By SAM ZEFF

The vice chairman of the Kansas Senate Ways and Means Committee says he’s been told by Gov. Sam Brownback that the governor might consider rolling back a major portion of his signature 2012 tax cut bill.

Sen. Jim Denning, a Republican from Overland Park, said on KCUR’s Statehouse Blend podcast over the weekend that Brownback might not veto a bill that would close the loophole that allows more then 300,000 small businesses in Kansas to avoid state income tax.

“It’s been signaled to me personally that he would not veto anything that the Legislature came up with to close that loophole this year,” Denning said. “So that’s a big movement from his position last year when he was 100 percent crystal clear that he was going to veto anything that we did.”

But the governor’s office suggests Denning may be jumping the gun.

“The governor will always carefully consider any bill the Legislature chooses to send him,” Brownback spokesperson Eileen Hawley said in a statement.

“We will announce our proposals for balancing the budget next week when the new revenue estimates are released. A plan to raise taxes on small businesses or anyone else will not be among them.”

Denning also predicted a rather dire consensus revenue estimate when state officials and economists meet Wednesday.

He expects revenue projections to be revised downward at least $150 million and as much as $250 million. Kansas has missed revenue projections 11 of the last 12 months, including an $8.5 million shortfall in March and a $54 million shortfall in February.

The Legislature returns April 27 for its veto session, and leaders have said they hope for a quick wrap-up session. However, if Denning is able to push through closing the loophole, the veto session could be a bit more complicated. That’s especially true in an election year.

“This thing is past politics to me. It’s a policy decision. It’s a business decision,” Denning said on the podcast. “We’ve got to keep the trains running, and closing that loophole is such a simple step. For me personally, I just don’t see the political fallout.”

To make up for the anticipated revenue problem, Denning said Brownback has a couple of options to balance the budget for this fiscal year, which ends June 30. He can sweep more money from the Kansas Department of Transportation budget and make other transfers.

Denning says Brownback also is prepared to cut more money from the Kansas Board of Regents budget.

“I think the governor has another $17 million he plans on cutting out of higher ed, and I think they’re prepared for that.”

That would on top of an across-the-board 3 percent cut higher education took in March after the dismal revenue performance in February.

If Denning is correct, higher education in Kansas would have a total of $34 million cut from its budget this year.

A spokesperson for the Board of Regents did not immediately respond.

— Sam Zeff covers education for KCUR. He’s also co-host of KCUR”s political podcast Statehouse Blend.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A Wichita man who pretended to be a veterinarian and stole thousands of dollars in fraud schemes was sentenced to five years’ probation.

The Sedgwick County District Attorney’s office announced Monday that 49-year-old Danny Thomas also was ordered to pay $6,559 to his victims and $29,347 to the Kansas Department of Labor for unemployment benefits he should not have received.

Prosecutors say Thomas said he was Chase McKnight and passed forged checks to buy equipment for a pet-care facility that didn’t exist.

Thomas pleaded guilty to five counts of forgery, three counts of identity theft, one count of felony theft and two counts of misdemeanor theft. In exchange for his plea, the district attorney agreed not to file fraud charges for the stolen unemployment benefits.

GEARY COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Geary County are investigating two suspects in connection with burglaries and assault.

Police received information that two suspects wanted in reference to an aggravated assault in Topeka and may be located at 917 Dreiling Apt. C-1, in Junction City.

It was also learned that one of the suspects was wanted for questioning in reference to several burglaries that had taken place in Riley County.

Just after 10 a.m. on Sunday members of the Junction City Police Department began to conduct surveillance on the location and a short time later spotted one of the wanted suspects, according to a media release.

The suspect attempted to flee on foot from the officers on scene. With assistance from the Geary County Sheriff’s, and members of the Drug Operations Group the suspect was located and arrested.

A second suspect was located at 917 Dreiling Apt. C-1 and taken into custody.

Arrested on local charges for Felony Possession of Stolen Property and Felony Obstruction was Paul L. Olberg, 50, homeless; and on Felony Possession of Stolen Property was Mary A. Olberg, 47, homeless.

They were booked into the Geary County Detention Center on a no bond status.

Y CITY, Ark. (AP) — Police say a 93-year-old Wichita, Kansas, man who was traveling to Oklahoma, but disappeared after leaving Hot Springs, Arkansas, has been found dead inside his crashed vehicle.

