HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Kansas Governor Laura Kelly on Monday signed a large alcohol policy bill that allows for the consumption of beer, wine or other alcoholic liquor on the Kansas state fairgrounds in areas to be set by the State Fair Board.

"This would allow people to walk around the fairgrounds during fair time with their favorite beverage, beer or wine," State Fair General Manager Bryan Schulz said last month. "We would be able to control that by setting boundaries."

The Fair Board would have to issue permits that clearly outline the area.

"During fair time, that might be a little difficult because of the full size of the grounds," Schulz said. "During other events on the grounds, we would be able to set up a parameter. Say, if we were to have a big car show up there, we could set up fencing and say it has to stay within this area and proper security would have to be taken with that."

Now that the bill is signed, the board can take up the issue. The next State Fair Board meeting is May 10 at 10 a.m.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — New Kansas laws will make the state fair home to drinkers who roam.

 Gov. Laura Kelly on Monday signed bills on beer and wine sales at the state fair. 

At the state fair, patrons 21 and older already can consume beer and wine in designated buildings and areas, but the new law will allow them to walk outside those areas with their drinks within boundaries marked off with a barrier.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2019/9/1568929115476.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>NICK GOSNELL Hutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — Kansas Governor Laura Kelly on Monday signed a large alcohol policy bill that allows for the consumption of beer, wine or other alcoholic liquor on the Kansas state fairgrounds in areas to be set by the State Fair Board."This would allow people to walk around the fairgrounds during fair time with their favorite beverage, beer or wine," State Fair General Manager Bryan Schulz said last month. "We would be able to control that by setting boundaries."The Fair Board would have to issue permits that clearly outline the area."During fair time, that might be a little difficult because of the full size of the grounds," Schulz said. "During other events on the grounds, we would be able to set up a parameter. Say, if we were to have a big car show up there, we could set up fencing and say it has to stay within this area and proper security would have to be taken with that."Now that the bill is signed, the board can take up the issue. The next State Fair Board meeting is May 10 at 10 a.m.---------TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — New Kansas laws will make the state fair home to drinkers who roam. Gov. Laura Kelly on Monday signed bills on beer and wine sales at the state fair. At the state fair, patrons 21 and older already can consume beer and wine in designated buildings and areas, but the new law will allow them to walk outside those areas with their drinks within boundaries marked off with a barrier.

Kansas to let drinkers roam at the State Fair

HUTCHINSON — NASA
 shuttle astronaut Dr. Janet Kavandi was in Hutchinson to talk to 
students about STEM research and how time in the classroom can lead to a
 better future. Kavandi was part of a presentation to students from the 
Magnet School at Allen and McCandless Elementary&nbsp; at the Cosmosphere on 
Thursday.

“We are now trying to get kids to understand that they 
have many opportunities in their future if they stay focused in school 
and set high goals for themselves,” Kavandi said. “And if they study, 
especially the sciences, engineering, IT, all of those kinds of fields, 
they can help us build these spacecraft.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

The space race is 
still growing within the United States as commercial space flight is 
becoming more common. Kavandi says while it is in some way a 
competition, it is still one group working for a common goal.

“NASA
 is essentially turning over low earth orbit as the international space 
station is today to commercial companies,” Kavandi said. “So when we 
deorbit the international space station we already have another 
commercial space station that can accept commercial partners.”

Kavandi
 says she is very excited about the NASA Artemis program that will send 
astronauts back to the moon and said now is the time to get students 
excited about the space program again noting that it is up to parents 
and teachers to make that happen.

“I think one of the most 
important things is for parents to ensure that their kids know that they
 have opportunities,” Kavandi said. “My dad was wonderful about letting 
me know that I could do anything I wanted.”

Kavandi is currently 
President of Sierra Space, a Colorado-based company building a 
space vehicle for future commercial flight.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/4/1649953833422.jpeg" alt="Shuttle astronaut Dr. Janet Kavandi talks with students from the Magnet School at Allen and McCandless Elementary about her space travels during a presentation at the Cosmosphere in Hutchinson." />
 <figcaption>Shuttle astronaut Dr. Janet Kavandi talks with students from the Magnet School at Allen and McCandless Elementary about her space travels during a presentation at the Cosmosphere in Hutchinson.</figcaption>
 </figure>By ROD ZOOK Hutch PostHUTCHINSON — NASA
 shuttle astronaut Dr. Janet Kavandi was in Hutchinson to talk to 
students about STEM research and how time in the classroom can lead to a
 better future. Kavandi was part of a presentation to students from the 
Magnet School at Allen and McCandless Elementary&nbsp; at the Cosmosphere on 
Thursday.“We are now trying to get kids to understand that they 
have many opportunities in their future if they stay focused in school 
and set high goals for themselves,” Kavandi said. “And if they study, 
especially the sciences, engineering, IT, all of those kinds of fields, 
they can help us build these spacecraft.”&nbsp;&nbsp;The space race is 
still growing within the United States as commercial space flight is 
becoming more common. Kavandi says while it is in some way a 
competition, it is still one group working for a common goal.“NASA
 is essentially turning over low earth orbit as the international space 
station is today to commercial companies,” Kavandi said. “So when we 
deorbit the international space station we already have another 
commercial space station that can accept commercial partners.”Kavandi
 says she is very excited about the NASA Artemis program that will send 
astronauts back to the moon and said now is the time to get students 
excited about the space program again noting that it is up to parents 
and teachers to make that happen.“I think one of the most 
important things is for parents to ensure that their kids know that they
 have opportunities,” Kavandi said. “My dad was wonderful about letting 
me know that I could do anything I wanted.”Kavandi is currently 
President of Sierra Space, a Colorado-based company building a 
space vehicle for future commercial flight.

Astronaut tells to students to reach for the stars at Cosmosphere event

HUTCHINSON —&nbsp;Kansas First District Congressman Tracey Mann was in Hutchinson on Wednesday morning at the Cosmosphere as part of his annual town hall 
tour of the Big First.

<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/dc00fad7-d945-463f-aeb0-95bbd9ee27cb">Mann will be in several area Kansas counties Thursday.</a>&nbsp;

"There are a lot of people concerned about 
the southern border," Mann said. "I share those concerns. A lot of 
people are concerned with the spending. I share those concerns. That's 
why we've been voting against it. I don't know that there were any 
surprises, but it's good to listen to folks and hear what's top of mind 
for people in Reno County and all over the district."

With the new
 inflation numbers released yesterday, Rep. Mann is hoping that American
 agriculture can help solve at least some of the nation's energy issues 
in the short and long term.

"I'd like to think that it's going to 
impact the future Farm Bill by increasing our domestic liquid fuel 
production, which is both oil and gas, but it's also ethanol," Mann 
said. "The answer is below our feet and growing in our fields, to ramp 
up domestic liquid fuel production, drive down costs, stop relying on 
other countries, to me it's a no brainer."

Mann supports the idea 
of expanding the usage of E15 beyond the waiver for this summer 
announced by the Biden administration in Iowa on Tuesday.

"I'd 
like to see that made permanent," Mann said. "We've introduced 
legislation as such and I was pleased to see that yesterday."

E15 
is safe for most cars manufactured in 2001 or later, but check your 
car's owner's manual for specific details. Mann is in the midst of 40 
town halls in the two-week Congresssional break.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/4/1649866469521.jpeg" alt="Tracey Mann speaks at the Reno County Town Hall&nbsp; / Photo by Nick Gosnell" />
 <figcaption>Tracey Mann speaks at the Reno County Town Hall&nbsp; / Photo by Nick Gosnell</figcaption>
 </figure>NICK GOSNELL Hutch PostHUTCHINSON —&nbsp;Kansas First District Congressman Tracey Mann was in Hutchinson on Wednesday morning at the Cosmosphere as part of his annual town hall 
tour of the Big First.<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/dc00fad7-d945-463f-aeb0-95bbd9ee27cb">Mann will be in several area Kansas counties Thursday.</a>&nbsp;"There are a lot of people concerned about 
the southern border," Mann said. "I share those concerns. A lot of 
people are concerned with the spending. I share those concerns. That's 
why we've been voting against it. I don't know that there were any 
surprises, but it's good to listen to folks and hear what's top of mind 
for people in Reno County and all over the district."With the new
 inflation numbers released yesterday, Rep. Mann is hoping that American
 agriculture can help solve at least some of the nation's energy issues 
in the short and long term."I'd like to think that it's going to 
impact the future Farm Bill by increasing our domestic liquid fuel 
production, which is both oil and gas, but it's also ethanol," Mann 
said. "The answer is below our feet and growing in our fields, to ramp 
up domestic liquid fuel production, drive down costs, stop relying on 
other countries, to me it's a no brainer."Mann supports the idea 
of expanding the usage of E15 beyond the waiver for this summer 
announced by the Biden administration in Iowa on Tuesday."I'd 
like to see that made permanent," Mann said. "We've introduced 
legislation as such and I was pleased to see that yesterday."E15 
is safe for most cars manufactured in 2001 or later, but check your 
car's owner's manual for specific details. Mann is in the midst of 40 
town halls in the two-week Congresssional break.

