FINNEY COUNTY — For the fourth time in the past month, law enforcement authorities and USD 457 officials are investigating a threat toward Horace Good Middle School in Garden City.
Just after 6p.m. Monday, police receive a report of a possible threat toward the school, according to Sgt. Lana Urtega.
An investigation identified a 13-year-old student who had made several verbal threats and arrested him Monday night.
The boy is being held in the Southwest Kansas Juvenile Detention Center on allegations of criminal threat, according to Urtega.
On April 28, Garden City Police arrested Nick Trung Hang, 14, Garden City, for allegedly making a statement on his social media account and created the message to scare students and staff.
On April 23, police identified and arrested a 15-year-old who made a social media threat in attempt to get out of school for the day.
On April 18, police identified a 14-year-old Garden City student who made a social media threat that depicted the general use of firearms to harm students at the school.
Police and the school district encouraged parents to monitor their student’s social media and report any school safety related issues to administrators, school staff or law enforcement.
Statehouse insiders are already thinking ahead to next session and whether the near-certain veto of a tax-cut bill now on the governor’s desk is actually a political gift to lawmakers.
What? No tax cut this year? How can that be good?
Well, it will be. And here’s why.
First, it gives Republicans something to gripe about all summer, and into next winter, when the House and Senate both stand for election, and they’re going to want something to show their constituents that they got for them. We all like legislators who get us something we want, whether it’s legalizing crossing the highway on your ATV…or maybe a tax cut.
And remember that memories are relatively short while you’re in the voting booth or standing at the tall TV trays in the voting place checking off names on the ballot.
That crossing the highway on your ATV (that’s un-licensed All-Terrain Vehicle for us city folks who don’t have one or don’t have room in the garage for one if we even wanted one)? It’s also on the governor’s desk, House Bill 2248: For those of you who want to get T-shirts printed up it is likely to be signed into law. Expect a Statehouse rally by ATV owners? Even for the diehard off-roaders it’s probably not going to cost any legislators seeking reelection a vote.
That’s a gift for all but that handful of legislators who cast a vote for their ATV-riding constituents can pridefully tell their ATV-issue voters (who generally crossed those highways anyway but can do it legally now) that they fought for them. Not much of a fight; 110 House members and 39 Senate members voted for the bill.
Now, that’s nice, but what if the governor, as expected, vetoes the half-price tax cut bill that lawmakers sent her after she vetoed the jumbo tax-cut bill which sent most of that cut to corporations which do business in foreign countries?
Well, it means that those tax-cutting legislators get another chance to vote for tax cuts in an election year when it’s going to be recalled and a major campaign issue while most voters will remember the fight and can congratulate that tax-cut Statehouse crowd at the polling place.
A veto this year on the bill sets up the best campaign issue legislators can wish for next session.
And while a tax cut is political candy, the real fight is again going to be how next year’s state tax-cut effort (or, for conservatives, returning the state tax increases that the federal government’s tax cuts, that they liked, caused) will be targeted.
It can be either an income tax cut for low-income Kansans or a reduction in the state’s sales tax on groceries or a gift for upper middle-income Kansas taxpayers. But probably not a big a major reduction for those corporations with substantial overseas earnings which saw their state tax bills rise while their federal tax bills shrank.
Those corporations don’t vote, their employees do. So, whose name do you put on the tax-cut gift card? Probably voters. It’ll cost candidates some contributions from corporations, but not votes. The political decision next year comes down to whether a candidate’s constituents want food sales taxes or income taxes cut, or some sharing of the revenue shortfall that the state will see from either choice.
Governors don’t generally hold photo-ops when they sign a veto report, but there’s always the chance that the tax-cut champions might want to stand behind her at her desk, rending their garments as she signs the veto message that sets them up for an election year trophy with next session’s tax cut effort.
Syndicated by Hawver News Company LLC of Topeka; Martin Hawver is publisher of Hawver’s Capitol Report—to learn more about this nonpartisan statewide political news service, visit the website at www.hawvernews.com
Health Services Director Kerry McCue has announced his retirement from Ellis County effective Dec. 14.
McCue’s retirement comes following 30 years of service to the community and 40 years as a paramedic in the state of Kansas.
“It has been an honor and privilege to have served Ellis County in the capacity of the EMS Director the last 30 years and Health Department Administrator for the last 3 years,” McCue said. “I want to thank the community for their support. Without that support, we would not have been able to establish and maintain the level of services that are now being provided. I also want to thank everyone who has served at Ellis County EMS or the Ellis County Health Department during my administration for their dedication, passion and desire to provide the best care available to the citizens and visitors to our County.”
