RUSSELL – Join us at this Sunday, Feb. 18 for Pickin’ at the Deines.
Play your acoustic instrument along with musicians of all skill levels from 3:30 p.m. to 7:00 pm. Pickin’ at the Deines is free to attend and everyone is welcome.
The Deines Cultural Center is located at 820 North Main Street in Russell.
Call 785-483-3742 for information.
FORD COUNTY — Two people died in an accident just before 8:30 a.m. Wednesday in Ford County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2006 Chevy pickup driven by Phil S. Schilling, 77, Dodge City, was southbound on 125 Road directly east of Kingsdown.
The driver failed to yield at US 54 traffic and an eastbound 2012 Peterbilt semi driven by Tracy A. Price, 46, Protection.
Schilling was pronounced dead at the scene and transported to Swaims Funeral Home.
Price was transported to Western Plains Medical Center where he died. Schilling was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A new report projects that Kansas will collect more than $505 million in additional revenues over the next three years because of changes in federal income tax laws.
The state Department of Revenue’s report Wednesday was good news for legislators as they wrestle with a Kansas Supreme Court mandate to boost spending on public schools. But it also could spur interest in state tax cuts.
The department said Kansas will see tax collections increase partly because Congress limited some federal income tax deductions.
The department projected that the state will collect an additional $138 million in the 2019 fiscal year starting July 1, $180 million in fiscal 2020 and $188 million in fiscal 2021.
The department released its projections for a joint meeting of the House and Senate tax committees.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The mother of a Kansas man fatally shot by police after a hoax emergency call has urged lawmakers to toughen penalties for making false calls.
Lisa Finch spoke at hearing Tuesday on a bill that would allow prosecutors to file a murder charge if someone is killed. She wants the Legislature to name the bill after her son, Andrew Finch. The unarmed 28-year-old Wichita man was killed in December by police responding to a California man’s call with a fake story about a shooting and kidnapping at Finch’s Wichita home.
The alleged caller has been charged with involuntary manslaughter.
Police critics have been calling for the officer who shot Finch to be fired and criminally charged. Some activists were thrown out of a Wichita City Council meeting Tuesday.
By BRIAN GRIMMETT
If you’ve got solar panels on your roof, Westar Energy wants to create a surcharge on your power bill.
The utility insists that if it doesn’t charge you extra, all of its other customers will get stuck with the tab of being ready with electricity when the sun lets you down.
Solar power enthusiasts want the Kansas Legislature to outlaw such charges, fees they say could stymie their industry’s growth.
The resulting conflict could determine the future of solar power in Kansas and how the cost of keeping the electrical grid working will be split among consumers in the state.
For the utility, offering electricity on demand to a home that pulls most of its power from solar rays is a money-losing proposition. So it’s asking the Kansas Corporation Commission for the go-ahead on a new charge to customers for the service of offering stand-by electricity.
The new charge would come on top of the cost per kilowatt hour and the standard service fees that show up on power bills for all utility customers. Westar estimatesthe new charge could increase the bill of a customer with solar panels by as much as 50 percent.
In an attempt to prevent that move, solar energy advocates have proposed a bill in the Kansas Legislature that would require utilities to charge all residential customers the same rate.
Aron Cromwell is the owner of one of the largest solar retailers in Kansas. On Monday, he told members of the Senate Utility Committee that without the bill, the industry won’t be able to grow.
“The utilities will establish new solar rates that are designed to remove the financial benefit from producing your own energy on your own property,” he said.
The solar industry in Kansas employs about 500 people and is relatively small when compared to neighboring states such as Colorado, which has about 6,000 workers in the field.
Westar says that without an additional charge, the vast majority of customers — those who don’t produce any of their own electricity — will end up subsidizing the cost of solar.
“What we want to ensure is that when customers do make that choice that they are paying their fare share of the cost of the electric grid,” said Westar vice president of regulated affairs, Jeff Martin.
