Kansas Counties

By Michael Schwanke (WICHITA, Kan.) Paved roads turned back to gravel?  Just like the state had its money troubles, Kansas counties have their own. Now, they have to ask voters to pay more.  Kingman County is one example as it tries to find a way to fix its roads. "Do it now or we're going to pay for it later," says Kingman County Public Works Director Charlie Arensdorf.  "We've never had a county sales tax.  We're delving into it for the first time. " Kingman County has no choice.

This New Year’s Eve, police in some Kansas counties and towns are trying something new to stop drunk drivers. They’re called “no refusal” weekends. It means people suspected of drunk driving won’t have the option to refuse a breathalyzer. Officers can get a warrant for a blood test. “By taking the scientific evidence in the case it will ensure that individuals who are in fact impaired are charged,” says Karen Whitman with the Kansas Department of Transportation.

Ten more Kansas counties are now participating in the Rural Opportunity Zone student loan repayment program. Barber, Graham, Hamilton, Kearny, Mitchell, Morton, Ness, Stanton, Trego and Wichita Counties join 10 other counties already partnering with the state in the loan repayment program. The other counties are Greeley, Hodgeman, Kingman, Lane, Pratt, Rooks, Russell, Scott, Wallace and Woodson Counties. As part of the program, people who move to one of these counties can have 20 percent of their student loans repaid by the county and state.

U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has granted Kansas' Governor Sam Brownback's request for the USDA to issue a drought disaster declaration for 21 Kansas counties as well as 18 contiguous counties. “This is good news for farmers in Kansas Counties experiencing production losses caused by drought, wildfires, and high winds.  I appreciate the Secretary and USDA’s quick response to my request,” Gov. Brownback said in a statement. “This is worse than previous droughts I've seen during a lifetime in agriculture.  It already is affecting how farmers and ranchers are doing business – and that in turn will quickly impact local businesses and communities.  It will take a great deal of time and rain to reverse the impact of this drought.” Declaring these county agricultural disasters makes qualified farmers in both primary and contiguous counties eligible for emergency loans administered by USDA’s Farm Service Agency, as well as any other aid that may be available through the Supplemental Revenue Assistance payments (SURE)

Parents of students in Head Start programs in Harvey, Greenwood, Butler, Pawnee, Barton and Rice counties will have to find alternatives for their children, at least for awhile. A letter sent home to parents in Newton explains the reason: Effective February 24, 2011, the Head Start Program is transitioning to a new grantee for program operations. Please be advised that during this transition, there will be a short disruption in services to children and families. Unfortunately, your Head Start center is temporarily suspending services to transition to the new grantee.

A multi-billion dollar oil pipeline is under construction in Kansas. For every mile of pipeline, Kansas will lose millions in property taxes. Lawmakers gave the project a ten year tax exemption and now a group of Kansas counties are trying to change that. Miles and miles of pipe is being laid through six Kansas counties. The goal is to pipe oil from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico. "This is like a god send and then we find out about the exemptions," said Marion County commissioner Dan Holub.

Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback has signed an emergency declaration for all of Kansas as a winter weather system moves across the state. The measure allows state agencies to assist local governments as needed during the winter blast. The first wave of the system started to die down Wednesday afternoon, but more inclement weather is expected early Thursday morning. Brownback announced that all state offices will be closed Feb. 21 in anticipation of deteriorating conditions.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) - Sedgwick and Saline are among the Kansas counties that could potentially gain thousands of jobs from alternative energy business. That's what a report written by the Washington, D.C.-based Renewable Energy Policy Project says. The findings were released Thursday in Wichita at a news conference announcing the formation of the Kansas Blue Green Alliance, a coalition of state labor, environmental and farm groups. The study says Kansas could create 11,500 jobs and draw $2 billion in investment in renewable energy.

The Kansas Foodbank kicked off a new program aimed at helping seniors.  The 'Bob Box' officially started Friday morning in Wichita. Volunteers assembled 'Bob Boxes' and filled them with food and other necessities for seniors.  The box is sponsored by Bob Dole.  It's aimed to help seniors who often have to choose between paying for  medicine and buying food The 'Bob Box' will be distribuned in 24 Kansas counties by the end of the year....

A grand opening celebrates Wichita State University's expanded dental program. Dental residents are usually working in the hallways, but Monday they showed their workspace off. "Before I got here, it was a work in progress," explained Dr. Dexter Woods, Advanced Education in General Dentistry program director. "This has been a labor of love, emphasize labor, emphasize love. " Dr. Woods hopes the young dentists who train here will stay and work in Kansas. "If you look a the map, many graduates go to Kansas City, but we need people in Garden City, in Medicine Lodge and those places," he explained.

