FORT RILEY —Authorities are investigating a shooting at Fort Riley.

Just before 7a.m. Monday, Fort Riley Military Police were called about an incident at Trooper Gate, the main entrance to the post.

 Initial information indicates that a suspect drove through the gate and was then stopped by the automatic vehicle barrier.&nbsp;

After the vehicle was stopped, the suspect exited the vehicle, and the situation then escalated, leading guards to shoot the suspect.

The driver of the vehicle received non-life-threatening injuries and is receiving medical attention.

Army CID and the Fort Riley Military Police are investigating the incident.

By BECKY GOFF JC PostFORT RILEY —Authorities are investigating a shooting at Fort Riley.Just before 7a.m. Monday, Fort Riley Military Police were called about an incident at Trooper Gate, the main entrance to the post. Initial information indicates that a suspect drove through the gate and was then stopped by the automatic vehicle barrier.&nbsp;After the vehicle was stopped, the suspect exited the vehicle, and the situation then escalated, leading guards to shoot the suspect.The driver of the vehicle received non-life-threatening injuries and is receiving medical attention.Army CID and the Fort Riley Military Police are investigating the incident.

Suspect shot at Fort Riley's Trooper Gate

ALLEN COUNTY&nbsp;–&nbsp;The Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI) and the Allen County Sheriff’s Office are conducting a death investigation after remains were found Saturday evening near Humboldt, Kansas.

Just after 5:30 p.m. Saturday, a man who was searching for antler sheds called 911 when he discovered what he believed were human remains, according to a media release from the KBI.

 Deputies from the Allen County Sheriff’s Office responded to the area, east of Humboldt, near Arizona Road and 1800th&nbsp;Street. Upon arrival they found human skeletal remains.

The person has not yet been identified.&nbsp; Positive identification may take longer than typical cases due to the condition of the remains.

Death investigations may be determined to be the result of homicide, suicide, natural causes, or an accident. No threat to the public exists related to this incident.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/3/1679330982751.png" alt="Arizona Road and 1800th Street east of Humbolt, Kansas.-Google map" />
 <figcaption>Arizona Road and 1800th Street east of Humbolt, Kansas.-Google map</figcaption>
 </figure>ALLEN COUNTY&nbsp;–&nbsp;The Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI) and the Allen County Sheriff’s Office are conducting a death investigation after remains were found Saturday evening near Humboldt, Kansas.Just after 5:30 p.m. Saturday, a man who was searching for antler sheds called 911 when he discovered what he believed were human remains, according to a media release from the KBI. Deputies from the Allen County Sheriff’s Office responded to the area, east of Humboldt, near Arizona Road and 1800th&nbsp;Street. Upon arrival they found human skeletal remains.The person has not yet been identified.&nbsp; Positive identification may take longer than typical cases due to the condition of the remains.Death investigations may be determined to be the result of homicide, suicide, natural causes, or an accident. No threat to the public exists related to this incident.An autopsy is scheduled.

KBI: Man hunting for deer antlers finds human remains

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Hutchinson City Manager Kendal Francis said he can't talk about why former police chief Jeff Hooper was terminated.

"I'm not at liberty to say much more about what went down with that position," Francis said Monday. "I can tell you how we're going to move forward."

The city has already engaged a consultant to help them with a search for a new chief.

"We have engaged with Strategic Government Resources to lead a nationwide search for our new police chief," Francis said. "That work is beginning immediately. First steps are to put together a position profile that kind of outlines the job itself, as well as our community."

The discussions on getting that profile together happened last week.

"The recruiter will be contacting some stakeholders that we've provided some contact information for, so that we could get their input on some of the characteristics that they would like to see in the next chief. We will also be doing an internal survey of our police department to get some input from our officers as we move forward in this process."

He did clarify, as he had in other public articles, that the decision to terminate the chief wasn't a quick one and the process to hire a new one will take time, as well.

"We hope to officially announce the opening, probably within the next couple of weeks," Francis said. "Depends on how quickly they can put together that profile. Moving forward, you know, about a month or so to take applications and review them and do the interviewing and then, if we bring somebody in from the outside, when could they start, those types of things. I'm going to say [it will take] about four months."

Francis also has an engineering department head to still hire, as well as a combined position of building official and planning and zoning that he is calling the Community Development Coordinator. Those positions were vacant prior to Francis coming to the city.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/6/1591796149452.jpeg" alt="Jeff Hooper was fired as Chief of Police in Hutchinson last week" />
 <figcaption>Jeff Hooper was fired as Chief of Police in Hutchinson last week</figcaption>
 </figure>NICK GOSNELL Hutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — Hutchinson City Manager Kendal Francis said he can't talk about why former police chief Jeff Hooper was terminated."I'm not at liberty to say much more about what went down with that position," Francis said Monday. "I can tell you how we're going to move forward."The city has already engaged a consultant to help them with a search for a new chief."We have engaged with Strategic Government Resources to lead a nationwide search for our new police chief," Francis said. "That work is beginning immediately. First steps are to put together a position profile that kind of outlines the job itself, as well as our community."The discussions on getting that profile together happened last week."The recruiter will be contacting some stakeholders that we've provided some contact information for, so that we could get their input on some of the characteristics that they would like to see in the next chief. We will also be doing an internal survey of our police department to get some input from our officers as we move forward in this process."He did clarify, as he had in other public articles, that the decision to terminate the chief wasn't a quick one and the process to hire a new one will take time, as well."We hope to officially announce the opening, probably within the next couple of weeks," Francis said. "Depends on how quickly they can put together that profile. Moving forward, you know, about a month or so to take applications and review them and do the interviewing and then, if we bring somebody in from the outside, when could they start, those types of things. I'm going to say [it will take] about four months."Francis also has an engineering department head to still hire, as well as a combined position of building official and planning and zoning that he is calling the Community Development Coordinator. Those positions were vacant prior to Francis coming to the city.

City manager mum on reason for Kan. police chief's dismissal

By COLE REIF Great Bend Post

GREAT BEND — At last week’s Barton Community College Board of Trustees study session,
Chief Communications Officer Maggie Harris gave board members an outline of the
college’s marketing plan. The presentation highlighted how Barton is targeting
potential students with advertising and how the college is promoting their
events and what they have to offer. Harris noted digital media is increasing as
a platform to advertise on with applications like Facebook, YouTube and even
TikTok. 
Trustee Don Learned questioned the college’s use of TikTok, a social media, short-form
video hosting service owned by a Chinese company. TikTok has received criticism
over user privacy. The majority of the states have banned the application on
government-issued devices. Harris said Barton will continue to monitor
regulations regarding the usage of the app. "All of our 
competitors and peers are using it," said Harris. "We're just reaching 
our students where they're at. That is our goal...to find where they are
 and to reach them. I know there is a lot of controversy with it, and 
we're keeping track of all of those conversations." 
Learned was concerned from stories in the news regarding TikTok’s connections
to the Chinese government. While United States agencies continue to investigate the
security and use of TikTok, Barton Trustee Chairman Mike Johnson said the app is
still effective in marketing the college’s message to the younger population. "I
 think we all know of the stories that are in the news daily," said 
Johnson. "Honestly, I think we're going to see it take care of itself in
 the next year or two through regulation. Don, I agree with you. I think
 it's an issue, but I think we can't hamper our recruitment process when
 everyone else is still doing it." 
Along with digital advertising, Barton diversifies its marketing through
traditional media such as print, television and radio. The communications
department also looks at advertising opportunities through sponsorships and
high school yearbooks and publications.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/3/1679326113007.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>By COLE REIF Great Bend PostGREAT BEND — At last week’s Barton Community College Board of Trustees study session,
Chief Communications Officer Maggie Harris gave board members an outline of the
college’s marketing plan. The presentation highlighted how Barton is targeting
potential students with advertising and how the college is promoting their
events and what they have to offer. Harris noted digital media is increasing as
a platform to advertise on with applications like Facebook, YouTube and even
TikTok. 
Trustee Don Learned questioned the college’s use of TikTok, a social media, short-form
video hosting service owned by a Chinese company. TikTok has received criticism
over user privacy. The majority of the states have banned the application on
government-issued devices. Harris said Barton will continue to monitor
regulations regarding the usage of the app. "All of our 
competitors and peers are using it," said Harris. "We're just reaching 
our students where they're at. That is our goal...to find where they are
 and to reach them. I know there is a lot of controversy with it, and 
we're keeping track of all of those conversations." 
Learned was concerned from stories in the news regarding TikTok’s connections
to the Chinese government. While United States agencies continue to investigate the
security and use of TikTok, Barton Trustee Chairman Mike Johnson said the app is
still effective in marketing the college’s message to the younger population. "I
 think we all know of the stories that are in the news daily," said 
Johnson. "Honestly, I think we're going to see it take care of itself in
 the next year or two through regulation. Don, I agree with you. I think
 it's an issue, but I think we can't hamper our recruitment process when
 everyone else is still doing it." 
Along with digital advertising, Barton diversifies its marketing through
traditional media such as print, television and radio. The communications
department also looks at advertising opportunities through sponsorships and
high school yearbooks and publications.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;

Kan. community college trustee questions use of TikTok advertising

NEW YORK (AP) — Amazon plans to eliminate 9,000 more jobs in the next few weeks, CEO Andy Jassy said in a memo to staff on Monday.

The job cuts would mark the second largest round of layoffs in the company's history, adding to the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-san-francisco-marc-benioff-bbb2f3a09eafdfc7cda54a3b87e538ad">18,000 employees</a>&nbsp;the tech giant said it would lay off in January. The company's workforce doubled during the pandemic, however, in the midst of a hiring surge across almost the entire tech sector.