He said the problem for the utility is that the amount of electricity any individual solar power user produces is unreliable — sometimes it’s more than they need, and sometimes it’s less. Regardless, he said Westar must be able to provide enough electricity to meet that customer’s needs at all times, even if the customer doesn’t end up using it.
Westar’s request is part of a larger rate change case before the Kansas Corporation Commission. The rate case also includes a request to increase the standard service fee for all customers by $4, increasing the monthly charge to $18.50 a month. The KCC will make a decision on whether to approve the new rates and rate structure in September.
Brian Grimmett is a reporter focusing on the environment and energy for the Kansas News Service. Follow him on Twitter @briangrimmett.
Hays Post
UPDATE: As of about 1 p.m. Wednesday, the fire was reportedly extinguished.
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Hays Fire Department crews are on the scene of a fire at a business on Vine Street.
At 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, HFD crews were attacking the fire at C&E Doors that appeared to be in the western portion of the building, located at 2004 Vine. Firefighters were pulling portions of the exterior off in an attempt to reach the source of the smoke.
Check Hays Post for more as details become available.
The following op-ed is by Senator Laura Kelly, candidate for governor:
In 2005, I began my very first legislative session. That year, our schools were in crisis and we were headed to a special session. In the end, Democrats and moderate Republicans came together to forge a path towards stronger schools. We passed a multi-year plan that invested in our kids and made great schools a top priority.
Unfortunately, in 2009 the Great Recession hit, hindering our state’s ability to keep the promises made to our schools. Then, in 2011, the Brownback/Colyer Administration cut schools even more to fund their ill-conceived tax experiment. We must correct these years of neglect and once again invest in our schools.
Kansas faces many challenges, but our schools are the most urgent.
First, we face a deadline in April to address the fundamental inequality of our school funding formula. To remedy the problems outlined by the Kansas Supreme Court, I would encourage support of House Bill 2445 sponsored by Rep. Melissa Rooker (R-Fairway). This bill changes distribution of at-risk funding, eliminates the expanded use of Capital Outlay Funds, and updates the way we calculate the Local Option Budget. These are all important changes needed to address the Court’s ruling.
Also, a cost of living index should be built into the formula requiring the state to adjust spending annually. This will help us meet our constitutional responsibility to adequately fund public schools as the economy and other factors change.
Next, the Kansas Department of Education has requested that we hire 150 school counselors, social workers, or psychologists every year for five years. These positions are of the utmost importance to our students. I would recommend that these positions be hired by community mental health centers or other local behavioral health partners so that they would be available year-round, even when school is not in session. We would ask that the Court recognize this as a good faith effort to target the 25% of children at the highest risk.
Kansas must also make sure all schools – no matter their size or location – receive the support they need. We are currently conducting a survey to determine how individual schools would spend additional dollars. The results will help the Legislature tailor spending to our unique communities.
The Legislature already appropriated an additional $293 million for Fiscal Year 2018 and 2019. I supported that measure last session. With the changes to the formula above, this additional money will be more fairly distributed. I will also support a multi-year plan that increases funding significantly over the next three years.
With state revenue currently exceeding estimates, I’m confident we can add the additional funding through 2020. I would recommend using money from the ending balance in 2018 and 2019 and then establishing a “trust fund” for 2020.
Thanks to bi-partisan cooperation last year, the Legislature was able to reverse the Brownback tax plan. Kansas is now on a path to recovery. Before we alter the tax code further, we should let the dust settle on the 2017 changes, as well as changes made at the federal level.
Lastly, it is critical that the Court retain jurisdiction of this case to ensure that the Legislature follows through on these promises to our schools. During the past 8 years, Kansas children have been short-changed. As governor, I will make our schools my top priority. And I will use my budget expertise to ensure Kansas can continue to meet the needs of our students in the years to come.
OFFICE OF REP. WAYMASTER
TOPEKA – Rep. Troy Waymaster, R-Bunker Hill, has awarded two scholarships to the Kansas 4-H Citizenship in Action program.