Mann: No surprises at town hall; inflation can be eased by agriculture

By ROD ZOOK <a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>

HUTCHINSON — It started as a curiosity and a dream at the very start of the U.S. space program.&nbsp;

Patty
 Carey started the Hutchinson Planetarium in the chicken barn at the 
state fairgrounds. Now the Cosmosphere is preparing to celebrate its 
60th year as one of the premier space museums in the world.&nbsp;

“It’s
 really amazing when you stop and think about it. The Cosmosphere 
started out 60 years ago in the poultry building on the fairgrounds,” 
Cosmosphere President Jim Remar said. "I hope Patty (Carey) is looking 
down and smiling with everything this wonderful organization has been 
able to accomplish.”

The museum has changed through the years and 
has survived many economic downturns, the pandemic and even scandal to 
stay at the top of its game. Remar says that stepping up the 
Cosmosphere's education reach has been key to its continued growth.

&nbsp;“We’ll
 always be the museum for space history and space exploration,” Remar 
said. “But a couple of years ago we decided that if we were going to be 
that proverbial dot on the wall, we wanted to be known and become the 
physical and virtual location for STEM education."&nbsp;

Remar says the
 virtual reach the Cosmosphere has developed over the past three years 
put the museum at the front of STEM education.

“I think we are,” 
Remar said. “I think we really in the last couple of years have been 
able to demonstrate and showcase that both here and virtually we are the
 go-to for STEM education.”

Over the years, the museum's 
collection of space artifacts has grown to impressive heights. From 
actual space-flown artifacts to a piece of cloth from the Wright 
brothers first flight, the museum is one of only two that has flown 
spacecraft from the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo programs including the 
Apollo 13 capsule. The list of guests and supporters is just as 
impressive from the first Mercury and Apollo astronauts to the 
astronauts of the space shuttle and International Space Station along 
with the hundreds of engineers and flight controllers who made it all 
happen. 

As always, the Cosmosphere is never short of big 
celebrations and this birthday will be no different. The event is called
 the First and Last Steps and is scheduled for Friday, Dec. 2. The list 
of honored guests will be impressive.

“We’ll have luminaries such 
as Charlie Duke, Gerry Griffin, Fred Haise, Steve Hawley, Gene Kranz, 
Jack Lousma, Harrison Schmitt, and Jeff Ashby, " Remar said. “And that 
will be a night to celebrate the history of the Cosmosphere.”

More information on tickets and a complete schedule of the event will be announced at a later date.

By ROD ZOOK <a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>HUTCHINSON — It started as a curiosity and a dream at the very start of the U.S. space program.&nbsp;Patty
 Carey started the Hutchinson Planetarium in the chicken barn at the 
state fairgrounds. Now the Cosmosphere is preparing to celebrate its 
60th year as one of the premier space museums in the world.&nbsp;“It’s
 really amazing when you stop and think about it. The Cosmosphere 
started out 60 years ago in the poultry building on the fairgrounds,” 
Cosmosphere President Jim Remar said. "I hope Patty (Carey) is looking 
down and smiling with everything this wonderful organization has been 
able to accomplish.”The museum has changed through the years and 
has survived many economic downturns, the pandemic and even scandal to 
stay at the top of its game. Remar says that stepping up the 
Cosmosphere's education reach has been key to its continued growth.&nbsp;“We’ll
 always be the museum for space history and space exploration,” Remar 
said. “But a couple of years ago we decided that if we were going to be 
that proverbial dot on the wall, we wanted to be known and become the 
physical and virtual location for STEM education."&nbsp;Remar says the
 virtual reach the Cosmosphere has developed over the past three years 
put the museum at the front of STEM education.“I think we are,” 
Remar said. “I think we really in the last couple of years have been 
able to demonstrate and showcase that both here and virtually we are the
 go-to for STEM education.”Over the years, the museum's 
collection of space artifacts has grown to impressive heights. From 
actual space-flown artifacts to a piece of cloth from the Wright 
brothers first flight, the museum is one of only two that has flown 
spacecraft from the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo programs including the 
Apollo 13 capsule. The list of guests and supporters is just as 
impressive from the first Mercury and Apollo astronauts to the 
astronauts of the space shuttle and International Space Station along 
with the hundreds of engineers and flight controllers who made it all 
happen. As always, the Cosmosphere is never short of big 
celebrations and this birthday will be no different. The event is called
 the First and Last Steps and is scheduled for Friday, Dec. 2. The list 
of honored guests will be impressive.“We’ll have luminaries such 
as Charlie Duke, Gerry Griffin, Fred Haise, Steve Hawley, Gene Kranz, 
Jack Lousma, Harrison Schmitt, and Jeff Ashby, " Remar said. “And that 
will be a night to celebrate the history of the Cosmosphere.”More information on tickets and a complete schedule of the event will be announced at a later date.

From chicken coop to world-class museum: Cosmosphere celebrates 60 years

HUTCHINSON,
Kan. — 
Jim Robb with the Kansas Mennonite Relief Sale notes that for people who have been praying for Ukraine, coming to the sale is a way you can help.

"When you start thinking in terms of where a lot of the Mennonites, their background, is from, they came to the United States from the Ukraine," Robb said. "German and Swiss background, but they ended up in Russia and in the Ukraine area and they came here and they brought with them those ethnic foods. Verenike, somebody told me it was actually the national dish of the Ukraine."

There will also be an artisan raising money for the Ukraine specifically.

"She's an artist and does Ukranian eggs, the Easter egg kind of things," Robb said. "She's been doing that for a long time. It's a good part of our history, part of the Mennonite history. This year, she asked if it would be possible to have a place set up where she could say, these donations definitely go to the Ukraine. She'll have that opportunity in the Domestic Arts Building."

The goal of the whole sale is to help the Mennonite Central Committee in their work around the globe.

"People come as families, people come as friends, as congregations, they get together," Robb said. "It's totally for the purpose of supporting this, what was supposed to be a temporary organization a hundred years ago, the Mennonite Central Committee. They do so because they are generous, they do so out of the goodness of their heart. They feel it is one way for them to serve their fellow man and to do God's work."

The Mennonite Central Committee strives to make peace a part of everything they do. The original organization in 1920 was to help Mennonites from what is now Ukraine avoid starvation.

The schedule of events starts with sale booths opening at 4 p.m. Friday, with the feeding of the multitude also starting at that time, and the general auction starting at 6 p.m.