Tech companies have announced&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-amazoncom-inc-business-d36a2afa35ff7f8e53a8b3164a581a30">tens of thousands of job cuts</a>&nbsp;this year.

In the memo, Jassy said the second phase of the company's annual planning process completed this month led to the additional job cuts. He said Amazon will still hire in some strategic areas.

“Some may ask why we didn’t announce these role reductions with the ones we announced a couple months ago. The short answer is that not all of the teams were done with their analyses in the late fall; and rather than rush through these assessments without the appropriate diligence, we chose to share these decisions as we’ve made them so people had the information as soon as possible,” Jassy said.

The job cuts announced Monday will hit profitable areas for the company including its cloud computing unit AWS and its burgeoning advertising business. Twitch, the gaming platform Amazon owns, will also see some layoffs as well as Amazon's PXT organizations, which handle human resources and other functions.

Prior layoffs had also hit PXT, the company's stores division, which encompasses its e-commerce business as well as company’s brick-and-mortar stores such as Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go, and other departments such as the one that runs the virtual assistant Alexa.

Earlier this month, the company said it would&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/amazon-hq-headquarters-pause-virginia-91395dd669f011b547196575db7d5c18">pause construction on its headquarters</a>&nbsp;building in northern Virginia, though the first phase of that project will open this June with 8,000 employees.

Like other tech companies, including&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/sports?utm_source=apnewsnav&amp;utm_medium=navigation">Facebook parent Meta</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-business-sundar-pichai-covid-pandemics-c85c45231712709582b1d3fe46be5ffe">Google parent Alphabet</a>, Amazon ramped up hiring during the pandemic to meet the demand from homebound Americans that were increasingly buying stuff online to keep themselves safe from the virus.

Amazon's workforce, in warehouses and offices, doubled to more than 1.6 million people in about two years. But demand slowed as the worst of the pandemic eased. The company began pausing or cancelling its warehouse expansion plans last year.

Amid growing anxiety over the potential for a recession, Amazon in the past few months shut down a subsidiary that’s been selling fabrics for nearly 30 years and shuttered its hybrid virtual, in-home care service Amazon Care among other cost-cutting moves.

Jassy said Monday given the uncertain economy and the “uncertainty that exists in the near future," the company has chosen to be more streamlined.

He said the teams that will be impacted by the latest round of layoffs are not done making final decisions on which roles will be eliminated. The company plans to finalize those decisions by mid to late April and notify those who will be laid off.

NEW YORK (AP) — Amazon plans to eliminate 9,000 more jobs in the next few weeks, CEO Andy Jassy said in a memo to staff on Monday.The job cuts would mark the second largest round of layoffs in the company's history, adding to the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-san-francisco-marc-benioff-bbb2f3a09eafdfc7cda54a3b87e538ad">18,000 employees</a>&nbsp;the tech giant said it would lay off in January. The company's workforce doubled during the pandemic, however, in the midst of a hiring surge across almost the entire tech sector.Tech companies have announced&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-amazoncom-inc-business-d36a2afa35ff7f8e53a8b3164a581a30">tens of thousands of job cuts</a>&nbsp;this year.In the memo, Jassy said the second phase of the company's annual planning process completed this month led to the additional job cuts. He said Amazon will still hire in some strategic areas.“Some may ask why we didn’t announce these role reductions with the ones we announced a couple months ago. The short answer is that not all of the teams were done with their analyses in the late fall; and rather than rush through these assessments without the appropriate diligence, we chose to share these decisions as we’ve made them so people had the information as soon as possible,” Jassy said.The job cuts announced Monday will hit profitable areas for the company including its cloud computing unit AWS and its burgeoning advertising business. Twitch, the gaming platform Amazon owns, will also see some layoffs as well as Amazon's PXT organizations, which handle human resources and other functions.Prior layoffs had also hit PXT, the company's stores division, which encompasses its e-commerce business as well as company’s brick-and-mortar stores such as Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go, and other departments such as the one that runs the virtual assistant Alexa.Earlier this month, the company said it would&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/amazon-hq-headquarters-pause-virginia-91395dd669f011b547196575db7d5c18">pause construction on its headquarters</a>&nbsp;building in northern Virginia, though the first phase of that project will open this June with 8,000 employees.Like other tech companies, including&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/sports?utm_source=apnewsnav&amp;utm_medium=navigation">Facebook parent Meta</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-business-sundar-pichai-covid-pandemics-c85c45231712709582b1d3fe46be5ffe">Google parent Alphabet</a>, Amazon ramped up hiring during the pandemic to meet the demand from homebound Americans that were increasingly buying stuff online to keep themselves safe from the virus.Amazon's workforce, in warehouses and offices, doubled to more than 1.6 million people in about two years. But demand slowed as the worst of the pandemic eased. The company began pausing or cancelling its warehouse expansion plans last year.Amid growing anxiety over the potential for a recession, Amazon in the past few months shut down a subsidiary that’s been selling fabrics for nearly 30 years and shuttered its hybrid virtual, in-home care service Amazon Care among other cost-cutting moves.Jassy said Monday given the uncertain economy and the “uncertainty that exists in the near future," the company has chosen to be more streamlined.He said the teams that will be impacted by the latest round of layoffs are not done making final decisions on which roles will be eliminated. The company plans to finalize those decisions by mid to late April and notify those who will be laid off.

Amazon to lay off more employees on top of 18,000 in January

SEDGWICK COUNTY- A Kansas man who who pled guilty to child abuse is going to prison for the&nbsp;death of his 1-year-old son.

A judge sentenced 26-year-old Kentrell Willingham to just over 5-years in prison, according to the Sedgwick County District attorney's office. He&nbsp;was originally charged with with first-degree murder, an alternative count of first-degree murder, child abuse and aggravated child endangerment.&nbsp;

In February, Willingham's girlfriend, 25-year-old Xjohnna Hannah, pled guilty to aggravated child endangerment.

In July, Willingham was charged with first-degree murder and an alternative count of first-degree murder, child abuse and aggravated child endangerment.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Hannah, not the boy's mother was also originally charged with one count of 1st degree murder, abuse of a child and aggravated endangering a child, according to the District Attorney's office.

On July 30, 2022 police responded to a child abuse report at a Wichita area hospital, according to Officer Chad Ditch.&nbsp;

When officers arrived at the hospital, they were told a family member and guardian of 1-year-old Lasiah Williams brought him to the hospital unresponsive. Doctors pronounced the boy deceased.

Investigators learned Lasisah had been with his father, Kentrell Willingham, and his girlfriend Hannah,&nbsp;for a few days. A family member of the child met Willingham in the 1600 hundred block of South Oliver to exchange custody.

The family member left with Lasiah and a short time later would realize the child was unresponsive. The family member and Lasiah’s legal guardian immediately drove to the hospital where the boy was pronounced deceased.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/7/1659123355817.png" alt="Willingham-photo Sedgwick Co." />
 <figcaption>Willingham-photo Sedgwick Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY- A Kansas man who who pled guilty to child abuse is going to prison for the&nbsp;death of his 1-year-old son.A judge sentenced 26-year-old Kentrell Willingham to just over 5-years in prison, according to the Sedgwick County District attorney's office. He&nbsp;was originally charged with with first-degree murder, an alternative count of first-degree murder, child abuse and aggravated child endangerment.&nbsp;In February, Willingham's girlfriend, 25-year-old Xjohnna Hannah, pled guilty to aggravated child endangerment.In July, Willingham was charged with first-degree murder and an alternative count of first-degree murder, child abuse and aggravated child endangerment.&nbsp;&nbsp;Hannah, not the boy's mother was also originally charged with one count of 1st degree murder, abuse of a child and aggravated endangering a child, according to the District Attorney's office.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/7/1659123012533.png" alt="-Hannah-photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>-Hannah-photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>On July 30, 2022 police responded to a child abuse report at a Wichita area hospital, according to Officer Chad Ditch.&nbsp;When officers arrived at the hospital, they were told a family member and guardian of 1-year-old Lasiah Williams brought him to the hospital unresponsive. Doctors pronounced the boy deceased.Investigators learned Lasisah had been with his father, Kentrell Willingham, and his girlfriend Hannah,&nbsp;for a few days. A family member of the child met Willingham in the 1600 hundred block of South Oliver to exchange custody.The family member left with Lasiah and a short time later would realize the child was unresponsive. The family member and Lasiah’s legal guardian immediately drove to the hospital where the boy was pronounced deceased.Hannah will be sentenced on March 28.

Kansas man sentenced for death of 1-year-old son

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas bill banning transgender athletes from girls' and women's sports was vetoed by Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly for the third year in a row Friday, setting up a hotly contested fight in the Republican-controlled Legislature to override her.

Kelly's action was expected because of her two previous vetoes. Kansas Republicans made Kelly's vetoes&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-education-legislature-gay-rights-kansas-e32307ef93c0c64056e34f2d8a51efe2">a major issue in multiple television attack ads</a>&nbsp;when she ran for reelection last year, winning narrowly.

The governor said in her veto message that the bill would harm students' mental health and hurt the state's efforts to recruit businesses. Kelly also said lawmakers should leave the issue to the state association set up decades ago to run student activities in middle and high schools.

“Let's be clear what this bill is all about — politics,” Kelly wrote. “It won’t increase any test scores. It won’t help any kids read or write. It won’t help any teachers prepare our kids for the real world.”

Kelly's arguments Friday were similar to those she made in past veto messages and during her reelection campaign. Taryn Jones, lobbyist for the LGBTQ-rights group Equality Kansas, called the bill “really just unnecessary.”

