Equifest of Kansas is moving to Salina.
The Kansas Horse Council has announced that the 23rd year of Equifest of Kansas — the premier all breed horse fair and exposition — will be March 6, 7, and 8, 2020, in Salina’s Tony’s Pizza Events Center and the Saline County Livestock and Expo Center.
For more information, go to www.equifestofks.com.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri Gov. Mike Parson is seeking a major disaster declaration in response to severe flooding in March.
Today we requested that President Donald Trump approve a major disaster declaration for Missouri to provide federal assistance to a total of 13 counties in response to devastating flooding that began March 11. https://t.co/z0O45Y1tbQ
— Governor Mike Parson (@GovParsonMO) April 24, 2019
Parson’s office said Wednesday that the Republican governor is asking President Donald Trump for federal assistance for 13 counties in northwest and southeast Missouri: Andrew, Atchison, Buchanan, Carroll, Chariton, Holt, Mississippi, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Perry, Platte, Ray, and Ste. Genevieve.
Additional counties may be added later after still-high rivers recede and damage can be assessed.
A disaster declaration would allow local governments and qualifying nonprofits in the impacted counties to seek federal assistance for costs such as fixing damaged roads, bridges and other public infrastructure.
Parson also seeks individual assistance for Andrew, Atchison, Buchanan, Holt and Platte counties, which would let victims get federal help for temporary housing and other flood-related costs.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Missouri medical board has revoked the license of a pediatric surgeon more than two years after he was arrested in New Mexico on child pornography charges.
Guy Rosenschein is behind bar while awaiting trial. Federal agents arrested him in November 2016 after serving a search warrant. Besides finding child porn, they discovered a 16-year-old former patient, wearing only his underwear, in Rosenschein’s bed. Both said nothing sexual occurred between them.
Rosenschein’s attorneys didn’t return a message seeking comment.
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — A Columbia homeowner jailed for 10 days for contempt of court for not complying with an order to remove structures from his property could find himself behind bars again.
The Western District Court of Appeals upheld on Tuesday the contempt ruling against Seth Reynolds for failure to abide by a 2017 court order to remove a shed, fence and satellite dish.
Reynolds was denied a variance in 2015 to the county’s setback and easement regulations after construction was complete.
Circuit Judge Jodie Asel ordered Reynolds jailed indefinitely until the structures were gone. He was out on bond pending his appeal.
Reynolds argued he was unable to demolish the outbuilding because of the cost and difficulty. The county argued he was financially capable of doing so.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Gov. Laura Kelly is creating an advisory committee that aims to ensure every person in Kansas is counted in the 2020 Census.
The governor signed an executive order Tuesday that charged the committee with sparking public engagement in Kansas ahead of the official count.
This morning, through Executive Order, I launched an initiative to make every Kansan count. I established the Kansas Complete Count Committee (CCC) to ensure that every Kansan is represented in the 2020 Census. pic.twitter.com/ktdm7ZZAGd
— Governor Laura Kelly (@GovLauraKelly) April 23, 2019
The Census dictates the amount of federal funding for 55 federal programs in Kansas. It also determines the number of U.S. House members representing the state and the redrawing of boundaries for Kansas legislative districts.
Kelly appointed Brian McClendon, a University of Kansas professor and former executive at Google, to co-chair the committee along with Dodge City Commissioner Joyce Warshaw.
Kansas stands to lose about $1,539 in federal funds annually for 10 years for every person not counted in the Census.
A large coalition of agriculture groups is urging for swift action in the negotiation and implementation of a U.S.-Japan trade agreement. The National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, along with many agriculture organizations, signed a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer this week.
The groups say the U.S. food and agriculture industry is increasingly disadvantaged by competing regional and bilateral agreements with Japan that have already been implemented, including the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, and the European Union-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement. As a result, U.S. exporters of wheat, beef, pork, dairy, wine, potatoes, fruits and vegetables, and other products are facing collapse of their Japanese market share as these sales are handed over to their competitors.