On Saturday, breakfast starts in Cottonwood Court at 7 a.m., with booths open at 8 a.m. The 5K Run for Relief is at 8 a.m., with the quilt and general auctions both starting at 8:45 a.m. and feeding the multitude starting at 10:30 a.m., with the kids auction in the Pride of Kansas building at 10 a.m. Saturday and the memorabilia auction at 11 a.m.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/4/1649167992477.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>NICK GOSNELL Hutch PostHUTCHINSON,
Kan. — 
Jim Robb with the Kansas Mennonite Relief Sale notes that for people who have been praying for Ukraine, coming to the sale is a way you can help."When you start thinking in terms of where a lot of the Mennonites, their background, is from, they came to the United States from the Ukraine," Robb said. "German and Swiss background, but they ended up in Russia and in the Ukraine area and they came here and they brought with them those ethnic foods. Verenike, somebody told me it was actually the national dish of the Ukraine."There will also be an artisan raising money for the Ukraine specifically."She's an artist and does Ukranian eggs, the Easter egg kind of things," Robb said. "She's been doing that for a long time. It's a good part of our history, part of the Mennonite history. This year, she asked if it would be possible to have a place set up where she could say, these donations definitely go to the Ukraine. She'll have that opportunity in the Domestic Arts Building."The goal of the whole sale is to help the Mennonite Central Committee in their work around the globe."People come as families, people come as friends, as congregations, they get together," Robb said. "It's totally for the purpose of supporting this, what was supposed to be a temporary organization a hundred years ago, the Mennonite Central Committee. They do so because they are generous, they do so out of the goodness of their heart. They feel it is one way for them to serve their fellow man and to do God's work."The Mennonite Central Committee strives to make peace a part of everything they do. The original organization in 1920 was to help Mennonites from what is now Ukraine avoid starvation.The schedule of events starts with sale booths opening at 4 p.m. Friday, with the feeding of the multitude also starting at that time, and the general auction starting at 6 p.m.On Saturday, breakfast starts in Cottonwood Court at 7 a.m., with booths open at 8 a.m. The 5K Run for Relief is at 8 a.m., with the quilt and general auctions both starting at 8:45 a.m. and feeding the multitude starting at 10:30 a.m., with the kids auction in the Pride of Kansas building at 10 a.m. Saturday and the memorabilia auction at 11 a.m.

Mennonite Relief Sale helps the world, and helps Ukraine

<a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>

HUTCHINSON — The latest installment of the Dillon Lecture 
Series will feature NASA astronaut and Kansas native Nick Hague. Hague’s
 presentation begins at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Hutchinson Sports 
Arena. The lecture is open to the public. Cost to attend the lecture is $10, with students admitted free.

Hague was born in 
Belleville and graduated from Hoxie High School in 1994. He was 
selected by NASA as an astronaut in 2013. The Kansas native earned a 
Bachelor of Science in Astronautical Engineering from the United States 
Air Force Academy in 1998, and a Master of Science in Aeronautical and 
Astronautical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
 in 2000.

In 2009, Hague was selected for the Air Force Fellows 
program in Washington and was a staff member in the U.S.&nbsp; Senate. Hague most recently served as Flight Engineer on the 
International Space Station for Expedition 59 and 60.&nbsp;

This is the
 41st season for the Dillon Lecture Series on the HutchCC Campus. For 
more information on the Dillon Lecture Series, visit&nbsp;<a href="http://www.hutchcc.edu/dls">www.hutchcc.edu/dls</a>.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/7/1595005445504.jpeg" alt="Hague" />
 <figcaption>Hague</figcaption>
 </figure><a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>HUTCHINSON — The latest installment of the Dillon Lecture 
Series will feature NASA astronaut and Kansas native Nick Hague. Hague’s
 presentation begins at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Hutchinson Sports 
Arena. The lecture is open to the public. Cost to attend the lecture is $10, with students admitted free.Hague was born in 
Belleville and graduated from Hoxie High School in 1994. He was 
selected by NASA as an astronaut in 2013. The Kansas native earned a 
Bachelor of Science in Astronautical Engineering from the United States 
Air Force Academy in 1998, and a Master of Science in Aeronautical and 
Astronautical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
 in 2000.In 2009, Hague was selected for the Air Force Fellows 
program in Washington and was a staff member in the U.S.&nbsp; Senate. Hague most recently served as Flight Engineer on the 
International Space Station for Expedition 59 and 60.&nbsp;This is the
 41st season for the Dillon Lecture Series on the HutchCC Campus. For 
more information on the Dillon Lecture Series, visit&nbsp;<a href="http://www.hutchcc.edu/dls">www.hutchcc.edu/dls</a>.

Hoxie astronaut scheduled to speak in Hutchinson

NICK GOSNELL <a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>

HUTCHINSON — 
Hutchinson Fire Capt. Troy Mueller said fighting wildfires in Kansas is very different today than it was in decades past.

"One
 of the things that's changed around here is the fuel type that we 
have," Mueller said. "With the cedars that we have, it's definitely 
changed us from an open grass prairie grass fire to really more of the 
fuel type that you see in Southern California, with the chapparal and 
stuff and when we have wind events, anytime we have wind, that's the 
main driver for our fires here."

It's really disheartening for firefighters to enter property that has had such overgrowth that it is impossible to defend.

"We
 can't even access a road if people can't get some of that stuff out of 
the way," said Battalion Chief Rex Albright. "There's property that's 
completely unsaveable for us. There's no way that we can get in front of
 it, with the amount of heat and flame height that we have coming at it,
 there's no man that can stand in front of that. It's truly up to the 
homeowner to start looking at that, but the cedar trees are the big 
thing."

Captain Ryan Winters was on the brush truck that had 
damage during the Cottonwood Complex Fire which Chief Beer referred to 
during his equipment request to the City Council earlier this month.

"We
 were with Brush 41 at that time, responding out of Station 4," said 
Winters. "We were the first truck on scene. It had already jumped 4th 
Street by the time we got there. We got in contact with our operations 
chief. We went directly to the head fire at that point and was trying to
 help with structure support on the north end area of the fire and 
trying to get it back into the burned area from the Albright Fire. We 
kind of got in a hairy situation with the wind shifts and everything. 
The fire flanked out around behind us. 

"We were kind of trapped, trying 
to get back to our safe area and the fire rolled over the top of us. I 
was outside the vehicle at the time. We were able to make access back to
 the cab of the truck. At that point, everything kind of got real dicey.
 With zero visibility, our directional was kind of challenging at that 
point to see where our safe zone was. Overall, we did find it. We were 
able to save the structure we that were on, but the fire was moving so 
fast, so rapidly, we were in a tight spot there."

Mueller noted as
 part of the City Council presentation how important it is that 
firefighters continue to upgrade their equipment as it ages out.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/3/1648658650382.jpeg" alt="Photo by Rod Zook / Hutch Post" />
 <figcaption>Photo by Rod Zook / Hutch Post</figcaption>
 </figure>NICK GOSNELL <a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>HUTCHINSON — 
Hutchinson Fire Capt. Troy Mueller said fighting wildfires in Kansas is very different today than it was in decades past."One
 of the things that's changed around here is the fuel type that we 
have," Mueller said. "With the cedars that we have, it's definitely 
changed us from an open grass prairie grass fire to really more of the 
fuel type that you see in Southern California, with the chapparal and 
stuff and when we have wind events, anytime we have wind, that's the 
main driver for our fires here."It's really disheartening for firefighters to enter property that has had such overgrowth that it is impossible to defend."We
 can't even access a road if people can't get some of that stuff out of 
the way," said Battalion Chief Rex Albright. "There's property that's 
completely unsaveable for us. There's no way that we can get in front of
 it, with the amount of heat and flame height that we have coming at it,
 there's no man that can stand in front of that. It's truly up to the 
homeowner to start looking at that, but the cedar trees are the big 
thing."Captain Ryan Winters was on the brush truck that had 
damage during the Cottonwood Complex Fire which Chief Beer referred to 
during his equipment request to the City Council earlier this month."We
 were with Brush 41 at that time, responding out of Station 4," said 
Winters. "We were the first truck on scene. It had already jumped 4th 
Street by the time we got there. We got in contact with our operations 
chief. We went directly to the head fire at that point and was trying to
 help with structure support on the north end area of the fire and 
trying to get it back into the burned area from the Albright Fire. We 
kind of got in a hairy situation with the wind shifts and everything. 
The fire flanked out around behind us. "We were kind of trapped, trying 
to get back to our safe area and the fire rolled over the top of us. I 
was outside the vehicle at the time. We were able to make access back to
 the cab of the truck. At that point, everything kind of got real dicey.
 With zero visibility, our directional was kind of challenging at that 
point to see where our safe zone was. Overall, we did find it. We were 
able to save the structure we that were on, but the fire was moving so 
fast, so rapidly, we were in a tight spot there."Mueller noted as
 part of the City Council presentation how important it is that 
firefighters continue to upgrade their equipment as it ages out.