Rylan Reeves is a student at Ruppenthal Middle School, Russell, and is also president of Big Creek 4-H Club. Cora Anderson is a freshman at Otis-Bison High School.
Reeves and Anderson will participate Feb. 18 and 19 in Topeka in a simulation of the Kansas legislative process through debate and interaction with others attending the weekend’s activities.
The students will meet legislators, take tours, participate in debates in the House of Representatives and in the Senate, and develop policy.
Rep. Waymaster is an alumnus of the Kansas 4-H Citizenship in Action program and is pleased to have such capable and qualified students to sponsor.
HAC
The Hays Art Council (HAC) is proud to present the Wichita Children’s Theatre Company and their production of The Three Little Pigs this Thursday , Feb. 15, at 7 p.m. in the Fort Hays State University Beach/Schmidt Performing Arts Center.
This 40-minute production is perfect for our youngest audience members ~ lots of audience participation to keep them engaged and a nice message about controlling your temper and making friends! After the show, there will be a “meet and greet” with the cast in the lobby for those who can stick around for a few more minutes.
Through the support of our sponsors, tickets are just $3 (adult or child). All seating is general admission and tickets can be purchased in the lobby beginning at 6:30 p.m.
Also through the support of our sponsors, area kindergarten and first grade students will be guests at a matinee performance of The Three Little Pigs on Thursday afternoon.
Thank you Hays Kiwanis Club, Midwest Energy and the Kansas Creative Arts Industries Commission.
SEDGWICK COUNTY — A former Kansas deputy sheriff has been charged with official misconduct, according to Sedgwick County Sheriff Jeff Easter.
On December 17, a citizen made an allegation of misconduct by Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Deputy Justin Price, according to Easter. The allegation involved not turning in evidence in connection with a narcotics investigation.
The sheriff’s department asked the Wichita Police Department to conduct an investigation in reference to the allegation. Police turned their findings over the District Attorney’s office and they filed the charges on Tuesday, according to Easter.
Price had been employed with the sheriff’s department 4 years.
Memorial Services hosted by Criminal Justice Students for, The Honorable Dr. Andria Cooper, age 44, of Wayne, District Judge and Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice at Wayne State College, will be held at Wayne State College, Peterson Fine Arts Building, Ramsey Theater, February 18th, Sunday 1:00 p.m.
Arrangements are with Hasemann Funeral Home of Wayne, Neb.
Memorial Visitation will be held at the Ramsey Theater February 18th, Sunday from 12 noon until time of services.
Andria Leigh Cooper was born November 27, 1973, in Alamosa, CO to Larry and Sandra (Wood) McNames. She graduated from Beatty High School in Nevada, receiving her undergraduate studies from Fort Hays State University and graduated law school from Kansas University in Lawrence, KS. Andria and John were married July 30, 1999, in Colby, KS.
Dr. Andria Cooper is an assistant professor in the Department of Criminal Justice at Wayne State College. Before teaching at WSC, she sat as a New Mexico state level district court judge after serving as an attorney, primarily in the area of criminal law. She has served as a prosecutor and a criminal defense attorney, and also has experience in the areas of civil rights, constitutional law, victim advocacy, and general areas of legal practice. She has trained law enforcement and other criminal justice professionals in the areas of arrest, search and seizure, report writing, warrant preparation, juvenile justice, fraud investigation and prevention, domestic violence investigation, and victim advocacy. She also sat on a governor’s domestic violence fatality review board. Dr. Cooper is involved in many activities. She is the advisor of Delta Upsilon, a chapter of the National American Criminal Justice Association, which participates in regional and national competitions on criminal justice knowledge, agility, firearms, and crime scene competitions. She also creates mock crime scenes and mock trials for classes, which allows students to present cases at trial, testify as witnesses, listen to the case as jurors, or assume other criminal justice roles in the courtroom. Dr. Cooper is a member of the American Criminal Justice Association, Justice Clearinghouse, and Pi Gamma Mu (a social sciences honor society). She is also a consultant on Faculty Row, and is involved in several committees on campus and the Wayne community as well. Dr. Cooper has been honored as an Outstanding Professor (2005) and Outstanding Advisor (2005), as well as received a Faculty Appreciation Award from Sigma Chi (2007). She has received service awards from the Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence (2004) and the Northwest Kansas Family Shelter (2003). Dr. Cooper earned her Juris Doctorate degree in 2000 from the University of Kansas School of Law and her B.A. from Fort Hays State University.
