TOPEKA — Many of Kansas’ state universities are asking the system’s governing board this week to approve tuition increases higher than first proposed a month ago. The Lawrence Journal-World reports the University of Kansas wants tuition increased by 5 percent. That’s one percentage point higher than the school sought last month. The state’s other universities propose tuition boosts ranging from 4.9 percent at Emporia State to 6 percent at Fort Hays State. Only the University of Kansas’ medical center and Wichita State did not increase their rate increase requests. They remain at 5 percent. The revisions are in response to Gov.…
Author: KMAN Staff
TOPEKA — Two Kansas legislative committees will debate changes in education funding and school finance amendments to the state constitution in a joint meeting this week. The House and Senate Judiciary committees Monday released the agenda for a two-day meeting that begins Thursday. The panels are meeting ahead of a special session beginning June 23. Republican Gov. Sam Brownback called the special session to address a state Supreme Court order last month declaring that the state’s education funding system remains unfair to poor school districts. The court said schools will not be able to reopen after June 30 without further fixes. The…
Riley County commissioners reluctantly voted to change 13 county positions from salaried to hourly status in accordance to a recent update to Department of Labor regulations on overtime pay that will go into effect Dec. 1. For now, employers are not required to pay overtime to salaried workers making more than $23,600 and are considered “exempt” from additional pay. But in December, that exemption threshold will be $47,892 and above. Riley County deputy clerk Cindy Volanti said the 13 affected positions are in the county appraiser’s office, health department, county attorney’s office, GIS department and the Riley County Historical Museum. “So basically,…
Today’s guests on In Focus were: K-State Vet College: Bob Larson, Professor of Production Medicine Edgar E. and M. Elizabeth Coleman Chair Food Animal Production Medicine Executive Director, Veterinary Medical Continuing Education Mary Mertz and Melissa Wahl with Riley County Farm Bureau Terry Olson with Eastside/Westside Market on 40th anniversary
WICHITA — The latest government snapshot of Kansas crops shows a slower than usual start to the state’s wheat harvest. The National Agricultural Statistics Service reported Monday that 5 percent of the winter wheat in Kansas had now been harvested. That is slightly more progress compared to this time a year ago, but it is still behind the 15 percent average. It noted that wheat harvest has gained momentum in the southern parts of Kansas. The agency also rated the condition of wheat still out in the field as 10 percent excellent and 51 percent good. About 31 percent is in fair…
WICHITA — A federal appeals court sided with Boeing and one of its suppliers in the whistleblower lawsuit brought by three ex-workers at the aircraft manufacturer’s former plant in Wichita. The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed on Monday with a federal judge’s decision that the former workers failed to show Boeing defrauded the U.S. government in a $1.6 billion contract. The three-judge appellate panel said it found no evidence Boeing knowingly submitted a false claim to the government. It upheld the 2014 summary judgment in favor of Boeing and California-based supplier Ducommun Inc., rejecting claims brought by former employees Taylor…
Officers with the Riley County Police Department arrested Daniel Dimond, 40, of Kansas City, Kansas while at RCPD on June 10, 2016 at approximately 4:20 PM. Dimond was arrested on a warrant for the offense of probation violation (original offenses of stalking, theft, criminal trespass). He was given a bond of $5,000.00 and at the time of this report was no longer confined at the Riley County Jail. Alicia Minner, 31, of Topeka, Kansas was arrested while at the Riley County Police Department on June 10, 2016 at approximately 7:30 PM. Minner was arrested on several warrants for the offense…
ORLANDO — A gunman wielding an assault-type rifle and a handgun opened fire inside a crowded Florida nightclub early Sunday before dying in a gunfight with SWAT officers, police said. The attack left at least 50 people dead, making it the worst mass shooting in American history. Authorities were investigating it as an act of terrorism. At least 53 other people were hospitalized, the Orlando mayor said. “There’s blood everywhere,” Mayor Buddy Dyer said. The suspect exchanged gunfire with an officer working at the gay club known as Pulse Orlando around 2 a.m., when more than 300 people were inside.…
WICHITA — A federal appeals court says Kansas cannot prevent thousands of eligible voters from casting ballots in the November federal election because they didn’t prove their U.S. citizenship when registering to vote at motor vehicle offices. Friday’s ruling from the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily upholds a federal judge’s order that required Kansas to allow those individuals to vote. The state has said up to 50,000 people could be affected. The court agreed to quickly hear the appeal. U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson ruled earlier this year that enforcement of Kansas’ proof-of-citizenship law had disenfranchised more than 18,000 otherwise…
WICHITA — Kansas health officials say high numbers of mosquitoes known to transmit West Nile virus have been found in traps in Sedgwick County. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment said Friday that the rise in the number of Culex mosquitoes is likely to be statewide, increasing the risk of a higher number of West Nile virus cases this year. KDHE says the Culex species isn’t known to transmit Zika virus. West Nile virus is commonly spread to people through mosquito bites and is not transmitted from person to person. Cases are most common in the late summer and early fall.…