“They’re OK discriminating against a marginalized community,” Jones said after the veto.

Republicans have more than the two-thirds majorities in both chambers needed to override a veto, but in 2021 and 2022, a few GOP moderates voted against overriding Kelly. The House and Senate votes on this year's bill suggest supporters could have just enough votes to prevail.

“Despite her repeated pledges to meet us in the middle, the governor has decided to side yet again with the most radical elements of her party,” Kansas Senate President Ty Masterson, a Wichita-area Republican, said in a statement Friday.

The measure would apply to girls' and women's K-12, club and college sports. If supporters can override Kelly's veto, Kansas would join 18 other states with such a law, including Iowa, Oklahoma and Texas.

The measure is among dozens of Republican proposals pushing back against transgender rights in statehouses across the U.S. Kansas has bills aimed at banning gender-affirming care for minors and preventing transgender men and women from using bathrooms, locker rooms and other facilities associated with their gender identities.

Kelly's veto came a day after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/transgender-rights-health-care-kentucky-legislature-848343fe842e714dfc2bb734745f3cd5">Kentucky's Republican-dominated legislature approved</a>&nbsp;a ban on gender-affirming care for minors and Iowa’s GOP-controlled Legislature&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/transgender-bathrooms-schools-iowa-a66e255d9a3a8f539741ecc090cd2be0">approved a bill on school bathrooms</a>.

In defending the legislation, Kansas House Speaker Dan Hawkins, a Wichita Republican, recently posted tweets endorsing a theory debunked by multiple studies that a “social contagion” has led to more people identifying as transgender.

He and other Republicans also have argued that banning transgender athletes will preserve fair competition and opportunities for girls and young women.

“This is common sense,” Hawkins said in a statement Friday.

Kansas officials and LGBTQ-rights advocates say only a handful of young transgender people participate in high school activities — and possibly only one transgender Kansas girl is on a sports team. Backers of the bill argue that the state should act before transgender athletes become more prevalent.

During her reelection campaign, Kelly aired a television ad that featured her looking into the camera and saying, “Of course, men should not play girls’ sports. OK, we all agree there.”

LGBTQ-rights advocates understood the ad as saying men aren't playing women’s sports because transgender women are women. But Republicans said she was lying about her record, and they’ve repeatedly mentioned her statement since.

“Now that she no longer has to face the voters, the governor has done another about face,” Hawkins said.

The vote last week in the Senate was&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/vote_view/je_20230309145721_430755/">28-11,</a>&nbsp;giving backers one more than the two-thirds needed in the 40-member chamber to override a veto.

However, the House would vote first, and the vote there last month&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/vote_view/je_20230223101523_668304/">was 82-40.</a>&nbsp;While supporters need 84 of 125 votes to override a veto, two Republicans who backed the bill were absent.

Last year, supporters were short of a two-thirds House majority, but in last year's elections, three Republicans who supported a ban replaced GOP lawmakers who'd voted against overriding Kelly's veto. Also, while no Democrats voted last year to override Kelly, freshman Democratic Rep. Ford Carr, of Wichita, voted for this year's bill.

Republican lawmakers in Kansas also have pursued&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/vote_view/je_20230223114039_760436/">a bill</a>&nbsp;to revoke the state medical licenses of doctors providing puberty-blocking drugs, hormone therapy or surgery for transgender minors. It passed the Senate last month, but the House hasn't had a committee hearing.

Another Senate-passed bill would define male and female in Kansas law based on a person's anatomy at birth and declare that cisgender women and girls have a right to private spaces separate from men, such as bathrooms and locker rooms.

LGBTQ-rights advocates have said the measure not only bars transgender people from facilities associated with their gender identities but&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-kansas-state-government-arkansas-health-8f2edaa40b962e5642e108b83bc14246">also erases them legally,</a>&nbsp;along with gender-nonconforming and nonbinary people.

The bill's language also would prevent transgender people from changing birth certificates and driver's licenses to reflect their gender identities, though Kansas is under&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/7409799fb2a144bca2fd90cd46b7ea6c">a 2019 federal court order</a>&nbsp;to allow birth certificate changes.

The measure is before the House after one of its committees rewrote it this week to prevent it from applying to intersex people. Intersex describes people born with genitalia, chromosomes or reproductive organs not associated with typical definitions for males or females.

“We don't want to marginalize them anymore,” said Republican state Rep. Ron Bryce, a southeast Kansas doctor.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1674609407631.png" alt="The governor said in her veto message that the bill would harm students' mental health and hurt the state's efforts to recruit businesses." />
 <figcaption>The governor said in her veto message that the bill would harm students' mental health and hurt the state's efforts to recruit businesses.</figcaption>
 </figure>TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas bill banning transgender athletes from girls' and women's sports was vetoed by Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly for the third year in a row Friday, setting up a hotly contested fight in the Republican-controlled Legislature to override her.Kelly's action was expected because of her two previous vetoes. Kansas Republicans made Kelly's vetoes&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-education-legislature-gay-rights-kansas-e32307ef93c0c64056e34f2d8a51efe2">a major issue in multiple television attack ads</a>&nbsp;when she ran for reelection last year, winning narrowly.The governor said in her veto message that the bill would harm students' mental health and hurt the state's efforts to recruit businesses. Kelly also said lawmakers should leave the issue to the state association set up decades ago to run student activities in middle and high schools.“Let's be clear what this bill is all about — politics,” Kelly wrote. “It won’t increase any test scores. It won’t help any kids read or write. It won’t help any teachers prepare our kids for the real world.”Kelly's arguments Friday were similar to those she made in past veto messages and during her reelection campaign. Taryn Jones, lobbyist for the LGBTQ-rights group Equality Kansas, called the bill “really just unnecessary.”“They’re OK discriminating against a marginalized community,” Jones said after the veto.Republicans have more than the two-thirds majorities in both chambers needed to override a veto, but in 2021 and 2022, a few GOP moderates voted against overriding Kelly. The House and Senate votes on this year's bill suggest supporters could have just enough votes to prevail.“Despite her repeated pledges to meet us in the middle, the governor has decided to side yet again with the most radical elements of her party,” Kansas Senate President Ty Masterson, a Wichita-area Republican, said in a statement Friday.The measure would apply to girls' and women's K-12, club and college sports. If supporters can override Kelly's veto, Kansas would join 18 other states with such a law, including Iowa, Oklahoma and Texas.The measure is among dozens of Republican proposals pushing back against transgender rights in statehouses across the U.S. Kansas has bills aimed at banning gender-affirming care for minors and preventing transgender men and women from using bathrooms, locker rooms and other facilities associated with their gender identities.Kelly's veto came a day after&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/transgender-rights-health-care-kentucky-legislature-848343fe842e714dfc2bb734745f3cd5">Kentucky's Republican-dominated legislature approved</a>&nbsp;a ban on gender-affirming care for minors and Iowa’s GOP-controlled Legislature&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/transgender-bathrooms-schools-iowa-a66e255d9a3a8f539741ecc090cd2be0">approved a bill on school bathrooms</a>.In defending the legislation, Kansas House Speaker Dan Hawkins, a Wichita Republican, recently posted tweets endorsing a theory debunked by multiple studies that a “social contagion” has led to more people identifying as transgender.He and other Republicans also have argued that banning transgender athletes will preserve fair competition and opportunities for girls and young women.“This is common sense,” Hawkins said in a statement Friday.Kansas officials and LGBTQ-rights advocates say only a handful of young transgender people participate in high school activities — and possibly only one transgender Kansas girl is on a sports team. Backers of the bill argue that the state should act before transgender athletes become more prevalent.During her reelection campaign, Kelly aired a television ad that featured her looking into the camera and saying, “Of course, men should not play girls’ sports. OK, we all agree there.”LGBTQ-rights advocates understood the ad as saying men aren't playing women’s sports because transgender women are women. But Republicans said she was lying about her record, and they’ve repeatedly mentioned her statement since.“Now that she no longer has to face the voters, the governor has done another about face,” Hawkins said.The vote last week in the Senate was&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/vote_view/je_20230309145721_430755/">28-11,</a>&nbsp;giving backers one more than the two-thirds needed in the 40-member chamber to override a veto.However, the House would vote first, and the vote there last month&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/vote_view/je_20230223101523_668304/">was 82-40.</a>&nbsp;While supporters need 84 of 125 votes to override a veto, two Republicans who backed the bill were absent.Last year, supporters were short of a two-thirds House majority, but in last year's elections, three Republicans who supported a ban replaced GOP lawmakers who'd voted against overriding Kelly's veto. Also, while no Democrats voted last year to override Kelly, freshman Democratic Rep. Ford Carr, of Wichita, voted for this year's bill.Republican lawmakers in Kansas also have pursued&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/vote_view/je_20230223114039_760436/">a bill</a>&nbsp;to revoke the state medical licenses of doctors providing puberty-blocking drugs, hormone therapy or surgery for transgender minors. It passed the Senate last month, but the House hasn't had a committee hearing.Another Senate-passed bill would define male and female in Kansas law based on a person's anatomy at birth and declare that cisgender women and girls have a right to private spaces separate from men, such as bathrooms and locker rooms.LGBTQ-rights advocates have said the measure not only bars transgender people from facilities associated with their gender identities but&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-kansas-state-government-arkansas-health-8f2edaa40b962e5642e108b83bc14246">also erases them legally,</a>&nbsp;along with gender-nonconforming and nonbinary people.The bill's language also would prevent transgender people from changing birth certificates and driver's licenses to reflect their gender identities, though Kansas is under&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/7409799fb2a144bca2fd90cd46b7ea6c">a 2019 federal court order</a>&nbsp;to allow birth certificate changes.The measure is before the House after one of its committees rewrote it this week to prevent it from applying to intersex people. Intersex describes people born with genitalia, chromosomes or reproductive organs not associated with typical definitions for males or females.“We don't want to marginalize them anymore,” said Republican state Rep. Ron Bryce, a southeast Kansas doctor.

