Kansas casinos push for control over legalized sports wagering

Kansas casino managers are pushing House legislators to pass a Senate-backed bill legalizing and regulating online and casino sports gambling. Since a 2018 U.S. Supreme Court Ruling affirmed state’s rights to institute sports gambling, half the country has enacted some regulatory practice. Kansas lawmakers are now considering joining the 25 states and Washington, D.C., in the world of sports gambling under the Kansas Expanded Lottery Act, or KELA.
Source: Kansas Reflector

Ranson Financial2021-03-19T08:56:29-05:00March 18, 2021|News|

Some Johnson County residents are going to rural Kansas to get vaccinated — here’s why

Sue Wildgen, a Prairie Village resident in her 70s, began looking for COVID-19 vaccination appointments in early February. Several of her friends on the other side of the state line in Missouri received their first doses in early January, and despite filling out Johnson County’s COVID-19 vaccine interest survey and searching for appointments in the metro, Wildgen said her search for weeks was unsuccessful. Then, she heard that Walmart would begin offering vaccines at select locations, and she began looking for appointments across Kansas. So, like some other frustrated Johnson Countians, Wildgen, her husband Paul and fellow Prairie Village residents Beth and Lloyd Koelker, took to the road. The foursome made a two hour drive to Junction City in Geary County, just west of Manhattan, to get vaccinated.
Source: Prairie Village Post

Ranson Financial2021-03-19T08:56:39-05:00March 18, 2021|News|

New station moves closer for Hillsboro

A new ambulance station at Hillsboro is closer to being built. County commissioners Monday heard from emergency medical services director Travis Parmley and Hillsboro city administrator Matt Stiles that Hillsboro has done a site survey of the proposed new EMS building in Hillsboro. The station is to be located near Hillsboro’s police department and also near a planned new fire station.
Source: Marion County RECORD

Ranson Financial2021-03-19T08:31:42-05:00March 18, 2021|News|

Garden City ends face covering ordinance

The Garden City Commission voted to not extend the citywide, face-covering ordinance at its regular meeting Tuesday. The commission voted 4-1 to end the ordinance, with Commissioner Deb Oyler dissenting. The ordinance was put into effect to help combat the spread of COVID-19 in the community and has been in effect since the Nov. 17 regular Commission meeting.
Source: Garden City Telegram.

Ranson Financial2021-03-18T07:41:33-05:00March 18, 2021|News|

Municipal Bond Trends for March 17, 2021

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.

Ranson Financial2021-03-18T07:38:12-05:00March 18, 2021|News|

Johnson County Chairman Ed Eilert joins other metro leaders in marking one year of COVID-19

Board of County Commissioners Chairman Ed Eilert remembered the 638 Johnson Countians who have died from COVID-19 since March 2020. On Tuesday, Eilert joined three other metro leaders — Kansas City, Mo., Mayor Quinton Lucas, Jackson County Executive Frank White and United Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kan., Mayor David Alvey — at Union Station to mark the one-year anniversary since the four jurisdictions implemented a region-wide shutdown to control the spread of COVID-19. The four leaders were the first to write notes on a commemorative flower wall that will remain at Union Station for the public to interact with in coming weeks.
Source: Prairie Village Post

Ranson Financial2021-03-18T07:13:00-05:00March 17, 2021|News|

Governor Kelly expands visitation for nursing homes

Tuesday, Governor Laura Kelly announced expanded visitation for nursing homes and long-term care facilities, which would allow outdoor and more indoor options for families to see their loved ones. “I feel very blessed that I can be here,” said Larksfield Place resident Mary D. Lounsbury. Lounsbury said in the past year she has felt lucky to be where she is and taken care of. “Sometimes older people don’t like to think going to a place like this. I’d go to it again at the drop of a hat. It’s just, they’re all just nice,” said Lounsbury. But when the shutdown happened, communication with family got more complicated as many nursing homes and long-term care facilities closed their doors.
Source: KAKE – News

Ranson Financial2021-03-18T07:16:14-05:00March 17, 2021|News|

Kansas schools are returning kids to in-person learning, but concerns over ventilation linger

After the pandemic hit, the largest school district in Kansas set to calculating how much outdoor air it should pull into its buildings. Wichita Public Schools turned to the nation’s top sources for expertise, then boosted ventilation and filtration in ways that scientists say dramatically cut the risk of inhaling COVID-19. Evidence that schools — as well as operators of other buildings that bring people together — should take those steps has solidified, buoyed by scientific findings that the virus spreads primarily through particles in the air, not by lurking on doorknobs and table tops. Yet scientists say most American schools probably don’t bring in enough outdoor air or filter indoor air the way they should. In some schools, the windows don’t even open.
Source: Prairie Village Post

Ranson Financial2021-03-18T07:23:56-05:00March 17, 2021|News|

State to come out with more guidance soon on vaccine Phases 3 and 4

Dr. Lee Norman, Kansas secretary of health, said on Tuesday that the state will come out with more guidance by Monday on Phases 3 and 4 of the state vaccine plan. Gov. Laura Kelly and Dr. Norman announced Monday that Phases 3 and 4 of the vaccine plan would start Monday, March 22. One of the questions raised about the new phases is how will vaccination sites know if a person has a chronic disease and is in one of the phases. The topic was discussed at the Tuesday morning media update at the University of Kansas Health System. Dr. Norman said the state will come out with some guidance on that topic soon. He said that people will be on the honor system, but they might want to bring a pill bottle with their name and the medication name on it, or a copy of their prescription with them when they get a vaccine.
Source: Wyandotte Daily

Ranson Financial2021-03-18T07:25:22-05:00March 17, 2021|News|

Fed sees stronger economy and higher inflation, but no rate hikes

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday sharply ramped up its expectations for economic growth but indicated that there are no expected interest rate hikes through 2023 despite an improving outlook and a turn this year to higher inflation. As widely expected, the policymaking Federal Open Market Committee also voted to keep short-term borrowing rates steady near zero, while continuing an asset purchase program in which the central bank buys at least $120 billion of bonds a month. The key changes came in how central bankers view the economic road ahead and what impact that could have on policy. “Following a moderation in the pace of the recovery, indicators of economic activity and employment have turned up recently, although the sectors most adversely affected by the pandemic remain weak. Inflation continues to run below 2 percent,” the committee said in its post-meeting statement.
Source: Economy

Ranson Financial2021-03-18T07:28:11-05:00March 17, 2021|News|