Cedar infestation makes battling Kan. wildfires increasingly difficult


HUTCHINSON,
Kan. — 
A lawsuit filed earlier this month by a group for whom Kansas candidate for attorney general, Kris Kobach is general counsel, asks that airmen, including some from McConnell Airforce Base in Wichita who have religious objections to getting the COVID-19 vaccine be exempted.

"The First Amendment free exercise of religion clause protects them," Kobach said. "The government has no compelling interest in not making an exception for them. The other argument is the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, which Congress passed, also protects them."

A Friday U.S. Supreme Court decision in a similar case involving Navy SEALS narrows the potential scope of any positive ruling, in that the court held that command still gets to decide where its resources are deployed. One of the main points of Kobach's case is that there is a large amount of sunk cost in the training of these airmen.

"Of the 36 plaintiffs, 17 are pilots," Kobach said. "They fly the KC-135 out of Wichita, McConnell Airbase, or they fly the RC-135 out of Offutt Airbase near Omaha. You know how much it costs to train one of these pilots? $5.5 million each."

Kobach's contention is that he needs to be elected attorney general to keep pressure on the Biden Administration on policy decisions like this one.

"In many cases, the only litigant who can bring a lawsuit is the state attorney general," Kobach said. "In this particular one, the airmen came to me and as a private attorney, I was able to bring the lawsuit. But, we really do need to stop an out of control administration in Washington right now."

Kobach is one of multiple Republican candidates running to replace Derek Schmidt, who is running for governor.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/2/1582891209105.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>NICK GOSNELL Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON,
Kan. — 
A lawsuit filed earlier this month by a group for whom Kansas candidate for attorney general, Kris Kobach is general counsel, asks that airmen, including some from McConnell Airforce Base in Wichita who have religious objections to getting the COVID-19 vaccine be exempted."The First Amendment free exercise of religion clause protects them," Kobach said. "The government has no compelling interest in not making an exception for them. The other argument is the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, which Congress passed, also protects them."A Friday U.S. Supreme Court decision in a similar case involving Navy SEALS narrows the potential scope of any positive ruling, in that the court held that command still gets to decide where its resources are deployed. One of the main points of Kobach's case is that there is a large amount of sunk cost in the training of these airmen."Of the 36 plaintiffs, 17 are pilots," Kobach said. "They fly the KC-135 out of Wichita, McConnell Airbase, or they fly the RC-135 out of Offutt Airbase near Omaha. You know how much it costs to train one of these pilots? $5.5 million each."Kobach's contention is that he needs to be elected attorney general to keep pressure on the Biden Administration on policy decisions like this one."In many cases, the only litigant who can bring a lawsuit is the state attorney general," Kobach said. "In this particular one, the airmen came to me and as a private attorney, I was able to bring the lawsuit. But, we really do need to stop an out of control administration in Washington right now."Kobach is one of multiple Republican candidates running to replace Derek Schmidt, who is running for governor.

Kobach is lawyer for group suing Biden administration on COVID-19 policy

HUTCHINSON — 
Shawn Steward with AAA Kansas notes that gas prices are still moving a lot right now.

"The
 key words continue to be volatility and fluctuation with regard to 
crude oil and gas prices," Steward said. "Today in Kansas, we're at 
$3.79 a gallon on average."

Kansas is still one of the best places in the country to fuel up.

"We're
 45 cents less than the national average, which is $4.24 today," Steward
 said. "That puts us at second least expensive gas prices in the 
country."

There are some policymakers who want to see stimulus 
checks or gas tax reductions to lessen the pain at the pump. Steward 
doesn't want to see unintended consequences from that.

"We 
understand and we appreciate legislators desires to help motorists and 
others who are grappling with these higher gas prices," Steward said. 
"One cautionary note is that we think it's very important to think about
 any of those cuts in terms of taxes and the impact they may have 
transportation funding, especially maintaining roads and keeping roads 
safe."

Be sure to check your owner’s manual for what gas is required for your vehicle.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/3/1648233850272.jpg" alt="Image courtesy of Pixabay" />
 <figcaption>Image courtesy of Pixabay</figcaption>
 </figure>NICK GOSNELL <a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>HUTCHINSON — 
Shawn Steward with AAA Kansas notes that gas prices are still moving a lot right now."The
 key words continue to be volatility and fluctuation with regard to 
crude oil and gas prices," Steward said. "Today in Kansas, we're at 
$3.79 a gallon on average."Kansas is still one of the best places in the country to fuel up."We're
 45 cents less than the national average, which is $4.24 today," Steward
 said. "That puts us at second least expensive gas prices in the 
country."There are some policymakers who want to see stimulus 
checks or gas tax reductions to lessen the pain at the pump. Steward 
doesn't want to see unintended consequences from that."We 
understand and we appreciate legislators desires to help motorists and 
others who are grappling with these higher gas prices," Steward said. 
"One cautionary note is that we think it's very important to think about
 any of those cuts in terms of taxes and the impact they may have 
transportation funding, especially maintaining roads and keeping roads 
safe."Be sure to check your owner’s manual for what gas is required for your vehicle.

AAA: Gas prices volatile, Kansas still better than most

By NICK GOSNELL <a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>

HUTCHINSON — Even with 
the hotel capacity challenges Hutchinson continues to face, the NJCAA 
Tournament isn't going anywhere.

"Dr. Parker was here from NJCAA 
for the first couple of days," said LeeAnn Cox with Visit Hutch. "We did
 talk with him and he has concerns about the community adequately 
supporting this championship, just because of the hotel situation. The 
City of Hutchinson heard that message and conveyed back to Dr. Parker, 
we are going to solve this problem. I felt much better after having that
 conversation."

The city has said they are not going to go forward with the Atrium Hotel purchase, so what are the other location options?

"We
 had a consultant come in back in 2018," Cox said. "They identified, 
location wise, in the K-61 corridor. That could be anywhere from 11th 
Street north up to, I guess you could go as far as between 17th and 
30th, close to K-61, not too far off of that, either side. Anywhere 
between 11th to at least 17th to 23rd, maybe."

A fairgrounds 
hotel, though it is still an idea, wouldn't be enough rooms or have the 
convention center space that Hutchinson needs to even out hotel demand 
outside of the tournament and the fair.

"We have talked to the 
market," Cox said. "They have told us that they want to come to 
Hutchinson. We haven't quite abandoned that. We have maybe taken a 
slight detour just out of the bare necessity. Inventory of hotel rooms, 
we are desperate for. Coming off of last week with nine teams that were 
here for the championship, we had to put nine teams out of town. They 
had to stay and travel back and forth. That's never a good situation for
 the teams, for the student athletes that have earned their way to come 
to the championship, nor for the community of Hutchinson, because all 
those dollars are being spent now, out of town in Wichita and McPherson,
 when they go out to eat, when they have some downtime and maybe want to
 go to attractions. All that money we're losing. We are desperate to get
 hotel rooms back here in Hutchinson."