Battle over transgender athletes in girls sports in Kan. far from over

It may seem hard to believe, but the legislature is now fully ten weeks into its session and has just two weeks remaining prior to “first adjournment.”&nbsp; We will adjourn briefly before returning to wrap up the regular part of the session with veto session beginning April 26th&nbsp;and the target date to end April 28th.

<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/hb2014/" target="_blank">HB 2014</a>&nbsp;would designate as the Robert Lessen Memorial Highway the portion of US-69 in Crawford County from its junction with K-47 in Crawford County to its junction with 650th Avenue.&nbsp;&nbsp;HB 2014 passed 36-0.&nbsp;&nbsp;I voted yes.

<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/sb127/" target="_blank">SB 127</a>&nbsp;would authorize the Board of County Commissioners of Dickinson County to submit to the voters of the county a question of imposing a countywide sales tax at a rate of 0.25 percent for the purpose of financing public safety capital projects.&nbsp;&nbsp;SB 127 passed 35-1.&nbsp;&nbsp;I voted yes.

Full texts of the bills and supplemental notes as well as the Final Action vote on these measures can be found at&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/" target="_blank">www.kslegislature.org</a>.&nbsp;

ADDITIONAL LINKS FOR LEGISLATIVE ACTION

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_0NO-Pb96CFABvxDwXAq8A?view_as=subscriber" target="_blank">Kansas Legislature YouTube</a>&nbsp;– Here you can follow the legislature live as it happens, or access archives of past sessions and committee meetings.

<a href="http://sg001-harmony.sliq.net/00287/Harmony/en/View/Calendar/" target="_blank">Kansas Legislature Audio</a>&nbsp;– Here you can listen in on session or committees when they are in session, or access prior committee meetings, as well.

CAPITOL PRESERVATION COMMITTEE BILLS SIGNED BY THE GOVERNOR

<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/sb11/" target="_blank">SB11</a>&nbsp;– Ad Astra – the 8’2” sculpture will finally be placed on the pedestal in the Ad Astra Plaza which has been waiting for the statue since 2002.&nbsp; More than 2,600 bricks stored along with the statue at the Bergen Studio are stored in Salina and will be placed in the plaza as well.&nbsp; Fundraising can now begin in earnest to finish the plaza as originally proposed more than two decades ago.

<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/sb39/" target="_blank">SB39</a>&nbsp;– 1st&nbsp;Kansas Colored Voluntary Infantry Regiment Mural – the Capitol Preservation Committee now has the go-ahead to start the process of fundraising and sending Requests&nbsp;for Proposals (RFP) to select the artist and for the sub-committee to begin work on the project including the location of the mural.&nbsp; This mural was conceived in 2000 with the passage of SB660 and now with 2023 SB39 can see this start of the project and hopefully see it finished in the near future.&nbsp;&nbsp;

KANSAS SECRETARY OF STATE - SCOTT SCHWAB

The Secretary of State is one of four state offices authorized by the&nbsp;Kansas Constitution. Although created by the state constitution, the duties of the office are defined by almost 1,000 state laws. Among the many duties of the Office of the Kansas Secretary of State is maintaining primary responsibility for administering elections, collecting certain records of Kansas businesses, and publishing the official publications for the State of Kansas. As a result, hundreds of thousands of documents are kept by the Secretary of State.&nbsp; Generally, they fall into four categories – executive, legislative, elections, and business.&nbsp; The Secretary of State is elected to a four-year term and Kansas law does not impose term limits on those serving as Kansas Secretary of State.

Secretary Scott Schwab grew up in Great Bend, Kansas, and graduated from Fort Hays State University.&nbsp; He was first elected to the Kansas House of Representatives in 2002 and served as Chairman of the House Elections Committee.&nbsp; Scott also served as Vice Chairman of the House Insurance and Financial Institutions Committee and as Speaker Pro Tempore of the Kansas House of Representatives.&nbsp; In November 2018, Schwab was elected to his first term as Kansas Secretary of State and in November 2022, he was re-elected to serve a second term.&nbsp; Publications available:&nbsp; Kansas Administrative Regulations, Session Laws, Kansas Register, Lawbooks, and the Kansas Then and Now information sheet.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

The very popular Legislative Directory can be found and printed at -&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sos.ks.gov/publications/legislative-directory/2023-Online-Legislative-Directory.pdf" target="_blank">https://www.sos.ks.gov/publications/legislative-directory/2023-Online-Legislative-Directory.pdf</a>.

UPDATE FROM KANSAS INSURANCE COMMISSIONER VICKI SCHMIDT

If you or someone you know has an issue with their insurance, we are happy to help!&nbsp; We may not always like the answers we get, but we will do our best to get you an answer.&nbsp; Please use the contact information below to reach out to us if we can be of assistance.

Main Line: (785) 296-3071 Consumer Assistance Hotline: 1-800-432-2484 &nbsp; Consumer Complaint:&nbsp;<a href="mailto:kid.webcomplaints@ks.gov" target="_blank">kid.webcomplaints@ks.gov</a> &nbsp; Producer Licensing:&nbsp;<a href="mailto:KID.Licensing@ks.gov" target="_blank">kid.licensing@ks.gov</a> &nbsp; Email:&nbsp;<a href="mailto:KID.Commissioner@ks.gov" target="_blank">KID.Commissioner@ks.gov</a> &nbsp; Website:&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001SoDYgtD-dFj2steoGgFmoL8pLuf0NSmUSYwQCgp1HsxoadVCfwcm_95Am0jNUs0wFnhLh6WZZDNC0I3bvXKrYLcDAFEsmw8M0DoCWSkqIfiLrZCsRdIrP9T0QLWMfcrFnRn8KKAZuWRvenC77dA6Tw==&amp;c=_XGtk_g_SmaADwMA6e5Ys1lOAPiD2n0Y0WhdVf1Fcsl9xHGubVgxOA==&amp;ch=r3uWbCcKhRBHU_y3dsLIzaxpLTKaKBOHKjED-RjqskJBJwcemc8Blw==" target="_blank">Insurance.kansas.gov</a>

<a>GIRL AND BOY STATE – June 2023</a>

Kansas American Legion and American Legion Auxiliary’s have announced the application process for Girl State and Boy State for the 2023 events.&nbsp; Find more information at&nbsp;<a href="https://ksbstate.org/" target="_blank">https://ksbstate.org/</a>&nbsp; and&nbsp;<a href="http://www.ksgirlsstate.org/" target="_blank">http://www.ksgirlsstate.org/</a>.&nbsp; Boy State will be held June 4th-10th&nbsp;in Manhattan and Girl State June 11th&nbsp;– 16th&nbsp;in Lawrence.&nbsp; I was a girl stater in 1980 sponsored by the Delphos American Legion Auxiliary.

On Saturday, March 25th, Representative Troy Waymaster and I will have a townhall in Lincoln at 9:00 a.m. at Violette’s Coffee Shop.&nbsp; Next, I will join Senator Rick Billinger and Representative Ken Rahjes in Phillipsburg at 11:00 a.m. for a townhall at Huck Boyd Center.&nbsp; Our next stop will be in Palco at 1:30 p.m. at the McKenna Youth Center.&nbsp; On April 1st, Representative Waymaster and I will be in Russell for a townhall at 9:00 a.m. at Espresso Etc.

Thank you for all of your calls, emails, and letters regarding your thoughts and concerns about happenings in Kansas.&nbsp; I always encourage you to stay informed of the issues under consideration by the Kansas Legislature. Committee schedules, bills, and other helpful information can be easily accessed through the legislature’s website at&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/" target="_blank">www.kslegislature.org</a>.&nbsp; You are also able to ‘listen in live’ at this website.&nbsp; Please do not hesitate to contact me with your thoughts, concerns, and suggestions.&nbsp; An email is the best at this point in the session.

