KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fort Hays State women’s basketball senior Tatyana Legette standout performance in her final two regular season home games has earned Legette her third MIAA Women’s Basketball Athlete of the Week honor of the season, announced Tuesday (March 5) by the league office. It is the fifth time the forward has earned the honor in her illustrious career.
Legette did all she could to ensure the Tigers would complete the regular season undefeated at home, posting 14 points, eight rebounds four assists and two blocks in a 20-point win over Missouri Southern before recording a Senior Day performance for the ages.
Donning fellow senior Carly Heim’s No. 13, the Topeka, Kan. native matched her career high with 25 points in her final regular season home contest. Legette added 10 rebounds, recording her 20th career double-double, while dishing out six assists and swiping two steals to help the Tigers pull out a win over Pittsburg State.
For the week, Legette averaged 19.5 points, 9.0 rebounds and 5.0 rebounds.
This is the second year in a row that Legette has earned athlete of the week honors following the final week of the regular season.
Legette is one of three players in the league to earn the honor three times this season (Tyra Jones, ESU and Kallie Bildner, LWU). Along with Belle Barbieri’s weekly honor in February, Fort Hays State was one of two MIAA schools to earn four weekly accolades alongside Emporia State.
Legette and the third-ranked Tigers will now set their sights on Kansas City and the MIAA Championship tournament. Top-seeded Fort Hays State will open postseason play on Thursday (March 7) at 6 p.m. inside historic Municipal Auditorium. The Tigers will take on the winner of No. 8 Nebraska-Kearney and No. 9 Missouri Western.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Bureau of Investigation is investigating the Kansas City, Kansas, police chief’s use of a county-owned lake house.
The investigation centers on whether Chief Terry Ziegler “double dipped” when he took paid time off work while also charging the county government for work he did on the lake house.
The Unified Government allowed Ziegler to pay little rent on the house on Wyandotte Lake Park if he made repairs on the property. Officials put the lease in writing after a citizen inquired about it.
LoRee G. (Popp) Dietz, 90, of Hays, Kansas and formerly of Russell, Kansas, passed Sunday, March 3, 2019 at Via Christi Village in Hays.
LoRee was born March 24, 1928, in Barton County, Kansas, the daughter of William and Olinda (Schwartzkopf) Popp. She was Baptized and Confirmed in the Reformed Lutheran Church. She grew up in the Susank, Kansas area and graduated from Hoisington High School. She then attended Ft. Hays State University and obtained a Teaching Degree. She taught two years at North Star Dist #62 and two years at Rude School Dist. #91.
LoRee was united in marriage to Elroy Dietz on September 10, 1950 in Russell. This union was blessed with two children, Melinda and Martin. They made their home on the farm near Russell.
LoRee was a devoted wife and homemaker. She helped Elroy on the farm and kept the books for the farm. She was a member of St. John Lutheran Church, where she taught Sunday school classes and Vacation Bible School. She was a cooking leader for the Sunflower 4-H Club. She enjoyed helping on the farm, sewing, cooking, and especially spending time with her grandchildren and great grandchildren.
Surviving family include her husband of 68 years, Elroy of the Home; daughter, Melinda Olson (Robert) of Russell, Kansas; son, Martin Dietz (Linda) of Russell, Kansas; three sisters, Delores Hanhardt of LaCrosse, Kansas, Theresa Dietz and Shirley Maier both of Great Bend, Kansas; four grandchildren and eleven great grandchildren.
LoRee was preceded in death by her parents, son Richard Dietz, and brother Vernon Popp.
Celebration of LoRee’s Life will be held at 11:00 AM, Saturday, March 9, 2019 at St. John Lutheran Church. Private burial of ashes will take place at a later date. The family will be present to greet friends from 10:00 AM to Service Time at the church. No visitation being held at the mortuary. Memorials have been established with St. John Lutheran Church or the Russell Regional Hospital. Contributions and condolences may be sent to Pohlman-Varner-Peeler Mortuary, who is in charge of these arrangements.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A former White House special counsel considers special prosecutor Robert Mueller “an American hero.”
Cobb-photo courtesy Hogan-Lovels
Attorney Ty Cobb says he does not share President Donald Trump’s opinion that Mueller’s probe into Russian meddling in the election is “a witch hunt” during an ABC News’ podcast “The Investigation” aired Tuesday
Cobb, a Georgetown University law school alumnus and native of Great Bend, Kansas, says Mueller is a “very justice-oriented person.”