In planning for McCue’s impending departure, the Board of County Commissioners has considered how to fill the role he plays leading two departments – Emergency Medical Services and Health. Given budget constraints, the commissioners have decided not to conduct an external recruitment for either of these functions.
“Fortunately, we have an excellent candidate internally. I am pleased to announce the appointment of Jason Kennedy as our EMS Director, effective Dec. 15,” said County Administrator Phillip Smith-Hanes. “I also expect Mr. Kennedy to assume the role of Health Administrator, pending contract negotiations with the Commission.”
“Ellis County is lucky to have Jason. I’m fully confident in his ability to further develop our EMS and Health services from the strong base that Kerry is leaving,” added County Commission Chair Dean Haselhorst.
Jason Kennedy
Kennedy is a native of rural Kansas and graduated from Fort Hays State University with a bachelor’s degree and a minor in business administration in 2005. He spent 11 years with the Salina Fire Department as a firefighter paramedic and acting Medical Officer. He and his family relocated to Hays in February 2018 after he accepted the position of Assistant Director of Ellis County EMS.
“I am excited to accept the position of Director of ECEMS and the Ellis County Health Department. I look forward to serving the citizens of Ellis County and building on the tradition of excellence that Kerry has fostered,” Kennedy said. “Providing the most advanced and appropriate clinical care for our patients is my number one priority. Working even more closely with Kerry over the next six months will ensure continuation of the excellent care that the citizens and visitors of Ellis County deserve.”
County Commissioners and the County Administrator anticipate that McCue and Kennedy will work together over the next seven months to ensure a seamless transition.
“I want to thank Kerry for all he has done for us, and especially for stepping up to lead the Health Department,” County Commissioner Butch Schlyer said. “I appreciated the way Kerry worked with me when he took over as Health Administrator and I know he and Jason can plan another successful hand-off.”
“I’m very thankful to Kerry for his years of service to his profession and to our community,” County Commissioner Dustin Roths said. “We have a premier paramedic-level service because of Kerry. But I am equally excited about Jason assuming this role. He has both the experience and the attitude that we need to continue moving Ellis County forward into the future.”
GREAT BEND — The Great Bend USD 428 school board Monday night reviewed the master plan for districtwide improvements prepared by SJCF Architecture. The total amount for Phase 1 would be $39.5 million dollars which would make improvement to all Great Bend Public Schools. Those improvements include securing entrances, creating storm shelters, and making space for preschool by moving 6th graders to the middle school.
Phase 1 does include the construction of a new transportation building at the District Education Center on Patton Road that would carry a price tag of $4.1 million dollars, but those plans have not been finalized. If the new building was not included, the bond amount would be for $35.1 million.
If the bond issue were for 20-years, homeowners of a $100,000 house in Great Bend would see a 12.000 mill increase which would mean and additional $138.00 per year in property taxes. If the bond were for 25 years, the mill levy increase would be 10.25 mills for an increase of $117.88 per year in taxes.
The master phasing plan does include Phase 2 and Phase 3 improvement that would not be done immediately and are separate from the Phase 1 improvements that voters will be asked to vote on.
No vote was taken Monday night to proceed with the bond issue but that decision is expected to be made at the next school board meeting in early June. With only a certain amount of bonds available each year, the district needs to be approved by the Kansas State Board of Education for the bond amount by July 1.
Superintendent Chris Thexton indicated that the district is planning for a mail in ballot election that could be held as early as late summer or early fall. Those details will be revealed at the June meeting.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a man has been charged with sexually assaulting three teenage girls in the pool area of YMCA in downtown Wichita.
Magoon photo Sedgwick County
31-year-old Keith Magoon was charged Monday with one count of rape and four counts of aggravated sexual battery. His bond was set at $150,000.
Wichita police say two 16-year-old girls and a 17-year-old girl reported being sexually assaulted in the indoor pool area by a man they didn’t know.
Magoon described himself as homeless and unemployed in court documents. His next court appearance was scheduled for May 30, and he will be appointed a public defender.
Last month, a former YMCA worker was sentenced to 27 1/2 years in prison for molesting two young girls in the downtown YMCA’s daycare.
Carol Jean Herber, 84, passed away Friday, May 10, 2019 at her home in Salina, KS. She was born February 9, 1935 in rural Russell County to Carl and Carrie (Cook) Kaufman. Carol graduated from Dorrance High School with the class of 1953. She was united in marriage to Richard Edward Herber at the Dorrance Lutheran Church. He preceded her in death on March 1, 1986.