Senator Elaine Bowers Kansas State Capitol Building Room 223-E 300 SW 10th St. Topeka, KS 66612 <a href="mailto:elaine.bowers@senate.ks.gov" target="_blank">elaine.bowers@senate.ks.gov</a> 785-296-7389 <a href="https://elainebowers.com/" target="_blank">https://elainebowers.com/</a> <a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/">www.kslegislature.org</a>

Elaine Bowers, R-Concordia, is senator of the 36th District in Kansas, which includes:

* Cloud, Jewell, Lincoln, Mitchell, Osborne, Ottawa, Republic, Rooks, Russell, Smith and Washington Counties * Marshall County: Cities: Blue Rapids, Marysville, Oketo and Waterville; Townships: Blue Rapids, Blue Rapids City, Cottage Hill, Elm Creek, Herkimer, Logan, Marysville, Oketo, Walnut and Waterville * Phillips County: Cities: Agra, Glade, Kirwin and Phillipsburg; Townships: Arcade, Bow Creek, Crystal Deer Creek, Freedom, Glenwood, Greenwood, Kirwin, Phillipsburg, Plum, Rushville, Solomon(part), Sumner, Valley and Walnut

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/2/1644853578448.jpeg" alt="State Sen. Elaine Bowers, R-Concordia, 36th Dist." />
 <figcaption>State Sen. Elaine Bowers, R-Concordia, 36th Dist.</figcaption>
 </figure><a>2023 SENATE SCENE WEEK 10</a>It may seem hard to believe, but the legislature is now fully ten weeks into its session and has just two weeks remaining prior to “first adjournment.”&nbsp; We will adjourn briefly before returning to wrap up the regular part of the session with veto session beginning April 26th&nbsp;and the target date to end April 28th.SENATE FLOOR ACTION<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/hb2014/" target="_blank">HB 2014</a>&nbsp;would designate as the Robert Lessen Memorial Highway the portion of US-69 in Crawford County from its junction with K-47 in Crawford County to its junction with 650th Avenue.&nbsp;&nbsp;HB 2014 passed 36-0.&nbsp;&nbsp;I voted yes.<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/sb127/" target="_blank">SB 127</a>&nbsp;would authorize the Board of County Commissioners of Dickinson County to submit to the voters of the county a question of imposing a countywide sales tax at a rate of 0.25 percent for the purpose of financing public safety capital projects.&nbsp;&nbsp;SB 127 passed 35-1.&nbsp;&nbsp;I voted yes.Full texts of the bills and supplemental notes as well as the Final Action vote on these measures can be found at&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/" target="_blank">www.kslegislature.org</a>.&nbsp;ADDITIONAL LINKS FOR LEGISLATIVE ACTION<a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_0NO-Pb96CFABvxDwXAq8A?view_as=subscriber" target="_blank">Kansas Legislature YouTube</a>&nbsp;– Here you can follow the legislature live as it happens, or access archives of past sessions and committee meetings.<a href="http://sg001-harmony.sliq.net/00287/Harmony/en/View/Calendar/" target="_blank">Kansas Legislature Audio</a>&nbsp;– Here you can listen in on session or committees when they are in session, or access prior committee meetings, as well.CAPITOL PRESERVATION COMMITTEE BILLS SIGNED BY THE GOVERNOR<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/sb11/" target="_blank">SB11</a>&nbsp;– Ad Astra – the 8’2” sculpture will finally be placed on the pedestal in the Ad Astra Plaza which has been waiting for the statue since 2002.&nbsp; More than 2,600 bricks stored along with the statue at the Bergen Studio are stored in Salina and will be placed in the plaza as well.&nbsp; Fundraising can now begin in earnest to finish the plaza as originally proposed more than two decades ago.<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/sb39/" target="_blank">SB39</a>&nbsp;– 1st&nbsp;Kansas Colored Voluntary Infantry Regiment Mural – the Capitol Preservation Committee now has the go-ahead to start the process of fundraising and sending Requests&nbsp;for Proposals (RFP) to select the artist and for the sub-committee to begin work on the project including the location of the mural.&nbsp; This mural was conceived in 2000 with the passage of SB660 and now with 2023 SB39 can see this start of the project and hopefully see it finished in the near future.&nbsp;&nbsp;KANSAS SECRETARY OF STATE - SCOTT SCHWABThe Secretary of State is one of four state offices authorized by the&nbsp;Kansas Constitution. Although created by the state constitution, the duties of the office are defined by almost 1,000 state laws. Among the many duties of the Office of the Kansas Secretary of State is maintaining primary responsibility for administering elections, collecting certain records of Kansas businesses, and publishing the official publications for the State of Kansas. As a result, hundreds of thousands of documents are kept by the Secretary of State.&nbsp; Generally, they fall into four categories – executive, legislative, elections, and business.&nbsp; The Secretary of State is elected to a four-year term and Kansas law does not impose term limits on those serving as Kansas Secretary of State.Secretary Scott Schwab grew up in Great Bend, Kansas, and graduated from Fort Hays State University.&nbsp; He was first elected to the Kansas House of Representatives in 2002 and served as Chairman of the House Elections Committee.&nbsp; Scott also served as Vice Chairman of the House Insurance and Financial Institutions Committee and as Speaker Pro Tempore of the Kansas House of Representatives.&nbsp; In November 2018, Schwab was elected to his first term as Kansas Secretary of State and in November 2022, he was re-elected to serve a second term.&nbsp; Publications available:&nbsp; Kansas Administrative Regulations, Session Laws, Kansas Register, Lawbooks, and the Kansas Then and Now information sheet.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The very popular Legislative Directory can be found and printed at -&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sos.ks.gov/publications/legislative-directory/2023-Online-Legislative-Directory.pdf" target="_blank">https://www.sos.ks.gov/publications/legislative-directory/2023-Online-Legislative-Directory.pdf</a>.UPDATE FROM KANSAS INSURANCE COMMISSIONER VICKI SCHMIDTIf you or someone you know has an issue with their insurance, we are happy to help!&nbsp; We may not always like the answers we get, but we will do our best to get you an answer.&nbsp; Please use the contact information below to reach out to us if we can be of assistance.Main Line: (785) 296-3071 Consumer Assistance Hotline: 1-800-432-2484 &nbsp; Consumer Complaint:&nbsp;<a href="mailto:kid.webcomplaints@ks.gov" target="_blank">kid.webcomplaints@ks.gov</a> &nbsp; Producer Licensing:&nbsp;<a href="mailto:KID.Licensing@ks.gov" target="_blank">kid.licensing@ks.gov</a> &nbsp; Email:&nbsp;<a href="mailto:KID.Commissioner@ks.gov" target="_blank">KID.Commissioner@ks.gov</a> &nbsp; Website:&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001SoDYgtD-dFj2steoGgFmoL8pLuf0NSmUSYwQCgp1HsxoadVCfwcm_95Am0jNUs0wFnhLh6WZZDNC0I3bvXKrYLcDAFEsmw8M0DoCWSkqIfiLrZCsRdIrP9T0QLWMfcrFnRn8KKAZuWRvenC77dA6Tw==&amp;c=_XGtk_g_SmaADwMA6e5Ys1lOAPiD2n0Y0WhdVf1Fcsl9xHGubVgxOA==&amp;ch=r3uWbCcKhRBHU_y3dsLIzaxpLTKaKBOHKjED-RjqskJBJwcemc8Blw==" target="_blank">Insurance.kansas.gov</a> <a>GIRL AND BOY STATE – June 2023</a>Kansas American Legion and American Legion Auxiliary’s have announced the application process for Girl State and Boy State for the 2023 events.&nbsp; Find more information at&nbsp;<a href="https://ksbstate.org/" target="_blank">https://ksbstate.org/</a>&nbsp; and&nbsp;<a href="http://www.ksgirlsstate.org/" target="_blank">http://www.ksgirlsstate.org/</a>.&nbsp; Boy State will be held June 4th-10th&nbsp;in Manhattan and Girl State June 11th&nbsp;– 16th&nbsp;in Lawrence.&nbsp; I was a girl stater in 1980 sponsored by the Delphos American Legion Auxiliary.LEGISLATIVE TOWNHALLSOn Saturday, March 25th, Representative Troy Waymaster and I will have a townhall in Lincoln at 9:00 a.m. at Violette’s Coffee Shop.&nbsp; Next, I will join Senator Rick Billinger and Representative Ken Rahjes in Phillipsburg at 11:00 a.m. for a townhall at Huck Boyd Center.&nbsp; Our next stop will be in Palco at 1:30 p.m. at the McKenna Youth Center.&nbsp; On April 1st, Representative Waymaster and I will be in Russell for a townhall at 9:00 a.m. at Espresso Etc.THANK YOU FOR ENGAGINGThank you for all of your calls, emails, and letters regarding your thoughts and concerns about happenings in Kansas.&nbsp; I always encourage you to stay informed of the issues under consideration by the Kansas Legislature. Committee schedules, bills, and other helpful information can be easily accessed through the legislature’s website at&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/" target="_blank">www.kslegislature.org</a>.&nbsp; You are also able to ‘listen in live’ at this website.&nbsp; Please do not hesitate to contact me with your thoughts, concerns, and suggestions.&nbsp; An email is the best at this point in the session.Thank you for the honor of serving you!Senator Elaine Bowers Kansas State Capitol Building Room 223-E 300 SW 10th St. Topeka, KS 66612 <a href="mailto:elaine.bowers@senate.ks.gov" target="_blank">elaine.bowers@senate.ks.gov</a> 785-296-7389 <a href="https://elainebowers.com/" target="_blank">https://elainebowers.com/</a> <a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/">www.kslegislature.org</a> Elaine Bowers, R-Concordia, is senator of the 36th District in Kansas, which includes:* Cloud, Jewell, Lincoln, Mitchell, Osborne, Ottawa, Republic, Rooks, Russell, Smith and Washington Counties * Marshall County: Cities: Blue Rapids, Marysville, Oketo and Waterville; Townships: Blue Rapids, Blue Rapids City, Cottage Hill, Elm Creek, Herkimer, Logan, Marysville, Oketo, Walnut and Waterville * Phillips County: Cities: Agra, Glade, Kirwin and Phillipsburg; Townships: Arcade, Bow Creek, Crystal Deer Creek, Freedom, Glenwood, Greenwood, Kirwin, Phillipsburg, Plum, Rushville, Solomon(part), Sumner, Valley and Walnut

BOWERS: Senate Scene Week 10, March 20, 2023

DOUGLAS COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities investigating the shooting death of a teen in Lawrence on Saturday have a suspect in custody.

On Sunday afternoon, 17-year-old Derrick Del Reed turned himself in and police transported him to the Douglas County Juvenile Detention Center, according to police department spokesperson Laura McCabe. Police also located Reed's  2015 Chrysler 300 within the city limits, and it was processed by investigators.