Cobb does not believe Mueller’s report will harm the president politically. Cobb says there’s no link to Trump or the campaign in an indictment against Russian hackers and says there’s “no reference to collusion” in a sentencing memo for former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort.
Cobb joined the Trump’s White House legal team in July 2017 and left after ten months.
He says Trump should brace himself for upcoming congressional investigations.
From left, Grow Hays Chair Karen Dreiling, Executive Director Doug Williams, Gary Shorman and Ernee Sly of Grow Hays.
Grow Hays has announced the formation of the Robert E. Schmidt Entrepreneurship Series sponsored by the Robert E. and Patricia A. Schmidt Foundation.
The series will feature events designed to foster entrepreneurship in Ellis County. These events will include “Pitch It” events, The TriSpective Speaker Series, Grow Hays quarterly luncheons and the Network Kansas Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge.
“We are honored to conduct these events in the name of Bob Schmidt. He was the consummate entrepreneur and business man and the sponsorship of these events by his foundation gives the series very special meaning” said Doug Williams, executive director of Grow Hays.
“Bob was not only an entrepreneur, but he was also passionate about Ellis County and its growth. He was a generous contributor in so many ways, and I know he would be proud to sponsor a series designed to promote entrepreneurship in his community,” said Gary Shorman, president of the Schmidt Foundation.
Pitch It events consist of “Shark Tank”-type presentations where prospective entrepreneurs present five-minute “pitches” on their ideas and products. The first event was held on Jan. 22 with the next event scheduled for April 23.
The TriSpective Speaker Series consists of presentations made by industry experts on a variety of business topics. The presentations will be similar to Ted Talks, 15 to 20 minutes in duration. There will be four events in 2019 with each event featuring three speakers.
Grow Hays quarterly luncheons will be events where attendees will be given updates on economic development activities in Ellis County and will also be a forum where new ideas and projects will be discussed.
The Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge is an event sponsored by Network Kansas in which High School Students within Ellis County will compete in a business plan/presentation event. This will be the first event ever held in Ellis County.
Pitch Night April 23rd at 7pm, doors open at 6:30
The Pitch Night events will be held quarterly, the first one being on January 22, 2019. Each of event will consist of 5 presentations. The presentations will be 5 minutes in length with 3 minutes of judge and audience Q&A to follow. There will be 3 judges who will determine the winner who will be awarded a $500 prize. Each event will be preceded by a 30 minute social gathering which will begin at 6:30pm. The presentations will begin promptly at 7:00pm. Our objective is to draw a diverse audience of potential investors, lenders, and professional resources. Presenters will include startups and existing businesses wishing to grow or develop new products or services.
Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge March 20th starting at 9am. Awards at 1pm.
The Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge is an event sponsored by Network Kansas in which High School Students within Ellis County will compete in a business plan/presentation event. This will be the first event ever held in Ellis County. Other counties in Kansas have hosted competitions which have had up to 50-60 presenters in both Junior and Senior High Competitions. Network Kansas provides some of the funding for the event however there are students who do not have the financial means to purchase presentation materials and there is also little funding for promotion of the event.
TriSpective Speaker Series March 25 at 6pm
The TriSpective events feature people with specific industry/business experience who do a 15 minute presentation on business related topics. Similar to a TED talk, these presentations to date have covered the topics of branding, market segmentation and business growth. The first event was held on December 6th and presentations were made by Scott Gross on Branding. Joseph Boeckner (JoeBob Outfitters) on business growth and expansion and Tim Speno on market segmentation. The presentations were excellent. We plan to kickoff our 2019 TriSpective series by asking this group to come back and present again. Future events will cover a wide range of topics.
219 W 10th Street Hays, KS 67601 785-628-3102 www.growhays.com
Grow Hays Quarterly Luncheons
Grow Hays will be holding quarterly luncheons in 2019 with invitations extended to community and business leaders for the purpose of conveying Economic Development activities, educating the community regarding economic development processes and enlisting the support of attendees in achieving economic development objectives. Effective communication has been one of the ingredients that has been lacking in local economic development efforts. We believe that these luncheons will be an initial step towards resolving that issue.
GREAT BEND, Kan. (AP) — One of several people charged in the deaths of a couple at a Kansas county fair last year has pleaded guilty.
Michael Fowler -photo Barton Co.
54-year-old Michael Fowler Jr., of Sarasota, Florida, pleaded guilty Monday to two counts of first-degree murder and one count of theft. In exchange for the plea, a capital murder charge was dropped.