Even if someone called 
today and offered a deal on a new hotel and the land was easy to acquire
 and there were no other roadblocks, it would still most likely be two 
years before that new property would be open at tournament time. 
However, the hope is that the process can begin at some non-Atrium 
location later this year.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/3/1648144815783.jpeg" alt="Cox" />
 <figcaption>Cox</figcaption>
 </figure>By NICK GOSNELL <a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>HUTCHINSON — Even with 
the hotel capacity challenges Hutchinson continues to face, the NJCAA 
Tournament isn't going anywhere."Dr. Parker was here from NJCAA 
for the first couple of days," said LeeAnn Cox with Visit Hutch. "We did
 talk with him and he has concerns about the community adequately 
supporting this championship, just because of the hotel situation. The 
City of Hutchinson heard that message and conveyed back to Dr. Parker, 
we are going to solve this problem. I felt much better after having that
 conversation."The city has said they are not going to go forward with the Atrium Hotel purchase, so what are the other location options?"We
 had a consultant come in back in 2018," Cox said. "They identified, 
location wise, in the K-61 corridor. That could be anywhere from 11th 
Street north up to, I guess you could go as far as between 17th and 
30th, close to K-61, not too far off of that, either side. Anywhere 
between 11th to at least 17th to 23rd, maybe."A fairgrounds 
hotel, though it is still an idea, wouldn't be enough rooms or have the 
convention center space that Hutchinson needs to even out hotel demand 
outside of the tournament and the fair."We have talked to the 
market," Cox said. "They have told us that they want to come to 
Hutchinson. We haven't quite abandoned that. We have maybe taken a 
slight detour just out of the bare necessity. Inventory of hotel rooms, 
we are desperate for. Coming off of last week with nine teams that were 
here for the championship, we had to put nine teams out of town. They 
had to stay and travel back and forth. That's never a good situation for
 the teams, for the student athletes that have earned their way to come 
to the championship, nor for the community of Hutchinson, because all 
those dollars are being spent now, out of town in Wichita and McPherson,
 when they go out to eat, when they have some downtime and maybe want to
 go to attractions. All that money we're losing. We are desperate to get
 hotel rooms back here in Hutchinson."Even if someone called 
today and offered a deal on a new hotel and the land was easy to acquire
 and there were no other roadblocks, it would still most likely be two 
years before that new property would be open at tournament time. 
However, the hope is that the process can begin at some non-Atrium 
location later this year.

NJCAA tourney staying in Hutch, despite hotel concerns

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Even though it looks like bipartisan consensus has been reached on the state house and state senate redistricting maps, the Kansas Attorney General's Office still has litigation to deal with when it comes to the state's Congressional maps. That litigation is going to start in district court in the counties where the suits have been filed, Wyandotte and Douglas.

"We're going to have to litigate it in state District Court," said Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt. "Then, there will inevitably be an appeal to the state Supreme Court by whichever side loses in the district court. That's going to stretch out the time line."

There isn't a ton of time to get these maps done, the candidate filing deadline is June 1.

"Federal law sets out the timelines and rules for mailing ballots to military voters who are overseas," Schmidt said. "You have to comply with that law so that our deployed service personnel who vote in Kansas have the ability to receive their ballots and get them back before the primary in August."

In case there is a primary on August 2 for any of the congressional seats, 45 days before that election would be June 18. That's a Saturday, so the last business day before that 45 days would be Friday, June 17.

"This really needs to be wrapped up, I hope in April," Schmidt said. "May is pushing it, but we can make that work. If we get into June, that would be trouble."

Schmidt is confident that whatever you think about the maps from a political perspective, they follow the rules as the legislature knew them when they voted on it, but it remains to be seen what state courts might do. There is already precedent that if the U.S. Supreme Court gets involved, they might allow the maps to stand for 2022 while briefing for full argument after that, but Schmidt doesn't think the case will go that far.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/3/1583409290272.jpeg" alt="Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt" />
 <figcaption>Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt</figcaption>
 </figure>NICK GOSNELL Hutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — Even though it looks like bipartisan consensus has been reached on the state house and state senate redistricting maps, the Kansas Attorney General's Office still has litigation to deal with when it comes to the state's Congressional maps. That litigation is going to start in district court in the counties where the suits have been filed, Wyandotte and Douglas."We're going to have to litigate it in state District Court," said Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt. "Then, there will inevitably be an appeal to the state Supreme Court by whichever side loses in the district court. That's going to stretch out the time line."<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/1/1643147273216.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>There isn't a ton of time to get these maps done, the candidate filing deadline is June 1."Federal law sets out the timelines and rules for mailing ballots to military voters who are overseas," Schmidt said. "You have to comply with that law so that our deployed service personnel who vote in Kansas have the ability to receive their ballots and get them back before the primary in August."In case there is a primary on August 2 for any of the congressional seats, 45 days before that election would be June 18. That's a Saturday, so the last business day before that 45 days would be Friday, June 17."This really needs to be wrapped up, I hope in April," Schmidt said. "May is pushing it, but we can make that work. If we get into June, that would be trouble."Schmidt is confident that whatever you think about the maps from a political perspective, they follow the rules as the legislature knew them when they voted on it, but it remains to be seen what state courts might do. There is already precedent that if the U.S. Supreme Court gets involved, they might allow the maps to stand for 2022 while briefing for full argument after that, but Schmidt doesn't think the case will go that far.

Kansas AG: Congressional map litigation on tight timeline

<a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>

HUTCHINSON — The Kansas Court of Appeals has upheld a lower 
court's decision to deny a motion to correct an illegal sentence against
 a Hutchinson man convicted of kidnapping in a home invasion case.

Dakota
 Anderson is serving just over 20 years in prison for convictions of 
aggravated kidnapping, two counts of aggravated robbery, two counts of 
aggravated burglary and felony theft of a firearm. He was convicted in 
the abduction of Brent Rump in May 2015.

Anderson was one of 
four men accused of breaking into Rump's home in Hutchinson the night of May 14, 
beating him and then stealing several items, including two vehicles.&nbsp;

Anderson
 claims he was not properly sentenced on the kidnapping charge, noting 
that it was simple kidnapping and not aggravated kidnapping. Anderson 
all but conceded that he did the crime against Rump but felt he should 
have received less time behind bars. Anderson noted that he never 
inflicted bodily harm on Rump, which constitutes aggravated kidnapping.&nbsp;

But
 the court disagreed. The Court of Appeals upheld the conviction and 
sentence, noting that the state properly charged Anderson with 
aggravated kidnapping. The trial court properly instructed the jury on 
aggravated kidnapping. The jury convicted Anderson of aggravated 
kidnapping. The trial court did not impose an illegal sentence.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/3/1648049594797.jpeg" alt="Anderson" />
 <figcaption>Anderson</figcaption>
 </figure><a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>HUTCHINSON — The Kansas Court of Appeals has upheld a lower 
court's decision to deny a motion to correct an illegal sentence against
 a Hutchinson man convicted of kidnapping in a home invasion case.Dakota
 Anderson is serving just over 20 years in prison for convictions of 
aggravated kidnapping, two counts of aggravated robbery, two counts of 
aggravated burglary and felony theft of a firearm. He was convicted in 
the abduction of Brent Rump in May 2015.Anderson was one of 
four men accused of breaking into Rump's home in Hutchinson the night of May 14, 
beating him and then stealing several items, including two vehicles.&nbsp;Anderson
 claims he was not properly sentenced on the kidnapping charge, noting 
that it was simple kidnapping and not aggravated kidnapping. Anderson 
all but conceded that he did the crime against Rump but felt he should 
have received less time behind bars. Anderson noted that he never 
inflicted bodily harm on Rump, which constitutes aggravated kidnapping.&nbsp;But
 the court disagreed. The Court of Appeals upheld the conviction and 
sentence, noting that the state properly charged Anderson with 
aggravated kidnapping. The trial court properly instructed the jury on 
aggravated kidnapping. The jury convicted Anderson of aggravated 
kidnapping. The trial court did not impose an illegal sentence.

Kan. high court upholds sentence in home invasion, kidnapping case

NICK GOSNELL <a href="https://hutchpost.com/">Hutch Post</a>

HUTCHINSON, Kan. —The Kansas House passed a bill Wednesday that changes a few important policy points when it comes to how cities can choose whether or not to enforce federal immigration law and the usage of local identification cards. The bill was originally introduced at the request of Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt.

"The bill does two things," Schmidt said. "It says that local governments, governing bodies, the political branches of local government may not adopt ordinances that instruct their local police department to not cooperate or communicate with federal authorities, especially on immigration matters. The discretion would still lie, but it would lie with the law enforcement officials, it wouldn't lie with the local politicians. Number two, it says that if a local government, city or county, issues their own government identification card, they can do that and they can use them locally for whatever they want, but those cards may not be used to satisfy the requirements of any state law for identification."

This law was proposed after the Kansas City Kansas and Wyandotte County Unified Government decided to enact local ID policy.

"They made the deliberate decision they are going to issue Kansas City, Kansas ID cards to illegal aliens, to people who are not lawfully in the country, undocumented people, whatever you want to call them," Schmidt said. "You want to make clear that if that card is taken outside of Kansas City and used somewhere else, that people don't look at that and are misled that it's a proof of lawful presence."