Just after 5p.m. Saturday, police in Lawrence along with Deputies from the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, arrived at 1100 Block of E. 13th Street in Lawrence to find a teen who had been shot. EMS transported the teen to a local hospital where he later died, according to police spokesperson&nbsp;Laura McCabe.

Witnesses told police the teen arrived at the apartment complex address wounded, but the shooting occurred in the 1300 block of Maple Lane.

Investigators worked overnight to identify possible suspects and asked for the public’s help in locating Reed.&nbsp;

Investigators have interviewed several witnesses and have evidence to believe the parties are known to each other.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/3/1679241583054.png" alt="Del Reed-photo Lawrence PD" />
 <figcaption>Del Reed-photo Lawrence PD</figcaption>
 </figure>DOUGLAS COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities investigating the shooting death of a teen in Lawrence on Saturday have a suspect in custody.On Sunday afternoon, 17-year-old Derrick Del Reed turned himself in and police transported him to the Douglas County Juvenile Detention Center, according to police department spokesperson Laura McCabe. Police also located Reed's 2015 Chrysler 300 within the city limits, and it was processed by investigators.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/3/1679241544157.png" alt="Del Reed photo Lawrence PD" />
 <figcaption>Del Reed photo Lawrence PD</figcaption>
 </figure>Just after 5p.m. Saturday, police in Lawrence along with Deputies from the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, arrived at 1100 Block of E. 13th Street in Lawrence to find a teen who had been shot. EMS transported the teen to a local hospital where he later died, according to police spokesperson&nbsp;Laura McCabe.Witnesses told police the teen arrived at the apartment complex address wounded, but the shooting occurred in the 1300 block of Maple Lane.Investigators worked overnight to identify possible suspects and asked for the public’s help in locating Reed.&nbsp;<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/3/1679241785200.png" alt="Police were looking for Reed's, which is a dark 2015 Chrysler 300 with Kansas tag 369REG. photo Lawrence PD" />
 <figcaption>Police were looking for Reed's, which is a dark 2015 Chrysler 300 with Kansas tag 369REG. photo Lawrence PD</figcaption>
 </figure>Investigators have interviewed several witnesses and have evidence to believe the parties are known to each other.

Police: Kansas teen wanted for murder turns himself in

WASHINGTON (AP) — Bills were filed, hearings were planned and blame was cast as Congress reacted this past week to the abrupt failure of two banks. A look at what lawmakers are saying and planning as the fallout continues from the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.

While President Joe Biden called Monday on Congress to strengthen the rules for banks to prevent future failures, lawmakers are divided on whether any legislation is needed.

Some congressional leaders are skeptical that a closely divided Congress will act at all.

"There's people who are going to choose bills, but I cannot imagine that, with the hold banks have on Republican members of Congress, that we can pass anything significant," said Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, chairman of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee.

Republicans say the laws already in place were sufficient to prevent the bank failures, if only regulators had done their job by spotting obvious problems and directing the banks to take steps that would reduce their risk.

"If there are ideas out there that people have, you know, at some point, we would be willing to entertain those, but I think it would be premature to start talking about solutions before we fully define the problem and ultimately get answers from the regulators about why they were asleep at the job," said Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, the second-ranking Republican.

SO WHAT'S NEXT? The House Financial Services Committee has announced its first hearing for March 29, featuring at least two witnesses: Martin Gruenberg, chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s board of directors, and Michael Barr, vice chair for supervision with the Federal Reserve's board of governors. "We will conduct this hearing without fear or favor to get the answers the American people deserve," lawmakers said.

On the Senate side, Brown said his committee will also hold a hearing soon to help lawmakers assess what went wrong. He said the first hearing is likely to focus on bringing in witnesses responsible for regulating the failed banks. The Fed board was the primary regulator for Silicon Valley Bank in California, while the FDIC was the primary federal regulator for Signature Bank in New York.

Brown spelled out some of the questions lawmakers probably will have for the regulators in a letter Thursday asking them to undertake a comprehensive review of what went wrong. What role did social media-led coordination among customers play? What role did the large percentage of uninsured deposits at Silicon Valley Bank play? Were there regulatory gaps with respect to capital, liquidity and stress testing that played a role in the failures?

Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn., said he wants to know why regulators did not act on detailed reports of a liquidity risk at Silicon Valley Bank and why the FDIC failed to auction off the bank's remaining parts last weekend.

Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., said she wants to know if regulators intend to use the failure of Signature Bank to further crack down on cryptocurrency. She has been a vocal advocate for cryptocurrency development and is an investor in bitcoin. Signature was the first FDIC-insured bank to offer a blockchain-based digital payment platform in 2019 and had been a go-to bank for the crypto industry.

Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said he wanted to know how private stock analysts had warned about Silicon Valley's investments but regulators did not seem to know about potential problems.

CONGRESSIONAL ACTION Democrats in both chambers have rallied around two legislative proposals. The first, from Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Rep. Katie Porter, D-Calif., would repeal the 2018 rollback of certain aspects of the Dodd-Frank Act enacted after the financial crisis a decade earlier.

The Dodd-Frank Act subjected all banks with $50 billion or more in assets to enhanced regulation, such as annual stress testing and the submission of resolution plans or "living wills" in the event of bankruptcy.

But after years of complaints from community and regional banks about the cost of compliance, Congress lifted the threshold for meeting all the Dodd-Frank Act requirements to $250 billion.

Banks with assets valued at less than $100 billion were automatically exempted from the enhanced regulation. The Fed was given the discretion to apply on a case-by-case basis the enhanced oversight for banks between the $100 billion and $250 billion level. Both Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank fell in that category.

"President Trump's rollback paved the way for the SVB collapse," Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said on the Senate floor Thursday.

But Republicans have countered that the tiered oversight they established in 2018 with the support of several Democrats in both chambers gave federal regulators all the tools they needed to catch the problems at Silicon Valley and Signature before they became fatal.

"I think the issue here is liquidity and there are liquidity stress tests that regulators have established for the banks," said Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, and the author of the 2018 changes to Dodd-Frank. "If they need to tighten those up, they have the authority to do it."

With that philosophical divide, it's unlikely the Warren and Porter bill will advance in Congress.

A second bill might have a better shot. The bill from Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Democratic Reps. Adam Schiff and Mike Levin of California would recoup any bonuses and profits that bank executives receive from stock sales make in the 60 days before a bank failure.

Republicans also directed considerable ire at the executives of the failed banks this week.

"I think all of that ought to be clawed back," Kennedy said of bonuses. "And this time, I hope somebody goes to jail."

On Friday, Biden called on Congress to grant the FDIC the power to force the return of compensation paid to executives at a broader range of banks should they fail, and to lower the threshold for the regulator to impose fines and bar executives from working at another bank.

The recent bank failures create an opportunity to shape the political narrative for next year's election.

While Republicans are saying that regulators were "asleep at the switch," they are also trying to tie Biden and Democrats to the turmoil by blaming them for higher inflation, which is leading to the higher interest rates and reduced the value of Silicon Valley Banks investments.

"A failure of the bank, a failure with regulators, and without any question, a failure at the top," said Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., in reference to Biden.

Democrats are pinning the failures on the changes Republicans led in scaling back Dodd-Frank requirements for certain banks, saying it's an example of how Washington caters to powerful interest groups rather than average voters.

"The 2018 rollbacks permitted the banks to take on more risk in order to boost their profits," Warren said. "So what did they do? They took on more risks, boosted their profits, gave their executives big bonuses and salaries, and then blew the banks up."