Hot Springs police say the body of Harlan Swartzendruber was found inside his upside down vehicle that was submerged in a creek near the intersection of Highways 270 and 71 in Y City — about 70 miles west of Hot Springs.

Police Cpl. Kirk Zaner said in a news release that the vehicle could not be seen from the road and was spotted about 7 p.m. Saturday by someone who had stopped to take a photograph.

Swartzendruber was last seen in Hot Springs and was traveling to Muskogee, Oklahoma. He was reported missing last Monday.

TECUMSEH, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a Kansas man has been killed in a southeast Nebraska collision.

The accident occurred Sunday evening near Tecumseh, about a half-mile north of the intersection of Nebraska Highway 50 and U.S. Highway 136.

Deputy County Attorney Benjamin Beethe of Johnson County says it appears so far that a northbound car crossed the Highway 50 median and rammed into a southbound pickup, killing the car driver. He was identified as 77-year-old Gary Barton, of Haddam, Kansas.

The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office says the pickup driver, Clark Gartner, of Tecumseh, was not injured.

RILEY COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities in Riley County are investigating a suspect in connection with a weekend stand-off.

Just before 7:30a.m. on Sunday the Riley County Police Department received the first of several 911 calls from an isolated, rural farmhouse in 4400 Block of River Road, according to a media release.

The sole occupant notified the Riley County Police Department that he was armed and dangerous.

As officers were in the vicinity of the residence attempting to check the occupant’s welfare a shot was fired from inside the house.

Follow-up investigation revealed that the occupant, a 64-year-old man, according to police, had previously threatened relatives and intended to harm himself.

The Riley County Police Department then activated its negotiations and tactical teams with assistance from the Junction City Police Department, Topeka Police Department in the form of additional tactical personnel and armored vehicles.

A protracted standoff ensued during which more shots were fired from inside of the house.

Officers with the Riley County Police Department subsequently received a court order to take the occupant into custody.

Officers used tear gas to get the occupant out of the house followed by baton rounds to take him into custody. The occupant was taken into police protective custody at approximately 8:00 p.m.

He received only minor injuries and remains in protective custody.

At one point during the incident one of the rounds fired from inside the house struck an occupied armored vehicle and a criminal report was filed.

Name of the suspect has not been released.

LOLITA C. BALDOR, Associated Press

BAGHDAD (AP) — U.S. officials say the U.S. will send 200 more troops and a number of Apache helicopters to Iraq to assist in the fight against the Islamic State group.

Defense Secretary Ash Carter said the new forces will largely be used to advise Iraqi forces closer to the front lines.

 

In Iraq #SecDef announces accelerants to defeat #ISIL. List includes expanding advise & assist efforts to help Iraqi forces liberate Mosul

— U.S. Dept of Defense (@DeptofDefense) April 18, 2016

The announcement comes during a push to retake the key city of Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest. The decision reflect weeks of discussions with commanders and Iraqi leaders, and a decision by President Barack Obama to increase the authorized troop level in Iraq by 217 — or from 3,870 to 4,087.

Most of the additional troops would probably be Army special forces, who have been used to advise and assist the Iraqis. The remainder would include some trainers, security forces for the advisers, and more maintenance teams for the Apaches.

The advise-and-assist teams — made up of about a dozen troops each — would embed with Iraqi brigades and battalions, putting them closer to the fight, and at greater risk from mortars and rocket fire. They would have security forces with them.

SALINE COUNTY -Beginning this week, registered voters in Saline County will receive a ballot in the mail asking whether the city’s special sales tax should be increased from 0.4% to 0.75% for the next 20 years.

The Salina City Commission previously voted in favor of committing the $9.35 million the special tax is expected to raise each year for improvements to city streets, stabilizing property tax, parks, job creation, capital improvements, neighborhood revitalization and the Smoky Hill River channel cleanup. according to a media release.

A “yes” vote will be in favor of increasing the special sales tax.
If voters approve, Salina’s overall sales tax will increase from 8.40% to 8.75%, an increase of 35 cents for every $100 spent.

Salina voters approved a 0.4% special sales tax in 2008. That tax will expire in 2019, unless it’s replaced sooner by the higher tax that would go into effect if this vote is approved.
According to Saline County Clerk Don Merriman, about 29,000 ballots will be sent to the Post Office today, and registered voters should receive them by Wednesday or Thursday.

