The Hays Area Chamber of Commerce is seeking nominations for its annual awards. The awards will be presented at the chamber’s annual banquet, which is scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 29.
Tickets are on sale now.
The awards are:
• Golden Belt Bank Hall of Fame
• Nex-Tech Citizen of the Year
• AFLAC-Jody Hipp Business Woman of the Year
• Eagle Communications Rising Star
• James Motor Co. Small Business Achievement
• Helping Hands
Click HERE to see the nomination form.
OK, we can figure that by the time she takes the oath of office, and no longer has that “Gov.-elect” before her name, Laura Kelly will have replaced probably all or most of the 11 Cabinet secretaries appointed by either Gov. Sam Brownback or his successor, Gov. Jeff Colyer. That’s simple.
Oh, there may be some delays, but practically, if you are a Brownback/Colyer-knighted secretary, you might not want to go car-shopping this holiday season or might want to consider whether you’ll be able to afford move-ups from synthetic-to-wool or wool-to-cashmere sweaters for the spouse.
So far (up to this past weekend), Kelly has been quiet about the new Cabinet members she will appoint. She’s got a chief of staff to keep the names straight and sent a group of transition advisers to meet with those current secretaries to see just what they do, but there are no names written down that a reporter wouldn’t have to kick in a door or bust a window to see.
Oh, and those new Cabinet secretaries are going to get to hire their own chiefs of staff and assistants and public relations offices, which ought to take care of appreciation of campaign leaders and contributors as in all change-over election cycles.
But the real issue for the thousands of state employees who do the real work for the state and generally don’t have business cards and stationery is going to be what Kelly does in the way of Civil Service for state employees. Those Civil Service jobs are generally done behind counters where they hand out driver’s licenses or help the public with tax returns or in a frequently windowless back office make sure that Kansans get the services they pay taxes for.
Kansas has gone through the Republican-managed years with steady reductions in the number of Civil Service workers. That Civil Service is a protection for workers and most importantly protects their jobs as long as they are doing their assigned jobs. Do the job right, and under Civil Service, you can’t be fired because you have a bumper sticker on your car that is different than the stickers on the car of your politically appointed boss. Do the job right without Civil Service and you can be fired or not promoted with little or no performance issue.
The Brownback years offered pay raises for Civil Service workers who gave up those protections, including hearings during which a firing or being bypassed for an advancement can be challenged.
During the now-ending Republican administration, thousands of state workers who hadn’t seen raises in several years traded that job protection for raises of 2.5% for workers who changed from Civil Service to at-will employees. Not a bad deal if you were liked by your supervisor, but for those who wanted the basic protection of fair practices in employment matters, it essentially became an insurance premium in the form of lower wage to hold on to those protections.
Don’t look for those abandon-Civil-Service raises to continue. And, we’ll watch how the Kelly administration deals with basic job protections for workers who took the 2.5% raise-bait to see their job security based on whom they worked for, not the job they did.
We’re still waiting to see who become Cabinet secretaries under Kelly’s administration, but we’re also waiting to see what happens to the thousands of workers who park at the back of the lots farthest from the building…
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
By JOHN P. TRETBAR
Independent Oil & Gas Service reports a realignment of the drilling rig fleet in Kansas. There was an increase in Kansas drilling contractors working out of state last week, as well as an increase in the number of Kansas rigs shutdown or stacked.
The active rig count was slightly lower. In eastern Kansas, there are 12 rigs moving in, rigging up, drilling or relocating. That’s up one for the week. West of Wichita the count dropped to 35 active rigs, down two. Drilling is underway this week on one lease in Russell County.
Operators filed 28 permits for drilling at new locations across Kansas last week, including five in Barton County. There are 12 new permits in eastern Kansas and 16 west of Wichita. So far this year, we have 1,718 new drilling permits across Kansas. That’s 359 more permits than last year at this time, but five thousand less than the total by this time in 2014.
The Kansas Corporation Commission reported a total of 166 new intent-to-drill notices across Kansas during November. That’s up one from the month before, up 16 from a year earlier, but down more than 300 from the total in November of 2014. So far this year, operators filed 1,801 intents, just 24 more than last year at this time, but well behind the 6,814 intents filed through November of 2014. There were two new intents filed in Barton County, five in Ellis County, two in Russell County and three in Stafford County.
Independent Oil & Gas Service reports just 56 new well completions for the week across Kansas. In the western half of the state, there were 20 newly completed wells, but 11 of them were dry holes. Barton County added one completion last week. Russell County added two, although one of those was a dry hole. So far this year, operators have completed 1,486 wells. That’s 243 completions ahead of last year at this time, but nearly four thousand less than at this point back in 2014.