By KEVIN FREKING&nbsp;WASHINGTON (AP) — Bills were filed, hearings were planned and blame was cast as Congress reacted this past week to the abrupt failure of two banks. A look at what lawmakers are saying and planning as the fallout continues from the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.QUICK LEGISLATIVE FIXES UNLIKELYWhile President Joe Biden called Monday on Congress to strengthen the rules for banks to prevent future failures, lawmakers are divided on whether any legislation is needed.Some congressional leaders are skeptical that a closely divided Congress will act at all."There's people who are going to choose bills, but I cannot imagine that, with the hold banks have on Republican members of Congress, that we can pass anything significant," said Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, chairman of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee.Republicans say the laws already in place were sufficient to prevent the bank failures, if only regulators had done their job by spotting obvious problems and directing the banks to take steps that would reduce their risk."If there are ideas out there that people have, you know, at some point, we would be willing to entertain those, but I think it would be premature to start talking about solutions before we fully define the problem and ultimately get answers from the regulators about why they were asleep at the job," said Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, the second-ranking Republican.___SO WHAT'S NEXT? The House Financial Services Committee has announced its first hearing for March 29, featuring at least two witnesses: Martin Gruenberg, chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s board of directors, and Michael Barr, vice chair for supervision with the Federal Reserve's board of governors. "We will conduct this hearing without fear or favor to get the answers the American people deserve," lawmakers said.On the Senate side, Brown said his committee will also hold a hearing soon to help lawmakers assess what went wrong. He said the first hearing is likely to focus on bringing in witnesses responsible for regulating the failed banks. The Fed board was the primary regulator for Silicon Valley Bank in California, while the FDIC was the primary federal regulator for Signature Bank in New York.Brown spelled out some of the questions lawmakers probably will have for the regulators in a letter Thursday asking them to undertake a comprehensive review of what went wrong. What role did social media-led coordination among customers play? What role did the large percentage of uninsured deposits at Silicon Valley Bank play? Were there regulatory gaps with respect to capital, liquidity and stress testing that played a role in the failures?Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn., said he wants to know why regulators did not act on detailed reports of a liquidity risk at Silicon Valley Bank and why the FDIC failed to auction off the bank's remaining parts last weekend.Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., said she wants to know if regulators intend to use the failure of Signature Bank to further crack down on cryptocurrency. She has been a vocal advocate for cryptocurrency development and is an investor in bitcoin. Signature was the first FDIC-insured bank to offer a blockchain-based digital payment platform in 2019 and had been a go-to bank for the crypto industry.Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said he wanted to know how private stock analysts had warned about Silicon Valley's investments but regulators did not seem to know about potential problems.___CONGRESSIONAL ACTION Democrats in both chambers have rallied around two legislative proposals. The first, from Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Rep. Katie Porter, D-Calif., would repeal the 2018 rollback of certain aspects of the Dodd-Frank Act enacted after the financial crisis a decade earlier.The Dodd-Frank Act subjected all banks with $50 billion or more in assets to enhanced regulation, such as annual stress testing and the submission of resolution plans or "living wills" in the event of bankruptcy.But after years of complaints from community and regional banks about the cost of compliance, Congress lifted the threshold for meeting all the Dodd-Frank Act requirements to $250 billion.Banks with assets valued at less than $100 billion were automatically exempted from the enhanced regulation. The Fed was given the discretion to apply on a case-by-case basis the enhanced oversight for banks between the $100 billion and $250 billion level. Both Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank fell in that category."President Trump's rollback paved the way for the SVB collapse," Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said on the Senate floor Thursday.But Republicans have countered that the tiered oversight they established in 2018 with the support of several Democrats in both chambers gave federal regulators all the tools they needed to catch the problems at Silicon Valley and Signature before they became fatal."I think the issue here is liquidity and there are liquidity stress tests that regulators have established for the banks," said Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, and the author of the 2018 changes to Dodd-Frank. "If they need to tighten those up, they have the authority to do it."With that philosophical divide, it's unlikely the Warren and Porter bill will advance in Congress.A second bill might have a better shot. The bill from Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Democratic Reps. Adam Schiff and Mike Levin of California would recoup any bonuses and profits that bank executives receive from stock sales make in the 60 days before a bank failure.Republicans also directed considerable ire at the executives of the failed banks this week."I think all of that ought to be clawed back," Kennedy said of bonuses. "And this time, I hope somebody goes to jail."On Friday, Biden called on Congress to grant the FDIC the power to force the return of compensation paid to executives at a broader range of banks should they fail, and to lower the threshold for the regulator to impose fines and bar executives from working at another bank.___POINTING FINGERS AT THE OTHER PARTYThe recent bank failures create an opportunity to shape the political narrative for next year's election.While Republicans are saying that regulators were "asleep at the switch," they are also trying to tie Biden and Democrats to the turmoil by blaming them for higher inflation, which is leading to the higher interest rates and reduced the value of Silicon Valley Banks investments."A failure of the bank, a failure with regulators, and without any question, a failure at the top," said Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., in reference to Biden.Democrats are pinning the failures on the changes Republicans led in scaling back Dodd-Frank requirements for certain banks, saying it's an example of how Washington caters to powerful interest groups rather than average voters."The 2018 rollbacks permitted the banks to take on more risk in order to boost their profits," Warren said. "So what did they do? They took on more risks, boosted their profits, gave their executives big bonuses and salaries, and then blew the banks up."

Bank failures: Anger in Congress, but division on what to do

MONTGOMERY COUNTY—One person was injured in an accident during a high-speed chase with law enforcement just before 3:30p.m. Sunday in Montgomery County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2005 Dodge Durango driven by&nbsp; Bradley M. Landers, 33, Blanchard, Oklahoma, was westbound on U.S. 166 at the U.S. 75 westbound junction attempting to elude police at a high rate of speed.

Landers was unable to negotiate a curve. The SUV traveled off the roadway to the left, struck a guardrail, overturned and came to rest on it's wheels.

EMS transported Landers to a hospital in Tulsa.&nbsp; He was properly restrained, according to the KHP. Authorities have not released details on what prompted the chase.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY—One person was injured in an accident during a high-speed chase with law enforcement just before 3:30p.m. Sunday in Montgomery County.The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2005 Dodge Durango driven by&nbsp; Bradley M. Landers, 33, Blanchard, Oklahoma, was westbound on U.S. 166 at the U.S. 75 westbound junction attempting to elude police at a high rate of speed.Landers was unable to negotiate a curve. The SUV traveled off the roadway to the left, struck a guardrail, overturned and came to rest on it's wheels.EMS transported Landers to a hospital in Tulsa.&nbsp; He was properly restrained, according to the KHP. Authorities have not released details on what prompted the chase.

Man hospitalized after crash during high-speed Kan. chase

SEDGWICK COUNTY —A 33-year-old Kansas man has been found guilty in the rape of a 72-year-old woman.

On March 16, a jury found&nbsp; Jeremy Brown of Valley Center guilty on four counts of rape, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.

Just before 4:30a.m. June 26, police responded to a report of rape at a home in the 1600 block of South St. Paul Street in Wichita, according to Officer Charley Davidson and contacted a 72-year-old woman identified as a victim.

Investigators learned the 72-year-old woman was with a 37-year-old woman and a 45-year-old man at a local bar where they met Jeremy Brown and then all four met at a home on St. Paul Street. At the residence, Brown is alleged to have sexually assaulted the 72-year-old.

Booking details listed him as 6-foot-4 inches tall and 400 pounds.&nbsp;&nbsp;He is scheduled for sentencing in May, according to the district attorney's office.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/6/1625051561119.png" alt="Brown-photo Sedgwick Co." />
 <figcaption>Brown-photo Sedgwick Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —A 33-year-old Kansas man has been found guilty in the rape of a 72-year-old woman.On March 16, a jury found&nbsp; Jeremy Brown of Valley Center guilty on four counts of rape, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.Just before 4:30a.m. June 26, police responded to a report of rape at a home in the 1600 block of South St. Paul Street in Wichita, according to Officer Charley Davidson and contacted a 72-year-old woman identified as a victim.Investigators learned the 72-year-old woman was with a 37-year-old woman and a 45-year-old man at a local bar where they met Jeremy Brown and then all four met at a home on St. Paul Street. At the residence, Brown is alleged to have sexually assaulted the 72-year-old.Booking details listed him as 6-foot-4 inches tall and 400 pounds.&nbsp;&nbsp;He is scheduled for sentencing in May, according to the district attorney's office.---------

Jury: Kansas man guilty in sex assault of 72-year-old

GEARY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities investigating a homicide in Junction City have two suspects in custody.

Just before 8:30p.m. Saturday, police responded to the 700 block of W. 1st Street in Junction City in reference to a check welfare, according to a media release.

Officers located two deceased inside of a residence. The deceased were identified 75-year-old Valerie J. Krissman and 80-year=-old Roland C. Krissman.

&nbsp;Detectives received arrest warrants for Steven P. Pierce, 33 and Kallie R. Peters. 29, both of Junction City&nbsp; for 2 counts of Felony Murder, 2 counts of Aggravated Robbery, and 1 count of Felony Theft in reference to this investigation. 

The Michigan State Patrol located both Pierce and&nbsp; Peters and arrested them on these warrants. They are currently being held in Michigan pending extradition back to Kansas.

GEARY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a homicide in Junction City.

Officers located two subjects deceased inside of a residence. The deceased were identified as a 75-year-old white female and an 80-year-old white male, both residents of Junction City. 

The deaths are being investigated as Homicides, according to police.&nbsp;

The names of the deceased are being withheld pending notification of the family. Autopsies have been scheduled for a later date.

GEARY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities investigating a homicide in Junction City have two suspects in custody.Just before 8:30p.m. Saturday, police responded to the 700 block of W. 1st Street in Junction City in reference to a check welfare, according to a media release.Officers located two deceased inside of a residence. The deceased were identified 75-year-old Valerie J. Krissman and 80-year=-old Roland C. Krissman.&nbsp;Detectives received arrest warrants for Steven P. Pierce, 33 and Kallie R. Peters. 29, both of Junction City&nbsp; for 2 counts of Felony Murder, 2 counts of Aggravated Robbery, and 1 count of Felony Theft in reference to this investigation. The Michigan State Patrol located both Pierce and&nbsp; Peters and arrested them on these warrants. They are currently being held in Michigan pending extradition back to Kansas.-------------GEARY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a homicide in Junction City.Just before 8:30p.m. Saturday, police responded to the 700 block of W. 1st Street in Junction City in reference to a check welfare, according to a media release.Officers located two subjects deceased inside of a residence. The deceased were identified as a 75-year-old white female and an 80-year-old white male, both residents of Junction City. The deaths are being investigated as Homicides, according to police.&nbsp;The names of the deceased are being withheld pending notification of the family. Autopsies have been scheduled for a later date.

Police in Michigan capture suspects for murder of Kan. couple

SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a shooting that critically injured a 1-year-old girl from Wichita.

Just after 4:30 a.m. Sunday, police were dispatched to a walk-in shooting victim at an area hospital, according to Officer Juan Rebolledo.

Officers learned the girl's 44-year-old father transported the child to the hospital for treatment of a single gunshot wound to her abdominal area. 

The victim underwent surgery and is in critical but stable condition, according to Rebolledo.&nbsp;

The detectives are still working to fully determine the circumstances leading up to the shooting.&nbsp; The incident took place at the 1000 block of North Main Street in Wichita.&nbsp;The father of the girl is fully cooperating with investigators.

