President Barack Obama has chosen Thomas Perez, a top Justice Department official, to be the next secretary of labor, calling him a consensus builder whose “story reminds us of this country’s promise.”
Author: KMAN Staff
Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton announced her support for gay marriage Monday, putting her in line with other potential Democratic presidential candidates on a social issue that is rapidly gaining public approval.
Former University of Oklahoma championship quarterback Steve Davis was one of two people killed when a small aircraft smashed into a house in northern Indiana, officials said Monday.
On today’s InFocus, Cathy talks with David Westfall, PhD candidate with Kansas State’s Sociology department. [mp3-jplayer]
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Kansas’ transportation secretary says a key part of a legislative proposal to lower sales and income taxes will force the state to delay highway projects. Transportation Secretary Mike King issued a statement Monday about a provision of a tax bill before the Kansas House that diverts $382 million in revenues over two years from highway projects. The House bill would follow up on last year’s income tax cuts by allowing further reductions in rates if state revenues grow by more than 2 percent. It also would allow the state sales tax to drop in July, as scheduled…
AUGUSTA, Kan. (AP) Officials in a southeast Kansas town devastated by flooding nearly 15 years ago say work on a new levee is progressing slightly ahead of schedule. The Augusta Daily Gazette reports the levee protecting the west city of Augusta is expected to be complete by the end of August, at a cost of more than $6.6 million. Groundbreaking on the levee along the Whitewater River took place in July of last year. Part of Augusta lies at the confluence of the Whitewater and Walnut Rivers. In October 1998, more than 650 homes and roughly 90 businesses were damaged…
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) The latest edition of the Classic Jayhawk, a University of Kansas campus landmark sculpture, will be tougher than its predecessors and less likely to be rolled away thanks to a 3-foot anchor and three tons of concrete. Over the years, the other Classic Jayhawks have been climbed on, knocked over and rolled along the Jayhawk Boulevard sidewalk. But The Lawrence Journal-World reports that the new version of the Jayhawk sculpture in front of the Kanas Unions is due to be completed this month. And while it might look the same, inside it’s an entirely different bird. The…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) Officials in Wichita have put a proposed plan to raise water rates on hold because of citizen complaints. City public works officials said last month that Cheney Reservoir would go dry by August 2015 if the drought continues. The reservoir is the source of 60 percent of the city’s water. The city then proposed boosting water bills for households that water lawns and gardens or fill swimming pools in the summer. The hikes would be about 50 percent, and in some cases about 100 percent. The Wichita Eagle reports that in response to several complaints about the…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Shawnee County residents will be able to get in line to renew vehicle tags and titles from home. The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that the new system begins Monday. Shawnee County Treasurer Larry Mah says the online and mobile queue allows customers to choose a license renewal location, then issues a ticket number and asks the customer to enter a cellphone number, so the system can send a text when the number is 20 minutes out. Mah says the electronic queue won’t stop the lines from forming, but he hopes the measures at least spread the wait times…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback has appointed an Overland Park attorney to a seat on Johnson County District Court. Timothy McCarthy will replace District Judge John P. Bennett, who served on the court since 1995 and recently announced his retirement. McCarthy is a partner in the firm of Gilliland and Hayes. He was one of three finalists chosen by a special nominating commission. Brownback’s office says the governor selected McCarthy because of his experience as a municipal judge in Edwardsville and as a temporary replacement for sick or absent district judges in Johnson County. The governor also noted…