There was an increase in Kansas drilling contractors working out of state last week, as well as an increase in the number of Kansas rigs shutdown or stacked. Independent Oil & Gas Service said the active rig count was slightly lower. In eastern Kansas, there are 12 rigs moving in, rigging up, drilling or relocating. That’s up one for the week. West of Wichita the count dropped to 35 active rigs, down two. Drilling is underway this week on one lease in Russell County.
Baker Hughes reported 1,075 active rigs nationwide, down ten oil rigs but up nine rigs searching for natural gas. Oklahoma was down three and Texas down down two rigs for the week. New Mexico gained two rigs. Canada was down 13 rigs at 186.
OPEC and Russia have agreed to a deal to cut production to mop up a growing global oil supply glut. The Wall Street Journal said the deal would cut output by a collective 1.2 million barrels a day.
The Association of American Railroads reports another increase in oil-by-rail traffic. For the week ending November 24, more than 12-thousand tanker cars shipped petroleum across the U.S., an increase of 39.7% over last year at this time. The cumulative total for the year is 17% ahead of last year. Canada’s oil-by-rail figures increased 36% over last year to more than 11-thousand tanker cars. Canada is 21.5% ahead of last year’s cumulative total.
The government reported total U.S. crude oil production for September was up about 129-thousand barrels per day over the month before at 11.475 million barrels per day. That’s about 21% higher than the total in September of last year. Kansas production for September was 94-thousand barrels per day, down two-thousand barrels from the month before, and a thousand barrels per day lower than last September’s total.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported a slight increase in U.S. crude production last week to just under 11.7 million barrels per day. That’s nearly two million barrels per day more than last year at this time.
Crude oil imports averaged 7.2 million barrels per day last week, down by 943,000 barrels per day from the previous week. The four-week average is up 0.3% from last year at this time.
U.S. commercial crude oil inventories dropped by 7.3 million barrels and (at 443.2 million barrels) are about 6% above the five year average for this time of year.
Total motor gasoline inventories increased by 1.7 million barrels last week and are about 4% above the five year average for this time of year.
Mexico’s new president likened it to selling oranges and buying orange juice. The new government detailed plans Sunday to build an $8 billion oil refinery and to renovate six others as the oil-producing country attempts to lower its dependence on fuel imported from the U.S.
The U.S. Geological Survey announced the Permian Basin of Texas and New Mexico could hold much more oil and gas than once thought. The basin’s “Delaware Basin” could hold upwards of 46 billion barrels of oil and some 280 trillion cubic feet of gas, making it the largest continuous oil and gas resource ever assessed.
The Trump administration is moving forward with plans to open more public lands to oil and gas leases. They will allow waivers for drilling to encroach into the habitat of the endangered greater sage grouse. Earlier protections for the bird habitats affected millions of acres in the American West including parts of Kansas.
ELLSWORTH COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating two suspects on numerous charges after a high-speed chase through four Kansas counties.
Chavez -photo Ellsworth County
Frye -photo Ellsworth Co.
Just after midnight Sunday, authorities attempted to stop a reported stolen 2018 Hyundai passenger vehicle eastbound on Interstate 70 just east of the Kansas 156 exit in Ellsworth County, according to the Kansas Highway Patrol.
The driver later identified as 37-year-old Kevin Frye of Colorado refused to stop. The chase at speeds of 100 miles per hour continued into Saline County. The driver left Interstate 70 at the Hedville-Culver exit traveling south and then continued eastbound on Crawford until he decided to travel northbound on Interstate 135 through Ottawa County and into Cloud County.
The vehicle finally pulled over in an alley in Concordia. The KHP arrested Frye and a passenger 32-year-old Candias Chavez. She was wanted for an escape from the Denver County Jail. A second passenger in the Hyundai was detained for questioning and he was released, according to the KHP.
The suspects are being held for warrants from Colorado and requested charges that include felony flee and attempted to elude law enforcement, possession of stolen property, possession of personal use marijuana and a number of additional traffic violations, according to the KHP.
By BECKY KISER
Hays Post
Synergy is filling the first floor of the historic six-story Chestnut Building in downtown Hays.
Three nonprofit organizations are now housed in the building purchased by four local businessmen.
The Downtown Hays Development Corporation, Heartland Community Foundation and Big Brothers Big Sisters occupy Suite 102, along with the Downtown Visitor’s Center.
“This is such a fun environment,” said Sandy Jacobs, executive director of HCF, “and a wonderful synergy going on with nonprofits. We do some amazing things when we all work together.”
The groups recently hosted a holiday open house and ribbon cutting by the Hays Area Chamber of Commerce.
One of the building owners, Dick Werth, approached Jacobs about moving her office into the building at 1200 Main and offered a minimal rental rate. Jacobs jumped at the opportunity after being notified by the city that her space in the Hays Welcome Center, 2700 Vine, was to become the new home of the city’s IT department.
