TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) The Kansas House has begun debate on a Republican plan to cut income taxes. The bill includes amendments that would restore several refundable tax credits and raise the spending cap to 3 percent. Supporters say the measure will improve the Kansas business climate. As written by a GOP-dominated committee, the bill promises future cuts to individual income taxes as revenues grow and would force the state to check the annual growth in its spending at 2 percent. The state would phase out taxes on the earnings of thousands of partnerships, sole proprietorships and other small businesses. The…
Author: KMAN Staff
SCOTT CITY, Kan. (AP) Authorities have identified a Scott City woman and three children who died in a house fire in the western Kansas town. The fire on Saturday killed 28-year-old Jackie Ann Coberly and her son, 4-year-old Brandon Carter. Eight-year-old Terra Renee Murphy and 6-year-old Cassie Linn Murphy also died. They were the daughters of Coberly’s boyfriend. Scott City Police Chief Chris Jurgens said Monday the fire is believed to be accidental but an investigation is continuing. The Garden City Telegram reports that the fire started Saturday morning near a heater in the laundry room of a home the…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A proposed $14 billion budget for the state of Kansas is drawing bipartisan criticism because it would withhold some education funds to push local school districts to tap their cash reserves first. The issue for critics Tuesday was the elimination of $29 million in new money for the state’s 286 school districts to cover higher-than-expected costs during the current school year. Republican Gov. Sam Brownback endorsed the spending. But the House Appropriations Committee removed the money before endorsing a bill containing its proposed budget Monday night. The change would force districts to absorb the costs and potentially…
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) The head of the Environmental Protection Agency told students at the University of Kansas that her job involves ensuring their future. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson told the students Monday that they have the power to influence the course of environmental policies. She also said students should look at how they already live on campus by using public transportation, choosing efficient foods and living in small spaces. The Lawrence Journal World reports that Jackson acknowledged the criticism the federal agency has received recently from those who say environmental regulations have “hobbled” the economy. But she defended the EPA’s…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A Kansas House committee endorsed a proposal to freeze admissions to the Kansas Neurological Institute for one year. The home for the disabled in Topeka has been the center of controversy since 2010, when a commission recommended it be closed. That recommendation was rejected but Gov. Sam Brownback and some legislators continue to look for ways to cut costs at the institute. Rep. Dave Crum, a Republican from Augusta, says care of disabled people is moving away from central institutions like KNI to community-based care. He says Kansans who need residential care could still live at Parsons…
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) A lieutenant who was the public face of the Wichita police department during several high-profile investigations, including the capture of the BTK serial killer, has retired. Lt. Ken Landwehr retired Monday after 35 years with the Wichita police force, the last 20 as commander of the homicide unit. The Wichita Eagle reports Landwehr helped his unit solve most of 600 homicides it investigated. During a ceremony attended hundreds of co-workers and friends, he gave credit to the detectives in the unit. He was best known for his work on the BTK case and the prosecution of Reginald…
SALINA, Kan. (AP) A defense attorney says a man who died after a confrontation with four Salina men started the fight that led to his death. Attorney Roger Struble made that argument in a motion filed on behalf of 20-year-old Justin Taddiken in the January 2011 death of 48-year-old Robert Unselt. Taddiken pleaded no contest to aggravated battery in Unselt’s fatal beating. On Monday, he was placed on two years of supervised probation. Unselt’s widow and sister disputed Struble’s account of the confrontation, saying Unselt was a peacemaker. The Salina Journal reports Unselt’s widow is seeking $1 million in a…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A proposal to name a state dog has lost its bite. A Kansas House committee on Tuesday declined to hear a bill that would have named the cairn terrier the official state dog. The breed is best known in Kansas for playing Toto in “The Wizard of Oz.” Brenda Moore, of the South Central Kansas Kennel Club, originally asked State Rep. Ed Trimmer, a Democrat from Winfield, to introduce the bill. She said she plans to conduct a statewide campaign this summer, including a petition drive to present to state politicians. The Wichita Eagle reports Trimmer said…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) After a one-day delay, the Kansas House is ready to debate a Republican plan to cut income taxes. The measure, which supporters say will improve the Kansas business climate, was originally set for debate Monday but pushed back to Tuesday by other issues. As written by a GOP-dominated committee, the bill would promise future cuts to individual income taxes as revenues grow, forcing the state to check the annual growth in its spending at 2 percent. The state would phase out taxes on the earnings of thousands of partnerships, sole proprietorships and other small businesses. The sales…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A Kansas commission is looking for artists interested in painting a mural at the Statehouse commemorating the historic U.S. Supreme Court decision declaring segregated schools unconstitutional. The Capitol Preservation Committee is asking artists to submit applications to be declared qualified to execute the project, which is to be completed in 2014. House member Valdenia Winn, a Kansas City Democrat who chairs the Preservation Committee, says applications will be taken until May 1. The mural will honor the Supreme Court’s 1954 Brown v. Board of Education ruling, which declared that separate schools for black and white children where…