The bodies of Alfred “Sonny” Carpenter and Pauline Carpenter of Wichita were discovered in July in shallow graves near Van Buren, Arkansas. Prosecutors say the Carpenters were killed at the Barton County Fair, where they were vendors. The suspects worked for the carnival company at the fair.
Investigators say one suspect posed as a carnival mafia bossand ordered the other suspects to kill the couple. Police have said the “carnival mafia” does not exist.
We are ready to begin the second half of the 2019 Kansas Legislative session. At the time I am writing this column, we are at home in the district after having the local county Farm Bureaus along with the Ellis stop co-sponsored by the city of Ellis and Ellis Chamber of Commerce on Friday. It was good to see many constituents brave the weather to discuss topics important to them. It was great to be at selected stops with Senators Billinger and Bowers also.
SB 9 hit the governor’s desk on last Tuesday. This is the KPERS stabilization bill that was passed unanimously by both the House and the Senate. The governor has 10 days to consider whether to sign, veto, or allow the bill to become law without her signature.
SB 9 helps keep our promise to KPERS – the retirement system for our teachers and other public employees – by paying off a $115 million debt that the state owes to the retirement plan. SB 9 is in contrast to the governor’s KPERS proposal, HB 2197, which would have generated $160 million in short-term cash for increased state spending but increased the state’s debt costs in KPERS by $7.4 million.
HB 2197 was met earlier this session with resounding disapproval in the House. The governor’s plan failed on vote of 36-87 with both Democrats and Republicans opposing the reamortization effort.
By passing SB 9 and rejecting HB 2197, we can protect funding for our retirees responsibly pay down the state’s debt and ensure that the next generation isn’t left to pick up the tab for today’s spending.
Before we broke for turnaround there were a few bills worked on the house floor: On Wednesday, February 27, the House passed HB 2006, a bill that makes significant changes to increase transparency in the state’s economic incentives. On a vote of 122-0, the House overwhelmingly approved of the requirement for the Department of Commerce to develop an online database for the purpose of disclosing data on economic development incentive programs. This would include any economic incentive program that is administered by the department, and also includes any tax credit program except for social and domestic credits.
This bill would make economic incentive data readily and easily available and would allow the public to know how their tax dollars are used, where they are used, and by whom they are used. The database must be posted on the department’s website, and it is required that these programs be searchable by name, business, and county. In addition, the history, goals, and purpose of each program would be disclosed, as well as the qualifications for such programs. The total amount of incentives claimed, received and distributed from/by each program, recipient (business), and county would also be public. The bill also maintains the necessary confidentiality parameters regarding private taxpayer information. Lastly, the Legislative Post Audit Committee would be charged with conducting a comprehensive analysis of each incentive to prove its efficacy every three years.
HB 2006 serves as a tool to hold government accountable. This bill would install the necessary safeguards on the executive branch to prevent potential fraud and abuse. Both policymakers and the public ought to know how many economic incentives are issued each year, and to what end have those incentives performed. It encourages scrutiny but also ensures a greater effective use of taxpayer dollars.
Also, on Wednesday, February 27, the House passed HB 2144, also known as the Community College Taxpayer Transparency Act, on a vote of 84-40. Essentially, the bill would require community colleges to post information online concerning fiscal matters. On each college’s website, the bill would require the posting of tuition rates, fees, cost per credit hour, percentage of students attending each campus, enrollment percentage of students residing inside and outside of the community college district, property tax revenues and mills levied over five fiscal years, and scholarship information. This must be posted under an easily identifiable link on their respective websites. The bill would also require imposed student fees, for specific purposes, by the community colleges to be spent specifically on those purposes. Such purposes must also be outlined in their billing statements as well.
Additionally, community colleges would be required to identify which of their offered courses are fully transferable to the Kansas Board of Regents (KBOR) four-year institutions. KBOR and each colleges’ website must specify which particular courses are fully transferable.
Property taxes are levied within a community college district to fund the local community college. Requiring that these colleges post property tax information along with scholarship information, general credit hour costs and other information digitally ensures that taxpayer dollars are spent appropriately. Disclosing the specific purposes of each student fee also guarantees this.
HB 2144 would also allow community college students and prospective students to verify which offered courses will afford them the opportunity to transfer to a Regents institution, should they decide to attend any of those institutions.
I still have some concerns about this issue and I am sure there will be some additions and subtractions when the Senate takes up the measure. Transparency is a good thing. We just need to make sure there is context to the numbers or it is anyone’s guess how the numbers could be used to make a positive or negative impact.