The Kansas House passed the bill 84 to 38. The bill now goes to the Kansas Senate.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/3/1583409290272.jpeg" alt="Kansas AG Derek Schmidt" />
 <figcaption>Kansas AG Derek Schmidt</figcaption>
 </figure>NICK GOSNELL <a href="https://hutchpost.com/">Hutch Post</a>HUTCHINSON, Kan. —The Kansas House passed a bill Wednesday that changes a few important policy points when it comes to how cities can choose whether or not to enforce federal immigration law and the usage of local identification cards. The bill was originally introduced at the request of Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt."The bill does two things," Schmidt said. "It says that local governments, governing bodies, the political branches of local government may not adopt ordinances that instruct their local police department to not cooperate or communicate with federal authorities, especially on immigration matters. The discretion would still lie, but it would lie with the law enforcement officials, it wouldn't lie with the local politicians. Number two, it says that if a local government, city or county, issues their own government identification card, they can do that and they can use them locally for whatever they want, but those cards may not be used to satisfy the requirements of any state law for identification."This law was proposed after the Kansas City Kansas and Wyandotte County Unified Government decided to enact local ID policy."They made the deliberate decision they are going to issue Kansas City, Kansas ID cards to illegal aliens, to people who are not lawfully in the country, undocumented people, whatever you want to call them," Schmidt said. "You want to make clear that if that card is taken outside of Kansas City and used somewhere else, that people don't look at that and are misled that it's a proof of lawful presence."The Kansas House passed the bill 84 to 38. The bill now goes to the Kansas Senate.

Schmidt explains so-called 'sanctuary city' bill that passed KS House

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Creighton University economist Ernie Goss believes that growth has to slow given all the economic headwinds on the horizon.

"We're looking at growth coming down," Goss said. "I don't see any way around that. Are we moving toward a recession? Not at this point. We're certainly seeing growth slow as interest rates rise, as supply chain disruptions continue to have an effect and other factors out there as well. There's too much uncertainty. Try buying an automobile right now, a new automobile right now, even a used automobile. Prices up dramatically and there's just no availability for automobiles. That's just one little signal."

Goss also is certain the federal reserve is going to increase rates, maybe fairly fast.

"I would expect that by the end of the year, interest rates on the short end will be about another one and a half percent," Goss said. "That will put the prime interest rate up to 5%. I can't imagine it being any lower than that. It could be even higher. The Fed has gotten behind the curve on this. They should have been raising rates last year. They weren't."

This would make getting a mortgage or car loan more expensive, but right now there are such supply problems in both areas that may not be enough to slow price increases.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/6/1622642233344.jpeg" alt="Creighton Professor Ernie Goss, PhD&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>Creighton Professor Ernie Goss, PhD&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure>NICK GOSNELL Hutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — Creighton University economist Ernie Goss believes that growth has to slow given all the economic headwinds on the horizon."We're looking at growth coming down," Goss said. "I don't see any way around that. Are we moving toward a recession? Not at this point. We're certainly seeing growth slow as interest rates rise, as supply chain disruptions continue to have an effect and other factors out there as well. There's too much uncertainty. Try buying an automobile right now, a new automobile right now, even a used automobile. Prices up dramatically and there's just no availability for automobiles. That's just one little signal."Goss also is certain the federal reserve is going to increase rates, maybe fairly fast."I would expect that by the end of the year, interest rates on the short end will be about another one and a half percent," Goss said. "That will put the prime interest rate up to 5%. I can't imagine it being any lower than that. It could be even higher. The Fed has gotten behind the curve on this. They should have been raising rates last year. They weren't."This would make getting a mortgage or car loan more expensive, but right now there are such supply problems in both areas that may not be enough to slow price increases.

Economist: Expect interest rates to go up significantly

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Kansas First District Congressman Tracey Mann is hosting the Ranking Member from the House Agriculture Committee Glenn 'GT' Thompson this week in the Big First.

The visit is in preparation for the writing of the 2023 Farm Bill. It's also a concern to both members that Ukraine's production capability for agriculture will likely be hampered by the conflict going on there.

"Ukraine has around 40 million people, but they feed around 400 million people," Mann said. "When you've got almost a third of the wheat in the world between Ukraine and Russia, the big, big question becomes what does production look like for them? How does production level dip? The concern is that would destabilize a lot of countries that they feed, a lot of those countries in the Middle East, Egypt and north Africa. The ripple effect, we don't know yet."

Supporting Ukraine is key, because it's planting time over there.

"American agricultural producers are going to have to step up and produce more," Mann said. "It's something we've done for a long time, stepping up when need be and I'm excited to see it."

Congressman Thompson and Congressman Mann are both keenly aware of the need for food security, which is why they will be visiting the under construction National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility in Manhattan later this week.

"It's immense," Thompson said. "Without food security, you don't have national security, you certainly don't have economic security, as well."

Mann notes that it's still going to be awhile until the handoff happens to the Manhattan facility.

"It should start to be operational in the next year or so," Mann said. "Construction's got to be completed, then it has to be commissioned and then it has to be tested, then a move has to happen. For the final move to occur, we're still a ways away from that, but we're closing in on it and it's going to be very exciting for the state."

The United States currently does not have a laboratory facility with maximum biocontainment (BSL-4) space to study high-consequence zoonotic diseases affecting large livestock. The NBAF will be the first laboratory facility in the U.S. to provide BSL-4 laboratories capable of housing cattle and other large livestock. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 75 percent of new and emerging infectious diseases are zoonotic diseases which may be transmitted from animals to humans.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/3/1647893512817.png" alt="Rep. Glenn 'GT' Thompson-courtesy photo" />
 <figcaption>Rep. Glenn 'GT' Thompson-courtesy photo</figcaption>
 </figure>NICK GOSNELL Hutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — Kansas First District Congressman Tracey Mann is hosting the Ranking Member from the House Agriculture Committee Glenn 'GT' Thompson this week in the Big First.The visit is in preparation for the writing of the 2023 Farm Bill. It's also a concern to both members that Ukraine's production capability for agriculture will likely be hampered by the conflict going on there."Ukraine has around 40 million people, but they feed around 400 million people," Mann said. "When you've got almost a third of the wheat in the world between Ukraine and Russia, the big, big question becomes what does production look like for them? How does production level dip? The concern is that would destabilize a lot of countries that they feed, a lot of those countries in the Middle East, Egypt and north Africa. The ripple effect, we don't know yet."Supporting Ukraine is key, because it's planting time over there."American agricultural producers are going to have to step up and produce more," Mann said. "It's something we've done for a long time, stepping up when need be and I'm excited to see it."Congressman Thompson and Congressman Mann are both keenly aware of the need for food security, which is why they will be visiting the under construction National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility in Manhattan later this week."It's immense," Thompson said. "Without food security, you don't have national security, you certainly don't have economic security, as well."Mann notes that it's still going to be awhile until the handoff happens to the Manhattan facility."It should start to be operational in the next year or so," Mann said. "Construction's got to be completed, then it has to be commissioned and then it has to be tested, then a move has to happen. For the final move to occur, we're still a ways away from that, but we're closing in on it and it's going to be very exciting for the state."The United States currently does not have a laboratory facility with maximum biocontainment (BSL-4) space to study high-consequence zoonotic diseases affecting large livestock. The NBAF will be the first laboratory facility in the U.S. to provide BSL-4 laboratories capable of housing cattle and other large livestock. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 75 percent of new and emerging infectious diseases are zoonotic diseases which may be transmitted from animals to humans.

Mann hosting Ag committee ranking member in Big First District

There have been four overdose fatalities in Reno County over the past seven days, according to law enforcement. 

Three of the overdoses are suspected to be fentanyl related. Fentanyl is mixed in with other substances including methamphetamine, heroin, and fake pills. Two milligrams of fentanyl can be lethal depending on a person’s body size, tolerance and past usage, the county said in a news release Friday.

