow.com
Oswego museum looking for new home
Historical Museum is looking for a new home for the city’s treasures after a storm damaged the building on Commercial Street. A portion of the roof of the museum at 410 Commercial St. collapsed under the weight of rainwater during a May 5 storm. Some items in the museum were destroyed because of this, including a piano and a display relating to trains of Southeast Kansas. Kevin Sheddrick, museum board president, said the building was beyond repair.
Source: Parsons Sun
Bonner Springs celebrates sunny Tiblow Days
The Bonner Springs-Edwardsville Chamber of Commerce celebrated all things Bonner this weekend at Tiblow Days, the annual end-of-summer festival in honor of Henry Tiblow, a Delaware Indian who operated a Kansas River ferry in the late 1800s on the future site of the town. Saturday’s events included a pancake breakfast, 5K run, parade, car show, carnival and concert. The parade route was shortened from previous years, allowing the festival area to spread out and encourage more shopping in the downtown area, a key purpose of the event.
Source: Wyandotte Daily
KPERS on a roller coaster
It has been an eventful year for pensions in Kansas. Usually a topic that will send all but the hardiest actuary to sleep, officials pursued a number of policy items in 2022 that will have a major impact on the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System and its more than 300,000 total members. But if it been a roller coaster for KPERS lately, the stock market was even more volatile. Indeed, the oldest retiree on record to receive a KPERS check was 111 years old and the state’s actuaries might feel they have similarly aged over the last year. A year after posting one of its strongest investment returns in recent history, the 2022 fiscal year brought a negative return for the KPERS investments, one of only a small number of times that has been happened in the past quarter century.
Source: CJonline
All-inclusive playground in Salina helps all children
A lot of children have good ideas, but not all of them are like Olivia Bloomfield. Before this 10-year-old died of congenital muscular dystrophy in July, she spearheaded and witnessed the grand opening of Olivia’s Playground, 323 Center St. The park is the only all-inclusive playground of its kind in Salina, giving children with disabilities a place to play. Olivia and her grandparents, Sid and Susy Reitz, wanted to create an outdoor space where all children, including those with disabilities, could explore and play. She also advocated for a park in Leawood.
Source: Hutch News
Lawrence wins another federal grant to purchase electric buses; first ones to roll out Monday
The wheels of change are bringing more electric buses to the streets of Lawrence. The City of Lawrence has received a federal grant to purchase electric buses for the third straight year, and is preparing to roll out its first all-electric buses on Monday. In an announcement regarding the award, Transit and Parking Manager Adam Weigel said that the Federal Transit Administration continues to recognize the city’s commitment to its sustainability goals. “I’m proud of our staff and community for leaning in to this effort so fully, as it will pay off in a big way for this community in noise and pollution reduction,” Weigel said. The city received an approximately $3.28 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration’s “Low- or No-Emission” grant program for 2022, according to the news release.
Source: LJWorld