Dr. Cooper’s teaching interests include criminal law and procedure, criminal evidence, report writing and trial techniques for criminal justice professionals, civil liability in criminal justice, comparative justice systems, and all legal aspects of other criminal justice disciplines.
Her research interests include civil rights, especially privacy advocacy, search and seizure, and the 2nd Amendment. She also enjoys scholarly work in constitutional issues involving federalism and separation of powers.
Andria’s family includes, her husband, John; their daughters, Devon Cooper of Clayton, NM and Skylar Cooper of Wayne; parents, Larry and Sandy (Wood) McNames of Palco, Kansas; brothers, Ryan McNames of Palco, KS and Neal McNames of Palco, KS; grandmother, Veda Wood of Oberlin, KS; parents-in-law, C.W. and Pat Hamilton of Levant, KS and Galen Cooper of Goodland, KS; brother-in-law, Trey Hamilton of Hays, KS; grandmother-in-law, Margaret Chick of Colby, KS; nieces and nephews.
Andria was preceded in death by a grandmother, and her grandfathers.
Andria’s family appreciates your thoughts and kindness.
Memorials May be directed to the Cooper Family for later designation.
She passed away Monday, February 5th, at Providence Medical Center in Wayne.
Daren George Whisman passed away on Sunday, February 11, 2018 at Rooks County Health Center in Plainville, Kansas at the age of 58. He was born on August 28, 1959 in Hays, Kansas to George and Berdena (Veatch) Whisman. He grew up in rural Rooks County, Kansas and graduated from Palco High School with the Class of 1977. On May 24, 1986 he was united in marriage to Leola Blanton in Torrington, Wyoming. They were blessed with three sons, Greggory, Geoffrey, and Galen.
Daren worked as a farmer, rancher, and truck driver. He served for eight years on both the Palco-Damar-Zurich Recreation Commission and the Palco USD 269 School Board, with two of those years as President of the Board. He was also a past member of the Church of the Nazarene in Palco. He was a lover of music, especially 1970’s rock classics and groups and anything that would be considered “old country”. He played trumpet, guitar, and piano and enjoyed singing, having even been a part of the Show Choir in High School. But one of his favorite pastimes of all was shooting hoops or playing football with his boys.
Daren is survived by his wife Leola Whisman of the home in Palco; sons Greggory Whisman of Palco, Geoffrey Whisman and wife Cammie of Victoria, and Galen Whisman of Palco; mother Berdena Whisman of Palco; sisters Carol Whisman of Palco, and Nancy Beyea of Walden, CO; and granddaughter Jayme Jo Whisman.
He was preceded in death by his father George Whisman; and grandparents Harry and Edith Whisman, and Cletus and Lucy Veatch.
The artist Sting said, “If you play music with passion and love and honesty, then it will nourish your soul, heal your wounds and make your life worth living.” Daren was a man who lived every day of his life with just such a heart, and he continually poured it out on his family, friends, and neighbors. His passion nourished our souls, his love healed our wounds, and his honesty made our lives worth living with him.
Funeral Services will be held at 10:30am on Thursday, February 15, 2018 at the United Methodist Church in Palco. Burial will follow in the Pleasant View Cemetery. Visitation will be from 2:00-8:00pm on Wednesday at the funeral home with family receiving friends from 6:00-8:00pm.
