LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Lawrence city officials are trying to determine if they have to allow skydiving at the city’s airport now that the Federal Aviation Administration has determined that three areas could accommodate the activity.
The Lawrence Journal World reports that city attorneys are looking into the issue.
City Commissioner Mike Amyx says he wants to know what the rules are.
City officials are concerned about allowing skydiving at the airport because it could interfere with other businesses.
But the city doesn’t want to jeopardize the grants the FAA provides, which account for 90 percent of the funding for improvements at the airport.
Skydiving operator and Lawrence resident William McCauley says he believes skydiving wouldn’t cause problems. He has proposed running a skydiving business at the airport.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kansas officials are considering building an airport in Johnson County to compete with Kansas City International.
Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback told the Kansas City Star the state is exploring the possibility of building a major airport on the Kansas side of the metro area.
Previous talks about renovating Kansas City International and combining all its gates into a single terminal have stalled.
Airlines like the idea of a single terminal because it would be more efficient, but many people who fly out of the airport like the current multiple-terminal design because it is easy to get into and out of.
Several challenges remain for the idea of a Kansas airport because getting plans approved for a new airport often takes years.
Building a new airport is also extremely expensive.
ADEL, Iowa (AP) — Iowa election officials say nearly 6,000 Dallas County absentee ballots went uncounted from the Nov. 8 election because of mistakes by local election officials.
A letter from the Iowa Secretary of State’s office says a total of 5,842 ballots went uncounted, but the office acknowledges the missed votes did not change the outcome of any election on the ballot in the central Iowa county. The office says local officials tallied the votes, but failed to upload those tallies to software that compiles vote reports.
The omission of the ballots wasn’t discovered until Feb. 1.
In the letter to Dallas County officials, Deputy Secretary of State Carol Olson said while the omissions were due to mistakes, “it is chilling to contemplate the possibility that winners could easily have been affected.”
An HOK Image of where a new MLS stadium would be built in downtown St. Louis. Photo courtesy Missourinet.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — A circuit judge has approved the city’s plans to put a measure on the April 4 ballot asking voters to approve funding for a new Major League Soccer stadium in St. Louis.
Judge Michael Mullen issued the ruling Thursday, about a week after city aldermen voted to place the issue on the April ballot.
Mullen also ordered a half-cent sales tax increase to fund MetroLink expansion be included on the same ballot.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports supporters of the proposed $200 million soccer stadium need both measures to be approved. The MetroLink sales tax increase would trigger a corresponding increase in the city’s business use tax on out-of-state purchases. Revenue from that increase would fund most of the city’s $60 million commitment to the stadium.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A legislative audit has found that Kansas school districts could save millions of dollars by consolidating health insurance plans, but the change would shift costs to teachers and other staff.
The audit released Wednesday said using a single statewide health insurance plan could save the reviewed districts a total of $63 million a year.
But some lawmakers say $24 million of that amount would come from transferring insurance costs from districts to workers. The audit said consolidation would also reduce insurance coverage in 98 of the 101 districts sampled in the report.
The audit report also says the aggressive consolidation timeline called for in Gov. Sam Brownback’s budget plan would make the change difficult. The report says more time is needed to potentially search for vendors and wait for current insurance contracts to expire.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Latest on the travel ban imposed by President Donald Trump (all times local):
4:50 p.m.
President Donald Trump says a federal appeals court ruling against reinstating his refugee and immigration order is a “political decision.”
He says the “security of our country is at stake” and he looks forward to “seeing them in court.” He did not specify what his administration’s next legal steps would be following Thursday’s ruling.
Trump says he doesn’t believe the decision undercuts his presidency and says his administration will “win the case.”
Trump made a brief, impromptu appearance in the West Wing following the decision. His comments were recorded by the network pool at the White House.
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4:50 p.m.
Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson says President Donald Trump’s immigration ban has “created needless chaos” for children, families, students and others.
Swanson reacted Thursday after a federal appeals court in San Francisco refused to reinstate the ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries. Minnesota and Washington state sued to block the ban.
In a statement, Swanson says the Trump administration could have avoided the lawsuit by taking a “more deliberate approach.” Instead, the Democrat says Trump’s executive order was “haphazard in its approach and roll-out” and “not properly vetted” by Congress and federal agencies.
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4:10 p.m.
The U.S. Justice Department has responded to a federal appeals court’s refusal to reinstate President Donald Trump travel ban, saying it “is reviewing the decision and considering its options.”
