JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri’s Republican House Speaker Elijah Haahr says a bill to ban most abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected is among top priorities for the session.

But Democratic House Minority Leader Crystal Quade on Thursday warned that enacting the bill could mean the loss of federal Medicaid money.

Legislative researchers estimate that could amount to more than $7 billion in lost funding next fiscal year.

Republican Rep. Nick Schroer’s bill includes an exception for medical emergencies, but not rape or incest.

Social Services Department officials told legislative researchers that not including those exceptions could conflict with federal law and put funding at risk.

Schroer questioned whether the bill would put Missouri out of compliance. But he says he’s willing to talk about ways to ensure Missouri doesn’t lose that money.

By JIM MCLEAN

Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly and Kansas Department of Transportation officials outlined plans Wednesday for putting a state highway program abandoned by former Republican Gov. Sam Brownback back on track.

Years of lean budgets prompted annual raids of the state highway fund. With more than $2 billion siphoned off since 2011, it became known as the “bank of KDOT.”

“By reducing transfers from the state highway fund, we move closer to closing the bank of KDOT,” Kelly said at a news conference staged at the transportation agency.

Kelly said her plan to stop diverting highway dollars would pave the way for restarting T-WORKS. The 10-year transportation program was launched in 2010, but stalled a few years later when Brownback’s tax cuts tanked the state budget.

The new governor’s proposed budget reduces KDOT transfers by $160 million in the coming budget year with a goal of phasing them out entirely by 2023.

“To be clear, we still have a long way to go in order to get our transportation system where we want it to be,” Kelly said. “But this is an important incremental step.”

The immediate infusion of cash, said KDOT Secretary Julie Lorenz, would allow the agency to resume work on four of the delayed T-WORKS projects.

Work to expand a section of US-54 in Seward County and modernize a stretch of US-169 in Anderson County would start this fall. Work to modernize a portion of US-281 in Russell County and to expand a section of US-50 in Lyon County would begin in the spring of 2020.

Those projects are first in line, Lorenz said, because they are, “the only four we have ready to go immediately.”

Another 17 projects remain on the unfinished list.

The loss of funding made it impossible for the agency to complete all the preliminary work needed to get those shovel ready, Lorenz said.

“We need assurance that we’re going to continue to have stable, reliable funding so that we can continue to push forward to complete the designs and acquire the right-of-way for the remaining T-WORKS projects,” she said.

A special legislative task force on transportation recently issued its recommendations. At the top of the list was increasing funding for the “heavy maintenance” work that KDOT does to preserve roads and bridges.

The agency needs $500 million a year to keep up with the needs on the system, the secretary said. It currently has only $350 million, but Kelly is proposing an additional $50 million in her budget.

That’s enough, Lorenz said, to maintain another 200 miles of roadway.

Sen. Carolyn McGinn, the chair of the task force and the Kansas Senate’s budget writing committee, said the funding restoration proposed by the governor are the first steps in a long rebuilding process.

“Today is a new day,” said McGinn, a Wichita Republican. “I’m excited that we’re moving forward.”

In addition to the four major projects and the additional maintenance, the plan outlined Wednesday includes money to help cities maintain the state highways that pass through them.

That’s welcome news to Donald Roberts, the mayor of Edgerton, a Kansas City suburb that serves as a freight distribution hub for railroads and trucking companies.

“We’ve got to start somewhere,” Roberts said, emphasizing the need to get KDOT’s maintenance funding back to adequate levels.

“That’s a ‘pay me now’ or ‘pay me a lot more later’ situation,” he said.

Jim McLean is the senior correspondent for the Kansas News Service. You can reach him on Twitter @jmcleanks.

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — Students in suburban Kansas City have sent thousands of sweet notes of encouragement to students in Parkland, Florida, on the first anniversary of a shooting rampage that left 17 people dead.

Missy Pint, of Lenexa, Kansas, began planning the surprise weeks ago. She encouraged students at several schools to write words of encouragement on a candy label for “The Sweet Note Project.”

Pint flew this week to Florida, where she and a friend spent 18 hours applying labels to 400 pounds of chocolate. They delivered about 3,500 chocolate bars Tuesday to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Pint saved 2,000 for the Kansas City community.

One note read: “You are brave.” Another charmingly misspelled message proclaimed: “Your a treashore to the world.”

SALINE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating an alleged violent attack and have made an arrest.