Agriculture is seeking an agreement with Japan that includes market access provisions that at least equal the terms of the other agreements. Further, the groups say the agreement must include an accelerated phase-in of tariff cuts to ensure the U.S. is not facing a disadvantage compared to other countries, and address non-tariff barriers.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri lawmakers are advancing a proposal to undo the redistricting process enacted by voters in November.
House members voted 100-49 Tuesday to give initial approval to a new plan to redraw legislative districts.
Voters last year passed the “Clean Missouri” constitutional amendment. That measure created a new position of nonpartisan demographer to draft state House and Senate maps after the 2020 Census with a goal of achieving “partisan fairness” and “competitiveness.”
The House proposal would instead have bipartisan panels redraw districts, as was done previously. It would make “partisan fairness” and “competitiveness” secondary to other factors, such as districts being compact and not disenfranchising minority voters.
The measure needs another House vote to go to the Senate. If passed by the Legislature, the measure would be subject to voter approval.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas government website designed to nab child support evaders has been taken down after it caught only one man in a year.
Kansas Department for Children and Families spokesman Mike Deines says the Child Support Evaders website “had little to no traffic and was not an effective tool.” He says it’s important not to make detection efforts public because that helps evaders.
Former Gov. Jeff Colyer announced the website in April 2018 as the state struggled to improve child support collections. It listed people who owed more than $5,000 in late child support and included the person’s name, mug shot, the amount owed and where they were last seen.
Similar online photo name-and-shame campaigns have been undertaken in Arizona, Texas, Louisiana and Georgia.
SHAWNEE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating after skeletal remains were found.
On Monday, the Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office was called to a wooded area north of the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism regional office at 300 SW Wanamaker Road, according to Undersheriff Phil Blume
A citizen claimed to have found skeletal remains in the dense woods.
The Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office, in conjunction with the Coroner’s Office, was able to confirm that the skeletal remains are human, according to Deputy Shayna Anderson. Authorities are currently working with the Washburn University Forensic Anthropology Recovery Unit to excavate the site.
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SHAWNEE COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating after skeletal remains were found.
On Monday, the Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office was called to a wooded area north of the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism regional office at 300 SW Wanamaker Road, according to Undersheriff Phil Blume
A citizen claimed to have found skeletal remains in the dense woods. The Sheriff’s Office responded and with the assistance of the Shawnee County Coroner’s Office, located and removed the skeletal remains in question. Due to darkness and heavy vegetation the search was postponed until daylight.
The property and immediate area in question is private property and access is being denied, according to Louderback
It is important for a thorough search of the area to be completed. Authorities don’t known how long that will take.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Henry Bloch, who helped found tax preparation giant H&R Block, died Tuesday at age 96, the company announced.
Bloch died of natural causes at St. Luke’s Hospice in Kansas City. He founded H&R Block in 1955 in the city with his brother, Richard, to take advantage of the vacuum left as the Internal Revenue Service stopped providing free income tax returns service. Richard Bloch died in 2004.
Henry Bloch retired as H&R Block’s chief executive officer in 1992 and as chairman of the board of directors in 2000.
“Through his honesty and integrity, Henry embodied the best of American business, entrepreneurship and philanthropy. In so many ways, he was ahead of his time and a model for today’s entrepreneur,” said Jeff Jones, president and chief executive officer of H&R Block Inc. in a written statement. “His vision lives on through our H&R Block associates and the many philanthropic organizations that he supported.”
Bloch, who flew 32 combat missions over Germany as a navigator in World War II, also was a philanthropist and a foundation he started along with his wife, Marion, that supported numerous charitable causes in Kansas City, including the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, the Marion Bloch Neuroscience Institute at Saint Luke’s Hospital and the Bloch School of Management at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Marion Bloch died in 2013.
“This is an enormous loss to the community and to the Nelson-Atkins,” said Richard Green, chair of the museum’s Board of Trustees in a written statement. “Henry Bloch had an unfailing vision and enthusiasm that was borne of genuine gratitude.”
Bloch is survived by four children, 12 grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren.