It’s the first day on the job for new Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who was sworn in at the White House earlier Thursday by Vice President Mike Pence.
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4:10 p.m.
Washington state’s attorney general says President Donald Trump should withdraw his “flawed, rushed and dangerous” ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim nations.
Bob Ferguson also said in a statement that if Trump doesn’t pull the executive order, he “will continue to hold him accountable to the Constitution.”
Washington state and Minnesota sued over the ban. A federal appeals court has refused to reinstate it.
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4 p.m.
Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee has responded to President Donald Trump’s tweet after a federal appeals court refused to reinstate the travel ban.
Trump tweeted: “SEE YOU IN COURT, THE SECURITY OF OUR NATION IS AT STAKE!” In response, Inslee said, “Mr. President, we just saw you in court, and we beat you.”
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4 p.m.
The American Civil Liberties Union is hailing a federal appeals court’s refusal to reinstate President Donald Trump’s travel ban.
Omar Jadwat, director of the organization’s Immigrants’ Rights Project, said, “The government’s erratic and chaotic attempts to enforce this unconstitutional ban have taken a tremendous toll on innocent individuals, our country’s values, and our standing in the world.”
He said the group would keep fighting the executive order until it’s permanently dismantled.
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3:55 p.m.
David Miliband, president of the International Rescue Committee that helps refugees resettle, said he was heartened by a federal appeals court’s ruling refusing to reinstate President Donald Trump’s travel ban.
In a statement, Miliband said, “We are grateful that we can get back to work resettling refugees who have fled the terrors of war and violence, while also caring for those who remain trapped in conflict zones.”
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3:55 p.m.
A law professor says the “million-dollar question” is whether the Trump administration would appeal a federal appeals court’s refusal to reinstate the travel ban to the U.S. Supreme Court.
That could run the risk of having only eight justices to hear the case, which could produce a tie and leave the lower-court ruling in place.
Josh Blackman, a professor at South Texas College of Law in Houston, said, “There’s a distinct risk in moving this too quickly. But we’re not in a normal time, and Donald Trump is very rash. He may trump, pardon the figure of speech, the normal rule.”
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3:50 p.m.
Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee says the federal appeals court’s refusal to reinstate President Donald Trump’s travel ban “is a victory for Washington state and indeed the entire country.”
In a statement, the Democrat said the decision emphasizes that no one is above the law, not even the president.
Washington state and Minnesota sued over the ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries.
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4:45 p.m.
President Donald Trump has tweeted, “SEE YOU IN COURT” after a federal appeals court refused to reinstate his ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim nations.
Trump’s also says in the tweet that “THE SECURITY OF OUR NATION IS AT STAKE!”
In a unanimous decision, the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower-court ruling that suspended the ban and allowed previously barred travelers to enter the U.S.
Thursday’s ruling marked another legal setback for the new administration’s immigration policy.
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3:40 p.m.
After a federal appeals court refused to reinstate President Donald Trump’s travel ban, he took to social media. Trump tweeted: “SEE YOU IN COURT, THE SECURITY OF OUR NATION IS AT STAKE!”
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3:40 p.m.
A federal appeals court says the U.S. government hadn’t pointed to any evidence that anyone from the countries named in the executive order had committed a “terrorist attack” in the U.S.
The panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said, “Rather than present evidence to explain the need for the executive order, the government has taken the position that we must not review its decision at all. We disagree, as explained above.”
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3:40 p.m.
A federal appeals court has noted that there are compelling public interests on both sides of President Donald Trump’s travel ban, which is one reason it has generated so much scrutiny.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said, “On the one hand, the public has a powerful interest in national security and in the ability of an elected president to enact policies. And on the other, the public also has an interest in free flow of travel, in avoiding separation of families, and in freedom from discrimination.”
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3:35 p.m.
Three federal judges say the U.S. government presented no evidence to explain the urgent need for President Donald Trump’s executive order to take effect immediately.
The panel from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals says courts have the authority to review presidential orders on immigration and national security.
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3:35 p.m.
Three federal judges have unanimously rejected the Justice Department’s arguments that the president’s authority on immigration policy is his discretion alone, with no authority for review by the courts.
The panel from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said there’s no precedent to support that notion, which “runs contrary to the fundamental structure of our constitutional democracy.”
The judges noted that Washington state and Minnesota had raised serious allegations about religious discrimination in President Donald Trump’s ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries.
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3:30 p.m.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has rejected the Donald Trump administration’s claim that the court didn’t have the authority to review the president’s executive order.