DHDC had already moved into the location from its space on 12th Street.
“The owners are a wonderful group and they wanted to see nonprofits down here. They’ve allowed it to happen that works financially for all three of our groups. We’re grateful for that,” added Jacobs.
BBBS filled the rest of the suite in early November.
“We are super excited to be in this space,” said Jenny Bates, BBBS area director.
One major advantage for BBBS is access to the suite’s large boardroom.
“We’ve always had to go off-site for that,” Bates explained. “We do lots of volunteer information sessions and parent training sessions and will now be able to do all that here.”
DHDC office manager Michaela Bartlett also works as the receptionist for the three nonprofits.
Sara Bloom, DHDC executive director, joked about how many moves her office made before settling into the Chestnut Building.
“It’s a much bigger, beautiful space and it allows for more. Michaela and I now have our own offices. If we need to close doors, we can. Our 13 board members were meeting in an unfinished basement. We’re very excited to be in the Chestnut Building and collaborating with these other wonderful nonprofits,” she said.
Each of the nonprofit directors thanked the board members for donating their time and talent.
“What I’m starting to see that I’m really grateful for is the number of young people that are now becoming involved,” Jacobs said.
“I think what is important for us to remember is all of these people have real jobs. And they have real employers that I don’t think we spend enough time thanking for allowing them to serve on these boards, and take time off, and do the things they do. Without those employers agreeing to all that, we wouldn’t have all the wonderful stuff that we have going on.”
Today Mostly sunny, with a high near 52. South southwest wind 6 to 15 mph becoming north northwest in the afternoon.
Tonight Partly cloudy, with a low around 25. Northwest wind 6 to 10 mph becoming west southwest after midnight.
Wednesday Sunny, with a high near 54. West southwest wind 6 to 13 mph becoming south in the afternoon.
Wednesday Night Increasing clouds, with a low around 30. Windy, with a west wind 6 to 11 mph becoming north 20 to 25 mph in the evening.
Thursday Partly sunny, with a high near 43. Windy, with a north wind 22 to 28 mph, with gusts as high as 39 mph.
Thursday NightMostly clear, with a low around 25. Blustery.
FridaySunny, with a high near 48.
America.
SHERIDAN COUNTY — The Sheridan County Sheriff’s Office is warning of a telephone scam.
Authorities have received reports of calls purportedly from the Social Security Administration claiming that Social Security numbers have been used fraudulently. The scam caller uses the name “James Morgan,” the sheriff’s office said, and calls originate from a 325 area code.
By BECKY KISER
Hays Post
The city of Hays will spend about $1.1 million on street maintenance next year.
Project Manager John Braun presented the proposal to the city commission at Thursday night’s work session.
Included are seal coat, asphalt rejuvenator, micro-surfacing, diamond grinding, curb and brick repair, major rehab on Ash Street between 23rd and 27th, sidewalk improvements, and in-house crack seal and asphalt repair.
The work is targeted by city staff in an annual evaluation of the condition of streets and brought forward for commission consideration. Staff utilizes traffic counts, the latest pavement condition assessment, past maintenance treatments, public input, and available budget in developing the maintenance program.
A little more than half of the project is funded by the state from the federal gas tax refund plus Connecting Link Maintenance. Another $500,000 will come from the city’s General Fund.
Below is an explanation provided by the city of each street maintenance process that will be used.
1. Seal Coat is a bituminous liquid mixture applied to asphalt pavement. Seal coat has a smooth black finish and does not have a rock surface like chip seal. The seal coat will fill the fine cracks developing in the asphalt and preserve the life of the street. Most of the streets to receive a seal coat are on the east side of Hays.
2. Asphalt Rejuvenator, also called Reclamite, is a preservative seal that is used on newer asphalt streets that do not yet warrant more advanced treatment. The cost is less than seal coat or chip seal and helps a new street to stay in good shape for a longer period of time delaying more costly maintenance treatments. Pavement markings are preserved and do not need to be reapplied. The areas slated for asphalt rejuvenator are Kings Gate Drive, Hall, 27th, 13th, 32nd, and 33rd Streets.
3. Micro-Surfacing is a quick setting, hard asphalt slurry that restores the driving surface. It performs better than seal coat on high traffic areas. Micro-surfacing will be done Broadway north of 27th Street and MacArthur south of Roosevelt School, along with some areas that were uncompleted in 2018.
4. Diamond Grinding will be used to remove bumps on concrete streets where the joints have faulted or the concrete panels have warped. Staff proposes to grind Commerce Parkway from 22nd to the south city limit at Reservation Road.
5. Curb and Brick Repair typically is performed in the old brick street areas of town. The 2019 project concentrates on Walnut between 12th and 13th.