Merriman said the ballots must be in his office by 12 p.m. on May 10.

If voters reject the sales tax increase, Salina City Manager Jason Gage said that money derived from the 0.4% sales tax from 2008 should be enough to fund the current level of services to the city until early 2019.

NEWTON, Kan. (AP) — Another Kansas school district is considering charging parents for all-day kindergarten.

KSNW-TV  reports that the Newton district in south-central Kansas is looking into a $200-a-month charge. Half-day kindergarten would remain free because the state funds it.

Newton Superintendent Deborah Hamm says expenses are rising with no new money. She says districts can’t continue to do the same things with fewer resources.

Newton parent Ashley Horchem says the proposal is “frustrating” and that “education shouldn’t be that costly at a young age.”

But Hamm says there are no other areas to trim the budget. School board members haven’t made a decision yet.

Among the districts already charging for all-day kindergarten are several in the Kansas City area.

MARK SHERMAN, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is taking up an important dispute over immigration that could affect millions of people who are living in the country illegally.

The Obama administration is asking the justices in arguments Monday to allow it to put in place two programs that could shield roughly 4 million people from deportation and make them eligible to work in the United States.

Texas is leading 26 states dominated by Republicans in challenging the programs President Barack Obama announced in 2014 and that lower courts have put on hold.

The high court is expected to decide by late June whether the efforts can move forward in the waning months of Obama’s presidency. A ruling will come amid a presidential campaign that has been marked by harsh Republican rhetoric over immigration.

MANHATTAN – The Flint Hills Discovery Center Foundation recognized Nancy Kassebaum Baker as the “2016 Friend of the Flint Hills”, Saturday night, according to a media release.

The award honors significant time, effort and resources devoted to the cause of conserving the Flint Hills of Kansas and northern Oklahoma and to the Flint Hills Discovery Center. The award is given to an individual(s), nongovernmental organization or public institution each spring since 2012.

“Nancy was chosen for her exemplary leadership role and commitment to the Flint Hills as an elected official,” said Bruce Snead, President of the Flint Hills Discovery Center Foundation.

Kassebaum’s love of Kansas and the Flint Hills region was exemplified by her efforts along with that of others in the establishment of the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve near Strong City, KS in 1996. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve and the 100th anniversary of the U.S. National Park Service.

The significance of the 20 year anniversary is that this was the first time a public and private entity came together and formed a partnership dedicated to preserving a portion of the last remaining stand of tallgrass prairie in North America. The Nature Conservancy and the National Park Service partnered in order to foster preservation, provide a venue to interpret local cultural and historical features, provide visitors with the opportunity to become inspired and to explore the ecological, geological and historical aspects of the property. The Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve is the only one of its kind in the National Park Service system.

Kassebaum served three terms representing the state of Kansas in the U.S. Senate from 1979-1997. She returned to her permanent home in the Flint Hills in 2014 following the death of her husband, former U. S. Senator Howard Baker.

Former U. S. Senator Kassebaum Baker accepted her award at the annual recognition event on April 16, 2016 at the Flint Hills Discovery Center in Manhattan.

The Flint Hills Discovery Center Foundation functions to advance the mission of the Flint Hills Discovery Center by providing support for its programs and initiatives, ensuring stewardship of the region’s tallgrass prairie. The Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, serves as an active local, regional and national advocate by creating opportunities to give to the Foundation and provide for the long-term financial success of the Flint Hills Discovery Center.

LENEXA, Kan. (AP) — A suburban Kansas City nonprofit has sent an official team to Ecuador to determine what type of medical assistance the group can provide in the wake of the deadly earthquake.

Prelim M7.4 earthquake near the coast of Ecuador Apr-16 23:58 UTC, updates https://t.co/ZtBRVUGW7z, 256 #temblor tweets/min

— USGSted (@USGSted) April 17, 2016

Rescuers pulled survivors from rubble Sunday after the magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit Ecuador, killing at least 238 people and injuring more than 1,500.

Jim Mitchum, CEO of Lenexa-based Heart to Heart International, said Sunday his organization has sent a three-member advance team to Quito, Ecuador.

He says the team, which includes Heart to Heart’s chief medical officer, will work with local officials to determine how the group can assist. Heart to Heart works with several area medical volunteers to provide aid during crises in developing countries. Mitchum says the group typically sends medical professionals as well as supplies and medicine.