Kansas Governor Sam Brownback announced Thursday night that Executive Branch state offices in all 105 Kansas counties will delay opening until 10:00 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 22 nd . “The snowstorm that has gripped our state for the last 48 hours will be winding down tonight.  But our state, county and city public works crews will need time to continue to clear the roads as well as parking lots and sidewalks.  This delay will give them time to...

Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback has signed an emergency declaration for all of Kansas as a winter weather system moves across the state. The measure allows state agencies to assist local governments as needed during the winter blast. The first wave of the system started to die down Wednesday afternoon, but more inclement weather is expected early Thursday morning. Brownback announced that all state offices will be closed Feb. 21 in anticipation of deteriorating conditions.

The Kansas Foodbank kicked off a new program aimed at helping seniors.  The 'Bob Box' officially started Friday morning in Wichita. Volunteers assembled 'Bob Boxes' and filled them with food and other necessities for seniors.  The box is sponsored by Bob Dole.  It's aimed to help seniors who often have to choose between paying for  medicine and buying food The 'Bob Box' will be distribuned in 24 Kansas counties by the end of the year....

The new computer system installed at tag offices across the state continues to be a big headache. "They keep shutting off, and they have to wait for them to get back on," one customer says. Since our last story about this, it looked as though most of the problems had been fixed.  Sedgwick County Treasurer Linda Kizzire says the system had been working fine the last several days.  But she says late on Thursday problems started happening again just in time for what is typically the busiest time day of the month.

Sedgwick County Commissioners got their first look at the new computer system for the tag office Tuesday. The upgrade should make your trip to get a title or registration shorter. The new system will also cut down on paperwork, which should save the county money and time. Plus law enforcement will have better access to the information in their patrol cars, data they say will help them during traffic stops. It was scheduled to go into place this December, but the state says it may take longer to get the upgrades into all 105 Kansas counties.

A grand opening celebrates Wichita State University's expanded dental program. Dental residents are usually working in the hallways, but Monday they showed their workspace off. "Before I got here, it was a work in progress," explained Dr. Dexter Woods, Advanced Education in General Dentistry program director. "This has been a labor of love, emphasize labor, emphasize love. " Dr. Woods hopes the young dentists who train here will stay and work in Kansas. "If you look a the map, many graduates go to Kansas City, but we need people in Garden City, in Medicine Lodge and those places," he explained.

This year's drought has prompted the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to designated 20 Kansas counties as natural disaster areas. Those counties are: Allen Cherokee                      Greenwood                   Neosho Anderson                      Coffey                          Labette                         ...

Because their families can't live without food, The United Methodist Open Door Ministry is Debra Collins and Tina Steward's lifeline. "I wouldn't have any food if it wasn't for the food bank," Collins says. "I'm searching for a job right now," Steward says.  "I'm a single mom with two children and I don't receive child support. " Every day the lobby at Open Door's food center is packed with hungry people trying to survive the bad economy.  But next year there will be less food to go around.  FEMA is cutting off nearly all Kansas charities from direct emergency food and shelter assistance--assistance they have been receiving every year for decades.

Ten more Kansas counties are now participating in the Rural Opportunity Zone student loan repayment program. Barber, Graham, Hamilton, Kearny, Mitchell, Morton, Ness, Stanton, Trego and Wichita Counties join 10 other counties already partnering with the state in the loan repayment program. The other counties are Greeley, Hodgeman, Kingman, Lane, Pratt, Rooks, Russell, Scott, Wallace and Woodson Counties. As part of the program, people who move to one of these counties can have 20 percent of their student loans repaid by the county and state.

U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has granted Kansas' Governor Sam Brownback's request for the USDA to issue a drought disaster declaration for 21 Kansas counties as well as 18 contiguous counties. “This is good news for farmers in Kansas Counties experiencing production losses caused by drought, wildfires, and high winds.  I appreciate the Secretary and USDA’s quick response to my request,” Gov. Brownback said in a statement. “This is worse than previous droughts I've seen during a lifetime in agriculture.  It already is affecting how farmers and ranchers are doing business – and that in turn will quickly impact local businesses and communities.  It will take a great deal of time and rain to reverse the impact of this drought.” Declaring these county agricultural disasters makes qualified farmers in both primary and contiguous counties eligible for emergency loans administered by USDA’s Farm Service Agency, as well as any other aid that may be available through the Supplemental Revenue Assistance payments (SURE)