Last week we talked a little about SB 22. Right now, the state budget is set to raise taxes on certain Kansans. If we do nothing, the governor’s budget will trigger a tax increase on Kansans who itemize their mortgage interest, property taxes or medical expenses as well as on several of the state’s largest employers.
Governor Kelly’s plan would keep the federal dollars intended to be returned to Kansans under recent federal tax cuts and instead use those dollars to fund unsustainable state spending increases.
Senate Bill 22 would adjust the Kansas tax code to address the changes at the federal level so Kansans can continue to itemize and so that employers are not hit with a tax hike on income that has historically never been taxed at the state level.
While the governor campaigned on reducing the sales tax on food, her budget keeps the Kansas food sales tax among the highest in the nation and provides no relief for Kansans at the grocery store. SB 22 would reduce the food sales tax by 15% and give help to working Kansans every single time they go to the grocery store. Some say a penny isn’t that much, but to borrow a line: “a little bit goes a long way every week.”
SB 22 also closes a glaring loophole that punishes businesses on Kansas’ Main Streets. For too long, this loophole has put our local businesses at a disadvantage when they’re trying to compete with out-of-state businesses. That loophole is the one that makes Kansas businesses collect sales taxes when they sell online but leaves out-of-state businesses free to scoff at our laws. It also makes Kansans personally responsible for collecting their own sales tax on behalf of those out of state tax cheats.
This bill closes that loophole and stops penalizing Kansas businesses and Kansas customers. It places the burden to collect and pay taxes on the out of state businesses who have had an unfair leg up on our local mom and pop shops. The bill also removes the line for out of state sales tax from Kansas taxpayers’ forms so it’s crystal clear that Kansans are no longer tax collectors for other state’s businesses.
Winter sports season is wrapping up and congratulations to those students who competed in wrestling and basketball. We have a couple of teams playing in the state tournament and a couple that came very close. Overall, with the challenges we have dealt with because of the weather, I think all of us are looking for the warm weather that track and field season brings.
If you come to Topeka during the session, my office is in Room: 149-S. My phone number is 785-296-7463 and email is: [email protected] and you can always try my cell number is 785-302-8416.
It is my honor to by your representative.
Rep. Ken Rahjes (R-Agra), is the 110th state representative and chairman of the Higher Education Budget Committee. House District 110 includes Norton and Phillips counties as well as portions of Ellis, Graham, and Rooks counties.
Farmers, if you want to learn more about sprayer nozzles and how to reduce drift and enhance spray coverage with your field sprayers then make plans to attend the “Sprayer Application Update” to be held Thursday, March 7 at the Walnut Valley Senior Center in Rush Center, 220 Washington Street.
Registration will begin at 8:30 a.m. The program starts at 9 a.m. and concludes at 11:30 a.m. followed by a complimentary lunch.
Other topics covered will be pulse width modulation systems, calibration scenarios and a review of sprayer and spray equipment, and time for your questions. A.J. Sharda, K-State Precision Ag/Machine Systems Engineer will be the presenter.
Pre-registration is requested by Tuesday, March 5. Call the Hays Cottonwood Extension Office at 785-628-9430.
Let me begin by saying thank you to all veterans for their service to our great nation. NCK Tech is proud to have several U.S. military veterans currently enrolled as students, as well as many veteran alumni who are now serving our country through the workforce. NCK Tech remains committed to helping veterans reach their career goals and honoring their service to both our country and the workforce.
The purpose of this letter is to invite you to join NCK Tech in a celebration designed to honor veterans for their service to the military and their contribution to our nation’s workforce. As a sign of our appreciation, NCK Tech has established a “Veterans Honorary Associates Degree of Technical Education.We would like to ask you to consider nominating a veteran you know, or even yourself, for this award.
North Central Kansas Technical College understands many service men and women, upon leaving the armed forces, immediately returned home and joined the workforces to provide for themselves and support their families. Many acquired technical skills while performing their job but never earned a college degree acknowledging their abilities. It is our intention, through awarding this degree, to honor those veterans for their military service, their technical skills and their lifetime contribution to our nation’s workforce.