6. Major Rehab – In 2007, the water main along Ash Street was upgraded and the furthest east traffic lane of the concrete pavement between 23rd and 27th was reconstructed. This project would remove and replace the west two lanes.
7. Sidewalk Program – Adding $10,000 for the annual Sidewalk Rebate Program, the total amount to be set aside out of Special Highway for sidewalk improvements in 2019 is $78,000.
8. In-House Street Maintenance – Approximately $45,000 will augment the purchase of crack seal material, asphalt and other materials for city crews to perform in-house street maintenance.
Braun told commissioners the plan will return for approval in 2019 once bids are received.
In other business, City Clerk Brenda Kitchen presented the 2018 Boundary Resolution. Three properties north of Interstate 70 have been annexed into the city since December 14, 2017:
The city commission is expected top approve the new city limits at their meeting Dec. 13.
Commissioner Sandy Jacobs and Vice-Mayor Henry Schwaller were absent from the work session.
UWEC
ELLIS – Stop by Arthur’s Pizza and Mexican Foods, 103 W. 9th St, Ellis for lunch or dinner today and a percentage of the proceeds will go to the United Way of Ellis County!
TREGO COUNTY — Two people were injured in an accident just before 9p.m. Sunday in Trego County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2010 Chrysler Town and Country driven by Geralyn Bridget Proulx, 52, Vinita, OK., was westbound at the WaKeeney, Hill City exit.
The vehicle entered the north ditch, struck the KDOT fence and continued north until it came to rest in a ravine.
Proulx and a passenger Ashley Coner, 29, Vinita, OK., were transported to Trego County Lemke Memorial Hospital. Proulx was in a wheel chair
My love/hate relationship with mud is simple; I hate it when it’s muddy and love it when it’s not!
Usually here in Kansas the ground is dry enough or frozen enough this time of year that a vehicle can be driven most anywhere to set or to check traps, to retrieve a deer or to haul a trailer full of goose decoys to a blind. But it’s so wet right now I actually spent 20 minutes the other day with the farmer that farms all the land around our deer blind, asking where a 4 wheeler can be driven on his cropland to retrieve my wife’s deer if she was able to harvest one.
My young trapping friend, along with his dad and little brother have been taking me goose hunting a couple times each season, but now he has gone to serve our country as a United States Marine.
Fortunately for me, his dad and brother still agree to put up with me in his absence, so Wednesday morning I got a call from his dad inviting me on an afternoon goose hunt.
McPherson Kansas is home to more large industry than most towns its size. Most of those big corporations have lakes at their facilities, so because of that and the amount of cropland all around McPherson and because Kansas is positioned in the central flyway, migrating geese pour into the McPherson area each season by the gazillions.
Our hunting spot was 80 acres or so tucked neatly between several of those big corporations and flanked across one end by interstate 135. The field was split about 50/50 into wheat and milo stalks. When we arrived at 3 PM as suggested, two of the hunters were already setup and the far end of the wheat field was literally covered with geese. These guys had hunted this location a couple days before and 3 PM seemed to be the witching hour, but today the geese had obviously failed to give us the memo concerning the change in their schedule.
The hunters already in place motioned for us to walk to them so we could get settled. We grabbed our gear, donned boots and began the trek across 250 yards of slimy, mucky, slippery mud mixed with milo stalks. The two hunters already there had their limit of 6 geese apiece, so we settled into layout blinds positioned at the edge of the stalks overlooking the wheat as one of the guys walked toward the huge blanket of geese, attempting to get them into the air for us to begin our harvest too. But again, the geese neglected to file their new flight plan with us and headed off in different directions.
For the next hour-and-a-half groups of several birds occasionally took a shine to the decoys and set their wings to glide in and say hello, only to be met by three hunters trying to put them into our freezers. By 5 PM all five of us had our limits and began to pack up. It took us each three trips back-and-forth through the mire to gather everything; the first trip carrying our gun & gear in one hand and as many geese as we could with the other hand, the second trip with as many geese as we could possibly haul with both hands and the last trip dragging and carrying blinds through the muck.
Back at my friend’s house, we cleaned geese on the tailgate of his truck using the headlights of my truck, and I headed home with zip lock bags of fresh goose breasts for the freezer. I rinsed them good with cold water and soaked them for twenty four hours in a cold water bath with vinegar and canning salt to help draw out any blood, then rinsed them again and layered them in freezer bags.
I’ll fix them by marinating them either sliced or whole in Italian dressing or buttermilk, topping them with bacon strips and grilling them. Wild goose breasts; yet another Kansas crop to harvest as you continue to Explore Kansas Outdoors!
Steve Gilliland, Inman, can be contacted by email at [email protected].