There have been four overdose fatalities in Reno County over the past seven days, according to law enforcement. Three of the overdoses are suspected to be fentanyl related. Fentanyl is mixed in with other substances including methamphetamine, heroin, and fake pills. Two milligrams of fentanyl can be lethal depending on a person’s body size, tolerance and past usage, the county said in a news release Friday.— Hutch Post

Four fatal overdoses reported in Reno Co. in one week

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — With the Cottonwood fire nearly two weeks in the past, the gears are shifting in the recovery from immediate needs to long-term solutions. The VOAD and United Way continue to work to assist families where needed.

“We’re starting to get into the long-term recovery portion of this disaster,” United Way Director Lisa Gleason said. “It’s going to start with cleaning off properties for those families to determine whether they’re going to rebuild or whether they’re going to relocate.”

Gleason says the goal of the VOAD and United Way is to simply be alongside in the recovery where needed.

“Our goal is to walk alongside them and fill in the gaps,” Gleason said. “So if they’re insured, what is their insurance not covering? If they are under-insured or not insured, how can we help support them?”

Gleason says VOAD and the United Way will be on-site Saturday to help victims with the start of the recovery process.

“We are starting to do some work now on the sites where the properties have been lost,” Gleason said. “Reno County VOAD will be out there on Saturday with a canteen for food for those who are out working, trying to get their properties recovered.”

Gleason says they are working with each victim of the fire on a case-by-case basis, knowing that each need is different.

“Some of it is just making sure they’re connected to the resources they need,” Gleason said. “We do case management with every single family who wants our assistance."

The Volunteer Center of Reno County is putting together a list of groups, organizations or individuals who would like to help with the cleanup of the area. Three dates during the month of April will be announced for those cleanup events soon. Until then, the United Way is still taking monetary donations for the relief fund. You can go to <a href="https://www.unitedwayofrenocounty.org/">unitedwayofrenocounty.org</a> or stop by 924 N. Main in Hutchinson, or mail it to that address.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/3/1647551021140.jpeg" alt="Damage from the Cottonwood Fire in Reno County" />
 <figcaption>Damage from the Cottonwood Fire in Reno County</figcaption>
 </figure>By ROD ZOOK Hutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — With the Cottonwood fire nearly two weeks in the past, the gears are shifting in the recovery from immediate needs to long-term solutions. The VOAD and United Way continue to work to assist families where needed.“We’re starting to get into the long-term recovery portion of this disaster,” United Way Director Lisa Gleason said. “It’s going to start with cleaning off properties for those families to determine whether they’re going to rebuild or whether they’re going to relocate.”Gleason says the goal of the VOAD and United Way is to simply be alongside in the recovery where needed.“Our goal is to walk alongside them and fill in the gaps,” Gleason said. “So if they’re insured, what is their insurance not covering? If they are under-insured or not insured, how can we help support them?”Gleason says VOAD and the United Way will be on-site Saturday to help victims with the start of the recovery process.“We are starting to do some work now on the sites where the properties have been lost,” Gleason said. “Reno County VOAD will be out there on Saturday with a canteen for food for those who are out working, trying to get their properties recovered.”Gleason says they are working with each victim of the fire on a case-by-case basis, knowing that each need is different.“Some of it is just making sure they’re connected to the resources they need,” Gleason said. “We do case management with every single family who wants our assistance."The Volunteer Center of Reno County is putting together a list of groups, organizations or individuals who would like to help with the cleanup of the area. Three dates during the month of April will be announced for those cleanup events soon. Until then, the United Way is still taking monetary donations for the relief fund. You can go to <a href="https://www.unitedwayofrenocounty.org/">unitedwayofrenocounty.org</a> or stop by 924 N. Main in Hutchinson, or mail it to that address.

Reno Co. fire recovery attention turns to the long-term needs

HUTCHINSON — Now that 
the sale of the Atrium property is officially off the books for the 
city, it is time to start weighing options for dealing with the rundown 
property. The council agreed to end any further negotiations with the 
property owner Joshua Joseph after demolition costs for the hotel made 
buying the property cost-prohibitive.&nbsp;

“He will (Joseph) probably 
anticipate receiving enforcement notifications from the city at some 
point and time as it relates to that property,” City Manager Jeff 
Cantrell said. “I know that we were all under the common assumption that
 we would be acquiring that property and thereby mitigating some of 
those blight concerns.”

<a href="https://archive.hayspost.com/?s=ambassador+hotel">Joseph was the former owner of the Ambassador hotel in Hays, which was razed in 2017 after years of falling into disrepair.&nbsp;</a>

The deal broke down after asbestos was 
found in the ceiling of the hotel property, adding more than $500,000 to
 the demolition costs. The city tried to broker a new deal with Joseph 
but were never contacted by the owner. Cantrell says the city does have 
some possible legal avenues to take against Joseph.

“The first 
option would be a letter indicating multiple code violations and a time 
to remedy,” Cantrell said. “If we ultimately had to go in front of the 
council and they gave a demolition notice, we would then be able to levy
 those expenses against the property.”

Cantrell says over time he feels the city will be able to get the facility razed and the property cleaned up.&nbsp;

”I
 think after an extended period went by, after receiving those notices, I
 don't think we would have trouble demonstrating that it is actionable 
on many levels.”

Cantrell says they are working on all of the 
legal avenues they may be able to take against Joseph, who has run into 
similar legal issues with hotels in both Hays and Salina. The city was 
wanting to save the convention center and raze the hotel under a new 
developer, but hopes of that could be gone.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/12/1606857027486.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>By ROD ZOOK <a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>HUTCHINSON — Now that 
the sale of the Atrium property is officially off the books for the 
city, it is time to start weighing options for dealing with the rundown 
property. The council agreed to end any further negotiations with the 
property owner Joshua Joseph after demolition costs for the hotel made 
buying the property cost-prohibitive.&nbsp;“He will (Joseph) probably 
anticipate receiving enforcement notifications from the city at some 
point and time as it relates to that property,” City Manager Jeff 
Cantrell said. “I know that we were all under the common assumption that
 we would be acquiring that property and thereby mitigating some of 
those blight concerns.”<a href="https://archive.hayspost.com/?s=ambassador+hotel">Joseph was the former owner of the Ambassador hotel in Hays, which was razed in 2017 after years of falling into disrepair.&nbsp;</a>The deal broke down after asbestos was 
found in the ceiling of the hotel property, adding more than $500,000 to
 the demolition costs. The city tried to broker a new deal with Joseph 
but were never contacted by the owner. Cantrell says the city does have 
some possible legal avenues to take against Joseph.“The first 
option would be a letter indicating multiple code violations and a time 
to remedy,” Cantrell said. “If we ultimately had to go in front of the 
council and they gave a demolition notice, we would then be able to levy
 those expenses against the property.”Cantrell says over time he feels the city will be able to get the facility razed and the property cleaned up.&nbsp;”I
 think after an extended period went by, after receiving those notices, I
 don't think we would have trouble demonstrating that it is actionable 
on many levels.”Cantrell says they are working on all of the 
legal avenues they may be able to take against Joseph, who has run into 
similar legal issues with hotels in both Hays and Salina. The city was 
wanting to save the convention center and raze the hotel under a new 
developer, but hopes of that could be gone.&nbsp;

Hutch weighs legal options against former Ambassador owner

HUTCHINSON — 
Kansas U.S. Senator Dr. Roger Marshall said the Biden Administration is not trying to keep the U.S. energy independent.

"When
 President Biden took office, he shut down the pipeline," Marshall said.
 "That created uncertainty and it decreased supply. But, he went way 
beyond that. He shut down any new drilling in federal lands and federal 
waters. The EPA is doing everything it can to make it impossible to get a
 new permit to be able to actually go ahead and drill."

The administration is cutting off the money supply that helps drillers start work.

"People
 that I have known that have been very successful drilling oil wells 
before I was born cannot get loans from banks to do more drilling," 
Marshall said. "Consequently, only a third of our rigs are actually 
functioning right now. Despite a $110 a barrel oil price, they're not 
out there. What is happening is the federal government through the 
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the feds are saying we're 
going to give an environmental score to your loan."

The 
Russia-Ukraine conflict and the administration's policy to cut off 
Russian oil does impact the price at the pump, but the uncertainty of 
what climate-related rules might be on oil and gas producers is chilling
 their willingness to take the financial risk to find additional 
resources.