SEDGWICK COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a shooting that critically injured a 1-year-old girl from Wichita.Just after 4:30 a.m. Sunday, police were dispatched to a walk-in shooting victim at an area hospital, according to Officer Juan Rebolledo.Officers learned the girl's 44-year-old father transported the child to the hospital for treatment of a single gunshot wound to her abdominal area. The victim underwent surgery and is in critical but stable condition, according to Rebolledo.&nbsp;The detectives are still working to fully determine the circumstances leading up to the shooting.&nbsp; The incident took place at the 1000 block of North Main Street in Wichita.&nbsp;The father of the girl is fully cooperating with investigators.

Police: 1-year-old Kan. girl hospitalized with gunshot wound

BEIJING (AP) — China accused the United States on Thursday of spreading disinformation and suppressing TikTok following reports that the Biden administration was calling for its Chinese owners to sell their stakes in the popular video-sharing app.

The U.S. has yet to present evidence that TikTok threatens its national security and was using the excuse of data security to abuse its power to suppress foreign companies, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin told reporters at a daily briefing.

“The U.S. should stop spreading disinformation about data security, stop suppressing the relevant company, and provide an open, fair and non-discriminatory environment for foreign businesses to invest and operate in the U.S.,” Wang said.

TikTok was dismissive Wednesday of a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-threatens-to-ban-tiktok-if-chinese-founder-doesnt-sell-ownership-stake-36d7295c">report in The Wall Street Journal</a>&nbsp;that said the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., part of the Treasury Department, was threatening a U.S. ban on the app unless its owners, Beijing-based ByteDance Ltd., divested.

“If protecting national security is the objective, divestment doesn’t solve the problem: A change in ownership would not impose any new restrictions on data flows or access,” TikTok spokesperson Maureen Shanahan said.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-tiktok-ban-china-17dc11399ffed22482ed6803c80b54c3">Shanahan said TikTok was already answering concerns</a>&nbsp;through “transparent, U.S.-based protection of U.S. user data and systems, with robust third-party monitoring, vetting, and verification.”

The Journal report cited anonymous “people familiar with the matter.” The Treasury Department and the White House’s National Security Council declined to comment.

In late February, the White House gave all federal agencies&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-politics-united-states-government-ap-top-news-business-95491774cf8f0fe3e2b9634658a22e56">30 days to wipe TikTok off all government devices</a>. Some agencies, including the Departments of Defense, Homeland Security and the State Department already have restrictions in place. The White House already does not allow TikTok on its devices.

Congress passed the “No TikTok on Government Devices Act” in December as part of a sweeping government funding package. The legislation does allow for TikTok use in certain cases, including for national security, law enforcement and research purposes.

Meanwhile, lawmakers in both the House and Senate have been moving forward with legislation that would give the Biden administration more power to clamp down on TikTok.

TikTok remains extremely popular and is used by two-thirds of teens in the U.S. But there is increasing concern that Beijing could obtain control of American user data that the app has obtained and push pro-Beijing narratives and propaganda on the app.

China has long been concerned about the influence of overseas social media and communications apps, and bans most of the best-known ones, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube — and TikTok.

WASHINGTON (AP) — TikTok was dismissive this week of reports that the Biden administration was calling for its Chinese owners to sell their stakes in the popular video-sharing app, saying such a move wouldn't help protect national security.

The company was responding to a report in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-threatens-to-ban-tiktok-if-chinese-founder-doesnt-sell-ownership-stake-36d7295c">The Wall Street Journal</a>&nbsp;that said the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., part of the Treasury Department, was threatening a U.S. ban on the app unless its owners, Beijing-based ByteDance Ltd., divested.

“If protecting national security is the objective, divestment doesn’t solve the problem: a change in ownership would not impose any new restrictions on data flows or access," TikTok spokesperson Maureen Shanahan said. "The best way to address concerns about national security is with the transparent, U.S.-based protection of U.S. user data and systems, with robust third-party monitoring, vetting, and verification, which we are already implementing.”

Late last month, the White House gave all federal agencies 30 days to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-politics-united-states-government-ap-top-news-business-95491774cf8f0fe3e2b9634658a22e56">wipe TikTok off all government devices</a>.

The Office of Management and Budget called the guidance a “critical step forward in addressing the risks presented by the app to sensitive government data.” Some agencies, including the Departments of Defense, Homeland Security and State, already have restrictions in place. The White House already does not allow TikTok on its devices.

Rep. Mike McCaul, the chairman of the House Foreign Relations Committee, has been a vocal critic of the app, saying the Chinese Communist Party is using it to “manipulate and monitor its users while it gobbles up Americans’ data to be used for their malign activities.”

“Anyone with TikTok downloaded on their device has given the CCP a backdoor to all their personal information. It’s a spy balloon into your phone,” the Texas Republican said.

TikTok remains extremely popular and is used by two-thirds of teens in the U.S. But there is increasing concern that Beijing could obtain control of American user data that the app has obtained.

BEIJING (AP) — China accused the United States on Thursday of spreading disinformation and suppressing TikTok following reports that the Biden administration was calling for its Chinese owners to sell their stakes in the popular video-sharing app.The U.S. has yet to present evidence that TikTok threatens its national security and was using the excuse of data security to abuse its power to suppress foreign companies, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin told reporters at a daily briefing.“The U.S. should stop spreading disinformation about data security, stop suppressing the relevant company, and provide an open, fair and non-discriminatory environment for foreign businesses to invest and operate in the U.S.,” Wang said.TikTok was dismissive Wednesday of a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-threatens-to-ban-tiktok-if-chinese-founder-doesnt-sell-ownership-stake-36d7295c">report in The Wall Street Journal</a>&nbsp;that said the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., part of the Treasury Department, was threatening a U.S. ban on the app unless its owners, Beijing-based ByteDance Ltd., divested.“If protecting national security is the objective, divestment doesn’t solve the problem: A change in ownership would not impose any new restrictions on data flows or access,” TikTok spokesperson Maureen Shanahan said.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-tiktok-ban-china-17dc11399ffed22482ed6803c80b54c3">Shanahan said TikTok was already answering concerns</a>&nbsp;through “transparent, U.S.-based protection of U.S. user data and systems, with robust third-party monitoring, vetting, and verification.”The Journal report cited anonymous “people familiar with the matter.” The Treasury Department and the White House’s National Security Council declined to comment.In late February, the White House gave all federal agencies&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-politics-united-states-government-ap-top-news-business-95491774cf8f0fe3e2b9634658a22e56">30 days to wipe TikTok off all government devices</a>. Some agencies, including the Departments of Defense, Homeland Security and the State Department already have restrictions in place. The White House already does not allow TikTok on its devices.Congress passed the “No TikTok on Government Devices Act” in December as part of a sweeping government funding package. The legislation does allow for TikTok use in certain cases, including for national security, law enforcement and research purposes.Meanwhile, lawmakers in both the House and Senate have been moving forward with legislation that would give the Biden administration more power to clamp down on TikTok.TikTok remains extremely popular and is used by two-thirds of teens in the U.S. But there is increasing concern that Beijing could obtain control of American user data that the app has obtained and push pro-Beijing narratives and propaganda on the app.China has long been concerned about the influence of overseas social media and communications apps, and bans most of the best-known ones, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube — and TikTok.-------------WASHINGTON (AP) — TikTok was dismissive this week of reports that the Biden administration was calling for its Chinese owners to sell their stakes in the popular video-sharing app, saying such a move wouldn't help protect national security.The company was responding to a report in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-threatens-to-ban-tiktok-if-chinese-founder-doesnt-sell-ownership-stake-36d7295c">The Wall Street Journal</a>&nbsp;that said the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., part of the Treasury Department, was threatening a U.S. ban on the app unless its owners, Beijing-based ByteDance Ltd., divested.“If protecting national security is the objective, divestment doesn’t solve the problem: a change in ownership would not impose any new restrictions on data flows or access," TikTok spokesperson Maureen Shanahan said. "The best way to address concerns about national security is with the transparent, U.S.-based protection of U.S. user data and systems, with robust third-party monitoring, vetting, and verification, which we are already implementing.”The Journal report cited anonymous “people familiar with the matter.” The Treasury Department and the White House’s National Security Council declined to comment.Late last month, the White House gave all federal agencies 30 days to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-politics-united-states-government-ap-top-news-business-95491774cf8f0fe3e2b9634658a22e56">wipe TikTok off all government devices</a>.The Office of Management and Budget called the guidance a “critical step forward in addressing the risks presented by the app to sensitive government data.” Some agencies, including the Departments of Defense, Homeland Security and State, already have restrictions in place. The White House already does not allow TikTok on its devices.Congress passed the “No TikTok on Government Devices Act” in December as part of a sweeping government funding package. The legislation does allow for TikTok use in certain cases, including for national security, law enforcement and research purposes.Meanwhile, lawmakers in both the House and Senate have been moving forward with legislation that would give the Biden administration more power to clamp down on TikTok.Rep. Mike McCaul, the chairman of the House Foreign Relations Committee, has been a vocal critic of the app, saying the Chinese Communist Party is using it to “manipulate and monitor its users while it gobbles up Americans’ data to be used for their malign activities.”“Anyone with TikTok downloaded on their device has given the CCP a backdoor to all their personal information. It’s a spy balloon into your phone,” the Texas Republican said.TikTok remains extremely popular and is used by two-thirds of teens in the U.S. But there is increasing concern that Beijing could obtain control of American user data that the app has obtained.The company&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-politics-d33e58c76bb3c13297c72816ef4e6231">has been dismissive of the ban</a>&nbsp;for federal devices and has noted that it is developing security and data privacy plans as part of the Biden administration’s ongoing national security review.