Carol was very active in her community. She was a member of Altrusa, the Chamber of Commerce, and was on the Board of Directors at Citizen State Bank. She also was very involved in the Salina Home and Garden Show. Carol was an entrepreneur. She owned and operated many businesses. In her spare time she enjoyed planting and tending to her flowers in her backyard, traveling, and K-State Football; but what she enjoyed most was spending time with her grandkids.
Left to cherish her memory is her son Jeffrey Alan Herber and wife Marcelle of Wood River, NE; daughter Jo Lynn Groening and husband Karl of Peoria, AZ; sisters Dorothy Bay of Russell, KS and Leona Champion of San Jose, CA; 4 grandchildren, Kyle Herber, Matthew Herber, Richard Groening, and David Groening; and 4 great-grandchildren.
She is preceded in death by her parents Carl and Carrie; husband Richard; son Ricky Dee Herber; brothers Lloyd Kaufman and Orville Kaufman; and sisters Helen Stickney and LaFern Prediger.
Carol not only tenderly cared for her flowers, but more importantly she sowed the seeds of love and laughter into the lives of those closest to her. Although we will miss her greatly, we rejoice that she is now reaping the bountiful harvest of her hard work and loving labor, in the company of her Lord, until we see her again.
Funeral Services will be held on Friday, May 17, 2019 at Dorrance Lutheran Church at 1:30PM. Visitation will be held on Thursday, May 16, 2019 from 1:00PM until 8:00PM with family receiving friends 6:00PM until 8:00PM at Plumer-Overlease Funeral Home, 610 24th St., Wilson, KS.
Memorials are suggested to the Carol Herber Memorial Fund and may be sent in care of Ellsworth Citizens State Bank and Trust, 203 N. Douglas Ave, Ellsworth, KS 67439. Condolences may be left for the family at www.plumeroverlease.com
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — A former employee of a suburban Kansas City sports medicine clinic alleges in a lawsuit that she was sexually harassed by a surgeon.
Kansas City Spine and Sports Medicine Center google image
The former medical assistant at the Kansas City Spine and Sports Medicine Center in Overland Park, Kansas, sued last month. The suit says she complained to management multiple times that Dr. Glenn Amundson regularly made sexual comments and touched her inappropriately in front of other employees, including management.
The medical assistant says that when she spoke to human resources, the department determined that she should transfer. The suit described the conditions as “intolerable.”
Amundson declined to discuss the allegations with The Star. The Kansas City Spine and Sports Medicine Center says Amundson is no longer with the company.
Farmers buffeted by depressed market prices, trade disputes and weather
K-State Research and Extension
MANHATTAN — Kansas net farm income rose last year despite weather extremes, trade disputes and depressed market prices, but the increase came with a catch.
Average net farm income across the state climbed to $100,000 in 2018, marking the third year in a row of gains after a precipitous slide in net income in 2015. The data came from an annual summary of the records of Kansas Farm Management Association member farms. Not all farms are KFMA members, but on a year-to-year basis, the numbers reflect the state of Kansas agriculture, according to Kevin Herbel, KFMA executive director.
Saying that farmers’ average net income was $100,000 can be deceiving however, Herbel said, because 63% of net farm net income came from crop insurance and government payments in a continuing era of tight margins and cash flow constraints. In fact the total of government payments received by KFMA farms alone was nearly 55% of net income. That included traditional farm program payments, livestock payments, conservation payments and payments linked to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Market Facilitation Program to help producers affected by retaliatory tariffs and loss of export markets.
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MFP payments comprised an estimated 37% of net income for the average farm. The numbers varied across the state based on the types of crops grown and crop yields.
Crop insurance income less premiums paid by producers for the policies totaled 8% of net farm income statewide. In northwest Kansas where hail resulted in large crop losses, crop insurance receipts were above the premiums paid by an amount equal to 2% of net farm income. In the three southern regions, crop insurance premiums paid were greater than income received from crop losses, Herbel said. For example, southwest Kansas farms saw -3% of net income, while south central and southeast were -1%.
“The impact of drought conditions was greatest in northeast and north-central Kansas with those areas showing net crop insurance income equal to 40% and 21% of net farm income, respectively,” he said.
“As occurs each year, there is much variability between farms – differences in production, from record yields to drought or hail, differences in financial position and cost structure, and differences in decision making and management of risk,” Herbel said.
The overall value of farm production across the state in 2018 was $615,472, up from $607,187 the previous year and $571,318 two years earlier.