On Tuesday, a 19-year-old who is pregnant, had gone to visit 38-year-old Gerad Herrera at the Budget King Motel, 809 N. Broadway, in Salina, according to Salina Police Lieutenant Jim Feldman.

The woman told police that during the visit, Herrera became irate and repeatedly beat her and strangled her multiple times. Additionally, she reported that sexual acts took place against her will, Herrera shave off some of her hair and at one point threatened to kill her, according to Feldman..

On Wednesday morning, Herrera had to leave the motel and took the woman with him. She was able to get away from Herrera and made her way to a relative’s house, according to Feldman. The relative then took the woman to the Salina Police Department.

After reporting the incident, the woman went to Salina Regional Health Center to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries, according to Feldman.

Later Wednesday, police were able to make contact with Herrera at the motel, and after a short scuffle, he was placed under arrest and is being held on requested charges that include Rape, Aggravated sodomy, Aggravated domestic battery, Aggravated battery, Criminal restraint, Criminal threat, Felony obstruction, Possession of methamphetamine, Possession of marijuana and Possession of drug paraphernalia.

Herrera has a previous drug conviction, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.

 

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas school district is taking steps to respond to two students bringing guns to Lawrence High School in the last week.

USD 497 spokeswoman Julie Boyle said Tuesday night that the district had activated its Crisis Support Team at Lawrence High. She said the district also will have more adults present during late arrival and has asked for increased police presence at the school this week.

School staff is being asked to identify students who need more counseling and a gun safety campaign will be at basketball games on Feb. 19.

Boyle says no one was endangered during the two incidents, one on Feb. 6 and the other Tuesday. Three other gun-related incidents were reported this calendar year at Lawrence High and Free State.

KANSAS CITY (AP) — A 42-year-old man has admitted that he traveled to Kansas City in an effort to have sex with a 7-year-old girl.

Ryan Edward Mausner, of Basalt, Colorado, pleaded guilty Wednesday to enticement of a minor.

Prosecutors say Mausner thought he was communicating with the girl’s mother over several months in private chat sessions during which he said he wanted to have sex with the mother and daughter. Mausner was actually talking to an undercover agent.

Mausner was arrested after he flew to Kansas City in May 2018 intended to engage in criminal sexual activity with the child victim.

LINCOLN COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating a suspect for alleged stalking.

On February 6, detectives with the Lincoln County Missouri Sheriff’s Office began investigating a criminal complaint of stalking, according to a media release.

Employees with the Driver’s License and Vehicle Registration Office, in Troy, reported 34-year-old Timothy Howe, of Troy, frequents the office often asking for duplicate titles, abandoned vehicle forms and other vehicle registration related items.

Over a period of a few months, the victims said Howe would buy them pizzas anonymously and contacting them through social media under a false name. The victims said Howe’s vehicle is spotted driving through parking lot at all times of the day. One victim asked Howe not to buy her pizzas anymore so he bought them for everyone in the office, except for her.

In November 2018, Howe left a large amount of cash on the countertop saying, “Go get yourself a manicure or pedicure” and walkout at the behest of the victim.  The office manager reported the incident to the Compliance Investigation Bureau (CIB). The CIB informed Howe he could no longer use the Troy License Office.

Shortly after, Howe was able to obtain one of the victim’s cell number and he sent her a Merry Christmas text and other odd text messages. One victim stated Howe drove past her twice while she gassed her vehicle and felt unsafe around him.

Detectives observed Howe driving his vehicle near the Troy License Office and took him into custody.  Howe is currently charged with First Degree Stalking and three counts of First Degree Harassment.  Howe is currently housed in the Lincoln County Jail under a $20,000 cash only bond with no contact with the victims, GPS monitoring if released and no entry or staying on premises of 850 East Cherry St., Troy, MO.  Other conditions of bond may apply.

NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — A recently unsealed court document says a former contestant on both “American Idol” and “Fear Factor” worked as a courier for a drug ring and was trying to deliver nearly 2 pounds of fentanyl when she was arrested last year.

32-year-old Antonella Barba was back in custody Monday, following a federal indictment charging her with conspiracy to distribute cocaine, heroin and fentanyl. Barba was originally arrested last October in Norfolk Virginia.

She was previously charged with shoplifting in New York and has a felony marijuana case pending in Kansas.

Barba, of New Jersey, reached the top 16 on “American Idol” in 2007, the year Jordin Sparks won. She competed on “Fear Factor” in 2012.

Her public defender didn’t immediately respond to the newspaper’s request for comment.