SHAWNEE COUNTY- Two people died in an accident just after 6a.m. on Monday in Shawnee County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2001 Dodge Ram pickup driven by Daniel Jordan Warner, 16, was northbound on Kansas 4 just south of U.S. 24.

The pickup went left of center and struck a southbound 2002 GMC pickup driven by Thad H. Hess, 40, Rossville, head-on.

Warner and Hess were pronounced dead at the scene and transported to First Call.

Warner was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court ruling that struck down Texas’ strict regulations of abortion clinics is expected to affect the fate of similar state regulations currently on hold in a Kansas court.

Texas rules required abortion providers to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals and forced clinics to meet hospital-like standards for outpatient care.

Kansas lawmakers passed similar requirements in 2011, but that law has been temporarily blocked pending trial in a Shawnee County courtroom.

The nation’s highest court held Monday that the regulations are medically unnecessary and unconstitutionally limit a woman’s right to an abortion.

That ruling was lauded in Kansas by abortion rights supporters who contend it clearly tells legislatures such laws are unconstitutional. Abortion opponents contend the decision jeopardizes women’s health.

Kansas has four clinics offering abortion services.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — The Army has identified a man who died in an Alaska motorcycle crash as a soldier from Junction City, Kansas.

Thirty-one-year-old Staff Sgt. Maurice Tucker crashed on Anchorage’s Minnesota Drive just before 8 p.m. Saturday.

Witnesses say the Tucker had stopped for a red light at Spenard Road while heading south.

On a green light, he took off at high speed, lost control and began doing “speed wobbles.”

Witnesses tell police Tucker was thrown from the bike and struck the pole at Jefferson Avenue as the motorcycle slid several hundred feet down the roadway.

Emergency responders declared Tucker dead at the scene.

By MEGAN HART

Advocates for early childhood education and welfare programs are objecting to parts of two proposals that Republican lawmakers hope will address a recent Kansas Supreme Court decision on the adequacy of funding for public schools.

The Legislature returned Thursday to Topeka for a special session to come up with enough money to fix what the Kansas Supreme Court called inequitable funding for public schools.

The court didn’t specify the amount, but lawmakers believe $38 million could do the job. The state’s tax receipts have consistently come in below expectations this year, leaving almost no cash on hand. The state finance council recently approved borrowing $900 million to ensure Kansas can meet its obligations if cash flow doesn’t come in as anticipated.

One legislative proposal to come up with some of the money for school funding would take $4.1 million from the Children’s Initiatives Fund and move it to the general fund. Another bill would take $3 million from the CIF, which is funded by payments Kansas receives as part of a settlement with major tobacco companies.

The funding would come from the Kansas preschool program, which makes grants to local entities like school districts to run pre-kindergarten programs, said Annie McKay, president and CEO of Kansas Action for Children.

Both bills propose replacing the CIF money with funding from Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, a federal block grant program best known for providing cash assistance to low-income people. It likely would be a short-term fix if Kansas continues its current practice of spending more than it receives from the TANF block grant.

The state used $7 million in TANF funds to replace CIF money for Parents as Teachers, a program that offers home visits to families with young children.

Kansas had about $61.2 million in TANF reserves that it hadn’t spent as of June 30, 2015, but that number likely will be lower when the 2016 fiscal year closes at the end of this month, according to the Kansas Legislative Research Department. If the state continued to withdraw $11.1 million annually to fund Parents as Teachers and preschool programs, it would run out of TANF reserves in less than six years.

The bills currently before the Legislature only specify how to fund the preschool program in fiscal year 2017, which starts in July, McKay said. After that, it isn’t clear what might happen, she said.

“There’s no vision beyond the next 12 months,” she said. “Funding early childhood programs with TANF is not a sustainable, long-term solution.”

It also isn’t clear what effect the funding shift would have on the preschool program and families who use it. TANF funds can only be used for families with a low income or some other qualification, such as a child with a disability or parents who don’t speak English.