“We have entered 2019 with continued expectations for market prices at levels that are below cost of production unless above average farm yields are achieved,” Herbel said in a report accompanying the annual KFMA data. “As such, the comfort level for many producers is not very high. It is important for farm managers to assess their financial position and make adjustments as needed.”
Logan resident Ruth B. Gibeau died March 13, 2019 at the Phillips County Retirement Center in Phillipsburg at the age of 94. She was born Oct. 9, 1924 in Graham Co., KS, the daughter of Elmer & Zetta (Mounce) Kincheloe.
She is survived by her daughter, Carolyn Barnes & husband Merle of Kent, WA; 2 grandchildren & 2 great grandchildren.
Cremation was chosen. A memorial service will be held Sat. May 18 at 2:00 p.m. in the Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel, Phillipsburg, with Pastor Troy Buss officiating.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Logan Christian Church or Hospice Services.
Dana J. Nelson, age 63, of Concordia, KS, left this earthly life on Sunday, May 12, 2019 at Via Christi-St. Francis, Wichita, KS. She was born on June 10, 1955 in Pratt, KS to Carl R. & Marvel L. (Gorsky) McGuire.
Dana graduated from WaKeeney High School in 1973. She then attended Ft. Hays State Univ. and received a Bachelor’s degree in elementary education and later her Master’s degree from Kansas State Univ. She moved in 1977 and began teaching school in Concordia, KS where she met and married Steve Nelson on June 20, 1987 at The Baptist Church. They resided in Concordia, KS and she taught elementary school for 36 years until she retired in 2013. Even after retirement, she continued to substitute teach and work as a Title 1 Reading para-professional, where she has been working full time for the past couple years. Her students were her children and she always made it a point to reach out to them, check up on them and continue to ‘teach’ them long after they were out of her classroom.
Dana was a faithful member of The Baptist Church, Concordia; The Baptist Women; Alpha Sigma Chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma Sorority and her very special group, ‘The Pickles”. She was also a very proud aunt and took that responsibility as seriously as she did her classroom.
She is survived by her husband, Steve, Concordia; brothers, R. Gary (Kim) McGuire, Mulvane & Craig (Sheila), Hays; several nieces, nephews, great nieces & nephews; a host of other relatives, friends, colleagues & community members.
But even more importantly are all the children, past and present, whose lives she has forever touched and changed because of the loving care, compassion and desire to teach children that she lived her life with every day!
She was preceded in death by her parents.
Funeral services will be 2:00 pm, Thursday, May 16, 2019 at The Brown Grand Theatre, Concordia with Pastor Jonathan Peppers officiating. Burial will follow at Pleasant Hill Cemetery, Concordia. Visitation will be Wed., May 15, 2019 from 1-8 pm with family greeting friends from 6-7 pm at Chaput-Buoy Funeral Home, Concordia. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Dana J. Nelson Scholarship Fund in care of the funeral home. For online condolences, please visit www.chaputbuoy.com.
SEDGWICK COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect in connection with a shooting during a disturbance.
Wilseman photo Sedgwick Co.
Just before 2 a.m. Monday, police responded to report of a disturbance at a bar and grill in the 4800 block of East Harry in Wichita, according to office Charley Davidson.
Upon arrival, officers observed a large crowd of individuals involved in a disturbance in the parking lot of the business. They also heard a single gunshot and officers immediately conducted a traffic stop on a 2007 Chevy Tahoe. During the traffic stop officers located a handgun and arrested the drive 30-year-old Porsche Wiseman of Wichita.
There were no injuries.
She was booked on requested charges that include criminal discharge of a firearm, possession of a firearm while under the influence of alcohol and unlawful possession of narcotics, according to Davidson.
Glen E. Cheney, age 53, passed away on Monday, May 13, 2019 at the Park Lane Nursing Home in Scott City, Kansas.
He was born on August 13, 1965 in Garden City, Kansas, the son of Howard Edwin and Lauretta SImmons Cheney. A lifetime resident of Scott City, Kansas, he was a farmer.
Survivors include his Mother – Lauretta Cheney of Scott City, Kansas, Two Brothers – Greg Cheney of Chapman, Kansas, Gary Cheney of Scott City, Kansas, Two Sisters – Judy Thomas of Scott City, Kansas, Karla Sharpe of Scott City, Kansas, and numerous nieces & nephews.
Memorial Services will be held at a later date and time.
Burial will be in the Scott County Cemetery in Scott City, Kansas.
Memorials in Lieu of Flowers may be made to the Park Lane Nursing Home in care of Price & Sons Funeral Homes.