The panel of three judges noted that Washington state and Minnesota had raised serious allegations about religious discrimination. Their decision was unanimous.
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3:25 p.m.
The three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals says Washington state proved it had the legal right to bring the lawsuit over President Donald Trump’s travel ban by alleging its universities would suffer harm. That was one of the questions that the judges considered.
Universities have complained about students and faculty getting stranded overseas.
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3:20 p.m.
A federal appeals court says the U.S. government hasn’t shown a likelihood it will succeed in appealing to reinstate President Donald Trump’s travel ban. It also hasn’t shown that failure to reinstate the ban would cause irreparable injury.
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3:15 p.m.
A federal appeals court in San Francisco has refused to reinstate President Donald Trump’s ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim nations.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday wouldn’t block a lower-court ruling that suspended the ban and allowed previously barred travelers to enter the U.S. An appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court is possible.
U.S. District Judge James Robart in Seattle issued a temporary restraining order halting the ban last week after Washington state and Minnesota sued. The Justice Department appealed to the 9th Circuit.
Government lawyers argued that the ban was a “lawful exercise” of the president’s authority and that the seven countries have raised terrorism concerns.
The states said Trump’s executive order unconstitutionally blocked entry based on religion.
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2:10 p.m.
A federal appeals court in San Francisco is set to issue its ruling in the legal fight over whether to reinstate President Donald Trump’s ban on travelers from seven predominantly Muslim nations.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals announced that it will release its decision before the end of the business day Thursday in California.
The court is deciding whether to block a lower-court ruling that suspended the ban and allowed previously barred travelers to enter the U.S. An appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court is possible.
U.S. District Judge James Robart in Seattle issued a temporary restraining order halting the ban last week after Washington state and Minnesota sued.
The administration said the seven nations — Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen — have raised terrorism concerns. The states argued that the ban targets Muslims.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas Natural Resources Conservation Service is taking applications for financial assistance for those affected by wildfires in March of 2016 that burned more than 400,000 acres in Kansas and Oklahoma.
The service says it will offer $2 million in assistance over four years to help with brush management, firebreaks, prescribed grazing and prescribed burning.
The agency’s offices are taking applications for this year’s funds until March 17.
Monty Breneman, with the Kansas agency, says if the demand exceeds the initial allocation, the state conservationist will ask for more funding.
The fire damaged more than 40 structures, miles of fencing and killed hundreds of cattle.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — American Airlines says a threat that forced one of its planes to be diverted to St. Louis has been deemed “non-credible” by law enforcement and the flight will continue to Phoenix.
Flight 534 left Columbus, Ohio, and was heading for Arizona when it landed in Lambert Airport at 8:14 a.m. Thursday. Neither American Airlines nor the FBI would say what prompted the diversion.
In an emailed statement, American said, “The incident was deemed non-credible by law enforcement,” and that the flight will resume shortly.
The airline previously said the security check was “out of an abundance of caution.”
Lambert spokesman Jeff Lea says the 113 passengers and five crew were taken by bus to the terminal while the plane and bags were checked by bomb-sniffing dogs.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Missouri House has passed a bill requiring union members to provide written consent for union dues to be automatically withdrawn from paychecks each year.
In a 95-60 vote Thursday, the House approved a Republican-backed bill that proponents say will give employees more freedom to opt out from unions if they don’t like the services.
Opponents argue the legislation creates unnecessary regulations that shift power away from workers to employers. The bill now moves to the Senate.
Similar legislation passed through both houses last year. It was vetoed by former Gov. Jay Nixon, a Democrat.
The so-called paycheck protection bill is the most recent step in a Republican push to regulate labor unions. On Monday, Gov. Eric Greitens signed so-called right to work legislation banning mandatory union fees.
CANNON BALL, N.D. (AP) — One of two American Indian tribes fighting the Dakota Access oil pipeline has filed a legal challenge to try to block its completion.
The Cheyenne River Sioux worries a pipeline leak could contaminate its drinking water.
The tribe filed a legal challenge in federal court in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. The Army on Wednesday gave Energy Transfer Partners formal permission to lay pipe under a Missouri River reservoir in North Dakota. That’s the last big chunk of construction for the $3.8 billion pipeline to carry North Dakota oil to Illinois. The work is underway.
The Dallas-based pipeline developer says it will be safe.
President Donald Trump signed an executive action in January instructing the Army Corps of Engineers to advance pipeline construction. The tribes argue that violates treaty rights.
The Standing Rock Sioux tribe has also vowed to fight the construction in court.
