DENVER (AP) — Colorado officials have cleared the language of a proposed ballot measure that would establish the nation’s first legal limits on buying smartphones for children.

Backers of the move to forbid the sale of smartphones to children younger than 13 would now need about 300,000 voter signatures for the proposal to make the 2018 ballot.

The ban would require cellphone retailers to ask customers about the age of the primary user of a smartphone and submit monthly reports to the Colorado Department of Revenue on adhering to the requirement.

Retailers who sell a phone for use by a youngster could be fined $500, after a warning.

The campaign is being led by Denver-area dad and doctor Tim Farnum.

Farnum said he was inspired to make the push after watching his own kids struggle with the psychological effects of always having a device in hand.

Democratic state Sen. John Kefalas said he understands the reasoning behind the proposed law. But he said that it would overstep the government’s role.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends restricting screen time to no more than an hour a day of high-quality programming until age 6, after which parents should set consistent time limits and make sure electronic devices don’t take time away from sleep or physical activity.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Jerry Moran, a Kansas Republican, says President Donald Trump’s new Cuba policy closes off a potentially lucrative market for American farmers.

In a statement Friday, Moran says “putting America first means exporting what we produce to countries across the globe.” He says he remains focused on finding ways to “increase trade with Cuba rather than cut off relationships that have the potential to create new jobs, bring in revenue and boost our national economy.”

Moran, whose state has almost 46 million acres devoted to farm operations, has backed legislation to restore trade with Cuba. He’s also a co-sponsor of legislation that would eliminate restrictions on travel to Cuba by American citizens and legal residents.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Back-to-back years of record wildfires in Kansas could end up costing as much as $100 million.

Kansas Department of Agriculture and Forest Service reports show that damages so far exceed $80 million.

That includes roughly $50 million to cover about 3,700 miles of burned fences and as many as 8,000 dead cattle from wildfires this year along the Kansas-Oklahoma border.

But those numbers don’t include the loss of homes and other structures, such as barns and garages, or power lines.

The Wichita Eagle reports the department’s data also doesn’t include the $3 million spent on firefighting or the thousands of hours of lost wages from volunteer firefighters.

Some lawmakers are asking to audit Kansas’ firefighting system to highlight how the state can improve and provide necessary resources.

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — General Motors has sparked concern about layoffs after announcing plans to eliminate one shift at its plant in Kansas City, Kansas.

GM spokeswoman Mary Padilla tells the Kansas City Star that the company will reduce the number of production shifts at its Fairfax Assembly Plant from three to two beginning in late September.

She didn’t know the exact number of layoffs expected. The plant currently has more than 3,000 employees.

Padilla says the decision is due to declining market demand for mid-sized cars. She says the market is favoring crossovers and trucks over passenger cars.

The announcement came two days after GM made public that the plant would extend its summer shutdown from two weeks to five because of decreased sales of the Chevrolet Malibu, built at the plant.

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — The University of Missouri System president is laying out plans to improve the Columbia campus’ enrollment and public image.

The Columbia Daily Tribune reports that President Mun Choi spoke to the Regional Economic Development Board of Directors on Wednesday.

Board member Fred Parry says the university’s enrollment decline and public image problems can be traced back to the November 2015 protests involving the university’s students, faculty and football team.

Choi says the university should target high achievers, including National Merit Scholars and semifinalists, to increase graduation rates and raise its profile as a top university.

He also says the university’s goal for enrollment should be about 5,000 new freshmen and about 1,000 community college transfers per year on the Columbia campus.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback has allowed a bill designed to keep concealed guns out of public hospitals and mental health centers to become law without his signature.

The governor acted Thursday and broke with gun-rights allies. The new law allows a permanent ban on concealed guns at state hospitals, other public hospitals, community mental health centers, publicly owned nursing homes and indigent clinics.

It also allows the University of Kansas Health System and the university’s medical school in Kansas City, Kansas, to ban concealed guns.

A 2013 state law required public buildings to allow concealed guns if those buildings lacked heightened security such as guards or metal detectors. Universities and public health facilities received a four-year exemption due to expire July 1.

The new exemption does not apply to universities.

FORT RILEY, Kan. (AP) — Fort Riley officials are hopeful a $37 million program to conserve energy will save the Army post $92 million during the next 22 years.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports construction began Tuesday as part of 15 energy conservation measures for the fort’s 280 buildings.

Michael Witmer, with the fort’s public works department, says the plan is to reduce energy usage by 25 percent by 2025.

The project will be funded over the 22 years by a third party and doesn’t require taxpayer dollars. The money from the energy savings will help pay the contractor back for its capital investment and their operations.

The project includes expanding and upgrading central plants and energy management controls; performing heating, ventilation and air conditioning work; lighting upgrades; and improving boiler and water conservation measures.

SALINA, Kan. (AP) — A southern white rhino that was among the first animals at the Rolling Hills Zoo in Salina has died.

KWCH-TV reports that the rhino, named “Milly,” had to be euthanized Wednesday because of her advanced age and declining health.

Zoo Curator Brenda Gunder said in a Facebook post that Milly had been “finding it extremely difficult to stand up for long periods of time” and that “her quality of life was deteriorating.”

Milly arrived as part of the White Rhinoceros Species Survival Plan in 1996. She was born in South Africa before being transferred to the U.S.

The zoo says rhinos live up to 35 years in the wild and up to 40 years in captivity. Milly was believed to be at least 46.

BASEHOR, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas man has been convicted in a crash that killed two relatives on the same day the three were supposed to be groomsmen in a wedding.

The Kansas City reports that Leavenworth County jurors found 22-year-old William Mathew Wilson, of Basehor, guilty of one count of involuntary manslaughter in the deaths of 29-year-old Jesse Aldrich and 34-year-old Justin Wilson.

William Wilson was driving a pickup truck that left a road and struck a tree around 5 a.m. on June 13, 2015. His brother was supposed to get married later that Saturday at a winery in Basehor. But authorities say the wedding was postponed after the crash.

County Attorney Todd Thompson described the case as a “horrible tragedy all the way around.”

Sentencing is set for July 21.