Kansas

by Associated Press (TOPEKA, Kan.) Tuition and fees at Kansas' state universities will rise again this fall.  The state Board of Regents on Thursday approved tuition and fee increases proposed by the universities. Most of the regents said the schools need the money to maintain their academic programs. For full-time, undergraduate in-state students, the increases will range from 4.1 percent at Fort Hays State University to 8.2 percent at the University of Kansas. However, many students at the University of Kansas will not pay the increase because they are part of a program that freezes tuition for four years.

The state of Kansas gives its official website a facelift.  Kansas.gov ( http://www.kansas.gov ) now has a new look and feel that the state believes will be easier to navigate. “Kansas is considered the birthplace of eGovernment.  For nearly 20 years, the state's information portal, Kansas.gov, has provided citizens and businesses with efficient electronic access to Kansas government information and services,” Governor Sam Brownback said in a press release. “Today the site receives more than four million page views annually.  This new redesign will allow visitors to easily and more efficiently interact with Kansas government.” Website highlights include: Find It!

Any matchup between Missouri and Kansas is intense. Their rivalry traces back to the Civil War, spawning legendary tales, driving wedges between families and growing more bitter with time. The schools can't even agree on the series record. So this one could be particularly interesting. With Missouri heading off to the SEC after this season, Saturday's showdown at Arrowhead Stadium could be the last one for quite a while. The Tigers have expressed a desire to keep the rivalry going, but Kansas - stung by its rival's defection from the Big 12 - has said it's not really interested.

Tyshawn Taylor and Connor Teahan scored 13 points each, and No. 17 Kansas emptied its bench during an 89-34 blowout of overmatched, undersized Howard on Thursday night. Jeff Withey added 10 points, and Thomas Robinson had nine points and seven rebounds while playing a team-high 22 minutes for the Jayhawks (9-3), who opened the game on a 15-2 run and never looked back in one of their most lopsided victories in the Bill Self era. The 34 points scored by the Bison (4-10) were the fewest allowed by Kansas since a 98-31 win over Alcorn State on Dec. 2, 2009, and the second-fewest since Self took over before the 2003 season.

The 2012 legislative session was supposed to wrap up Friday the 10th, but state lawmakers will return to Topeka tomorrow to resume work on unfinished bills.  Negotiations from the House and Senate will tackle education funding, pay raises for state workers, and aid to local governments to keep property taxes in check. Lawmakers also need to finalize the state's 14.1 billion-dollar budget. 

Radioactive material from the Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan has been detected in the United States.  The Environmental Protection Agency says it was expected, and the levels are below levels that would trigger public health concerns. You can track radiation detected across the country through this map . There is a monitor station in Wichita.   And check out this chart that shows everyday exposure to radiation.  

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) - Kansas has set a record this year for the number of people casting advance ballots - and not all of them have been counted. The secretary of state's office said 283,294 mailed advance ballots had been received as of Monday morning. It said it still was tallying how many people had done advance voting in person. By comparison, the previous record was in 2004, with 245,680 people doing advance voting either by mail or in person. Advance voting started in 1996.

The U.S. Housing & Urban Development department announced Kansas communities will recieve nearly $6 millio0n to support community development and produce more affordable housing. The funds will also be used to help find homes for individuals and families living on the street. HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan says " Now, more than ever, these grants promote neighborhood development, produce affordable housing, and help extremely low-income persons find their place in their communities.

Time is running out in this 90-day session for Kansas legislative leaders to approve a state-wide redistricting plan. The plan would draw new maps for the House, Senate and four U.S. House districts. A map passed by the Senate was killed by the House. Now a house panel is looking to draw the map for the Senate, breaking the tradition that each chamber handles its own district boundaries. There is also a federal lawsuit slowing progress further. A Johnson County woman is asking for a judge to approve maps that are favored by GOP conservatives.