As Parents as Teachers switches to TANF funding, some programs leaders say they may have to limit the number of non-qualifying families they serve.

The groups running preschool programs still could offer services to children who don’t qualify by using funding sources other than TANF, but some may not have enough money to do so. If the preschool programs do have to make changes, they would have little time to adjust, because the fiscal year starts July 1, McKay said.

The timeline is short because of the need to fix the school funding situation before the fiscal year begins.

Using funding for the preschool program to accomplish that actually may worsen educational inequities, because the programs are designed to help low-income children catch up with their peers, McKay said.

Research has suggested children who attend quality preschool programs may have better educational outcomes but hasn’t proven the programs caused the outcomes.

“This is short-sighted on many levels,” she said.

Usually, when the Legislature takes money from the CIF, it doesn’t attempt to restore it in the next year, McKay said. It is more likely that legislators will continue making cuts above what they proposed this session when they return next year, further reducing the money available to fund children’s programs in the long term, she said.

“At this point, we’re using almost one out of every two (tobacco fund) master settlement dollars for other uses — to plug the budget hole,” she said.

Megan Hart is a reporter for KHI News Service in Topeka, a partner in the Heartland Health Monitor team. You can reach her on Twitter @meganhartMC

POTTAWATOMIE COUNTY – Three people were injured in an accident just before 10:30 a.m. on Monday in Pottawatomie County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2006 Ford Taurus driven by Carl Joseph Behrens, 40, Wamego, was eastbound on U.S. 24 in the slow lane and struck a 2007 Ford Focus driven by Alyssa Jade McCormack, 15, Saint George, that was southbound crossing U.S. 24 on Blackjack Road.

McCormack and a passenger Kyla McCormack, 13, Saint George, were transported to the hospital in Manhattan.

Behrens was transported to the hospital in Wamego.

All three were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.

SALINE COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Saline County are investigating a murder.

Just after 8 p.m. on Saturday, 57-year-old Lori J. Heimer was found dead inside her residence at 10525 S. Hopkins Road five miles southeast of Assaria, according to Saline County Undersheriff Roger Soldan.

“It is believed that she died earlier in the day and it appears to be a homicide,” Soldan said.

He declined to comment on the manner or cause of Heimer’s death, but did ask for the public’s help in the case.

If anyone saw anything in the area of the crime that looked out of place or suspicious, they need to contact the authorities immediately, according to Soldan.

No arrests have been made in the case and a specific suspect has not been identified.

“We are asking residents in the area to lock their doors and be aware of their surroundings,” he said.

The Sheriff’s Office is being assisted in the investigation by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. Their Crime Scene Response Team, as well as nine KBI agents and a civilian KBI employee, were still working at the scene Monday morning. An investigator from the Saline County Attorney’s Office is also involved.

Soldan said the Saline County Mounted Patrol assisted in a search of the area, but he declined to give specifics on the search.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact the Saline County Sheriff’s Office at 785-826-6500 or the Kansas Bureau of Investigation at 1-800-KSCRIME.

BENTON COUNTY- Two people from Salina were injured in an accident just after 4:30p.m. on Sunday in Benton County Missouri.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 1990 Dodge Dakota driven by George T. Duff, 54, Sunrise Beach, MO., was traveling on Missouri 7 north of Route AA.

The Dodge crossed into oncoming traffic and struck a 2013 Chevy Sonic driven by DAVID W. Gavin, 29, Salina, head-on.

The Dodge slid and was rear-ended by a Chevy Truck driven by RACHEL Ferguson, 42, Versailles, Missouri.

Furguson, Gavin and a passenger in the Sonic Courtney Hail, 26, Salina were transported to Lake Regional Hospital with serious injuries, according to the MSHP.

Duff was not injured but arrested for Felony Assault and Driving while Intoxicated, according to the MSHP. He is being held in the Benton County Jail.

All were properly restrained at the time of the accident.

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