Consideration for the Veterans Honorary Associates Degree of Technical Education applicants should meet the following criteria:
Honorable discharge from a branch of the United States military
Minimum age of 50, posthumous nominations will also be considered
Provide the advising committee with discharge papers (form DD-214)
Submit a complete Veterans Honorary Associates Degree of Technical Education nomination form including letter outlining military and workforce experiences
Qualifying veterans may participate in NCK Tech’s spring commencement and recognized for their service.The veteran may choose to attend a reception and ceremony at either Beloit on Friday, May 10, at 7 p.m. or Hays on Saturday, May 11, at 11:30 a.m.
To nominate a veteran for this honor complete a nomination form on our website – www.ncktc.edu/about-us/veterans-associate-degree/ and submit electronically to the college.To receive a printed nomination form, call the college at 1-800-658-4655 and request a nomination form mailed to you.
In closing, the faculty and staff of NCK Tech, along with our advisory committee, would like to express our gratitude for your military service and commitment to our country’s workforce. Thank you for your contribution to the United States and may God Bless America.
Like track runners, farmers and ranchers in Kansas face several hurdles. Whether it’s unpredictable and unfavorable weather, a volatile market that causes commodity prices to fluctuate or correcting misconceptions about agriculture, farmers hurdle many things.
Yet, hurdle after hurdle, farmers and ranchers run the race because they love what they do. They chose it. They want their operation to continue so the next generation can carry on the tradition. For this to happen, our food and fiber producers need to stay healthy.
A recent national survey shows 65 percent of farm and ranch families believe access to affordable health care options is the number one threat to the success of their operation. In the past five years, net farm income has declined by nearly 50 percent, while health insurance costs have spiraled upward. In Kansas, Farm Bureau members report health coverage costs as the most significant expense in their family budget, at times representing 30 to 40 percent of annual expenses. That is a hurdle nearly impossible for farmers to overcome.
Sherman County farmer Tim Franklin has felt the struggle of finding workable and affordable health care. When the Affordable Care Act (ACA) altered the definition of sole-proprietorship, it resulted in their health coverage carrier canceling their group coverage.
“The logic was that we didn’t qualify for the group plan because we didn’t have employees,” the Goodland farmer says. “My parents are involved in our farm but operate separately and we don’t have nonfamily employees that would qualify us to form a new group.”
The family went to the marketplace for coverage and was hopeful to qualify for subsidies, but never received help. Their health care costs continue to increase while their coverages weaken. Between 2010 and 2018, premiums for individuals increased by 176 percent for ACA plans. The cost to cover a family jumped by 216 percent.
In order to advocate on behalf of farmers like the Franklin family, Kansas Farm Bureau introduced Senate Bill 32, which will authorize it to offer members health care benefit coverage.
This legislation is designed for Kansans who don’t have access to a group insurance plan and make too much to qualify for subsidies under the ACA. Typically, these Kansans are spending a fortune for their own individual coverage or are uninsured. It’s another option provided to cover more lives in Kansas.
Kansas Farm Bureau will offer individually rated plans at a significant savings to similar coverage under the ACA. This new option will allow Kansans to choose health coverage that’s best for them. Some may not receive health benefit coverage, while others may have waiting periods for previous diagnoses. In those cases, plans offered through the ACA are still available to them.
Once members are accepted, and they continue to pay their KFB membership and premiums they will not be denied coverage. The health care benefit coverage plans have no annual or lifetime limits. The benefits may include office visits, hospitalization, preventative care services, emergency room services, maternity care, prescription drug benefits, mental health and substance abuse, and dental and vision coverage. Members can decide what level of coverage they’re comfortable with.
Opponents to the measure, the same large companies that have dictated health policy in Kansas for years don’t like this. They want to maintain the status quo so they can continue to control the marketplace and lock in their profits. Kansas Farm Bureau believes there is a better way, build on a free market with a goal of serving members.
For Atchison County farmer Mindy Young, affordable health care has meant a smaller farm because her husband has a job in town mainly for its health coverage.
“The big thing holding us back right now is time,” she says. “With his full-time job, he has a hard time finding time to commit to growing the farm.”
Farm and ranch families and small business owners face uncertain economic times, making their ability to purchase health coverage for their families difficult, resulting in more uncovered lives in Kansas and struggling health systems in rural communities. Kansas Farm Bureau’s proposal creates competition and free-market options for health coverage, supports rural hospitals and providers, and keeps families on the farm.
If you struggle to find affordable health care, tell your legislators your story. Learn more and send your message at www.kfb.org/kshealthcare.
“Insight” is a weekly column published by Kansas Farm Bureau, the state’s largest farm organization whose mission is to strengthen agriculture and the lives of Kansans through advocacy, education and service.