"If we had different policy out of the White House, it 
would take us a year to catch back up," Marshall said. "We're probably 
producing about 2 million less barrels per day. America consumes about 
20 million barrels per day, to put it in perspective. We've cut back 
production for a lot of reasons and haven't replaced it."

Marshall
 would much rather see domestic drilling encouraged, instead of the 
administration looking to Iran and Venezuela to meet U.S. energy needs.

NICK GOSNELL <a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>HUTCHINSON — 
Kansas U.S. Senator Dr. Roger Marshall said the Biden Administration is not trying to keep the U.S. energy independent."When
 President Biden took office, he shut down the pipeline," Marshall said.
 "That created uncertainty and it decreased supply. But, he went way 
beyond that. He shut down any new drilling in federal lands and federal 
waters. The EPA is doing everything it can to make it impossible to get a
 new permit to be able to actually go ahead and drill."The administration is cutting off the money supply that helps drillers start work."People
 that I have known that have been very successful drilling oil wells 
before I was born cannot get loans from banks to do more drilling," 
Marshall said. "Consequently, only a third of our rigs are actually 
functioning right now. Despite a $110 a barrel oil price, they're not 
out there. What is happening is the federal government through the 
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the feds are saying we're 
going to give an environmental score to your loan."The 
Russia-Ukraine conflict and the administration's policy to cut off 
Russian oil does impact the price at the pump, but the uncertainty of 
what climate-related rules might be on oil and gas producers is chilling
 their willingness to take the financial risk to find additional 
resources."If we had different policy out of the White House, it 
would take us a year to catch back up," Marshall said. "We're probably 
producing about 2 million less barrels per day. America consumes about 
20 million barrels per day, to put it in perspective. We've cut back 
production for a lot of reasons and haven't replaced it."Marshall
 would much rather see domestic drilling encouraged, instead of the 
administration looking to Iran and Venezuela to meet U.S. energy needs.

Marshall: Administration is working against oil, gas producers


HUTCHINSON — 
Hutchinson Fire Chief Steve Beer is changing his tactics toward 
wildfires after seeing what has happened this fire season on red flag 
warning days.

"We're going to put a whole firing team together 
with a firing boss," Beer said Tuesday. "What does that actually mean? 
I'm going to have a group of three to four firefighters that their sole 
job is, and I'll probably put them on overtime to come in on those days,
 probably like ten days a year that we're into that situation. Their 
sole job is to get in front of the fire, a mile or two ahead of it. 
They're going to start burnout operations right away in front of this 
thing, while all the other companies will do structure protection and 
work on mitigating the fire. We want the fire to run into a big black 
section that's already burnt out."

It's a completely different approach than the department took as soon as five years ago.

"When
 I got to Hutch here in 2017 and Capt. Mueller can attest to this, we 
hardly ever fought fire with fire," Beer said. "We hardly ever grabbed a
 drip torch and laid fire on the ground. It sounds easy when it's a day 
like today with five to ten mile an hour winds, but you throw the Kansas
 winds in there at 40 to 50 miles an hour and lay fire down on the 
ground, you can win some and you can lose some real fast. By the people 
that we have going out to the western states and getting experience and 
coming back here, that has been priceless for HFD and the City of 
Hutchinson."

Wildfires are going to continue to be a way of life. There's just no other way to look at it, in Beer's estimation.

"This
 problem is not going to go away today," Beer said. "It's not going to 
go away in the next ten years, probably not in the next twenty years. 
We're always going to be dealing with this type of situation in and 
around Hutch. For the people that are born and raised here, councilman 
Fast, we've had this discussion, you don't remember the fires as severe 
back in the day, but if you remember back in the day 40 to 50 years ago,
 these fields were all for cattle and now they are all grazed off."

Beer
 notes that the cedar trees are stealing moisture from the grass and 
keeping it dry and also if a cedar goes up, it's just like a can of 
diesel fuel to the fire.

"I cannot guarantee you that it won't 
happen again," Beer said. "I can guarantee you that we have to do a 
better job for the men and women of Hutch Fire, what they do on a daily 
basis for this community. They are putting their lives on the line each 
and every day we respond to these calls. All you have to do is look at 
the back of Brush 41 that's burnt up and you'll understand some of the 
tough situations these men and women were in here in the last week."

In fact, Beer said the fire still is not 100 percent contained, though he hopes that can happen in the next couple of days.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/3/1647373913907.png" alt="Hutchinson Fire Chief Steve Beer" />
 <figcaption>Hutchinson Fire Chief Steve Beer</figcaption>
 </figure>NICK GOSNELL Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON — 
Hutchinson Fire Chief Steve Beer is changing his tactics toward 
wildfires after seeing what has happened this fire season on red flag 
warning days."We're going to put a whole firing team together 
with a firing boss," Beer said Tuesday. "What does that actually mean? 
I'm going to have a group of three to four firefighters that their sole 
job is, and I'll probably put them on overtime to come in on those days,
 probably like ten days a year that we're into that situation. Their 
sole job is to get in front of the fire, a mile or two ahead of it. 
They're going to start burnout operations right away in front of this 
thing, while all the other companies will do structure protection and 
work on mitigating the fire. We want the fire to run into a big black 
section that's already burnt out."It's a completely different approach than the department took as soon as five years ago."When
 I got to Hutch here in 2017 and Capt. Mueller can attest to this, we 
hardly ever fought fire with fire," Beer said. "We hardly ever grabbed a
 drip torch and laid fire on the ground. It sounds easy when it's a day 
like today with five to ten mile an hour winds, but you throw the Kansas
 winds in there at 40 to 50 miles an hour and lay fire down on the 
ground, you can win some and you can lose some real fast. By the people 
that we have going out to the western states and getting experience and 
coming back here, that has been priceless for HFD and the City of 
Hutchinson."Wildfires are going to continue to be a way of life. There's just no other way to look at it, in Beer's estimation."This
 problem is not going to go away today," Beer said. "It's not going to 
go away in the next ten years, probably not in the next twenty years. 
We're always going to be dealing with this type of situation in and 
around Hutch. For the people that are born and raised here, councilman 
Fast, we've had this discussion, you don't remember the fires as severe 
back in the day, but if you remember back in the day 40 to 50 years ago,
 these fields were all for cattle and now they are all grazed off."Beer
 notes that the cedar trees are stealing moisture from the grass and 
keeping it dry and also if a cedar goes up, it's just like a can of 
diesel fuel to the fire."I cannot guarantee you that it won't 
happen again," Beer said. "I can guarantee you that we have to do a 
better job for the men and women of Hutch Fire, what they do on a daily 
basis for this community. They are putting their lives on the line each 
and every day we respond to these calls. All you have to do is look at 
the back of Brush 41 that's burnt up and you'll understand some of the 
tough situations these men and women were in here in the last week."In fact, Beer said the fire still is not 100 percent contained, though he hopes that can happen in the next couple of days.

Hutch chief: Wildfire tactics must change after lessons learned

HUTCHINSON — 
The Hutchinson City Council moved on Tuesday to rescind the offer they 
had made for the Atrium Hotel to Joshua Joseph, who closed the hotel in 
2019. 

"I feel strongly that any investment made into that 
property made sense two years ago," said Mayor Jade Piros de Carvalho. 
"We were trying to save a convention center worth $4 million. But, I 
don't think in good conscience, we can rightfully invest $1.6 million in
 a structure that is then going to require another half-million dollars 
in asbestos mitigation and then going to require another half-million to
 a million to demo it. The owner has been non-responsive to Jeff. Today 
is the deadline that we gave the owner."

"I
 agree completely with what you said," said City Manager Jeff Cantrell. 
"We now have a non-responsive seller and that tells me everything. 
Additional attempts were made in the past two weeks, to no avail. These 
were prior methods of communication that were clearly our method of 
communication. Multiple means of communication were attempted."

Joseph
 owned the Ambassador Hotel property in Hays before that city finished 
the tearing down of that property through its nuisance abatement process
 in 2017.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/3/1647371050522.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>NICK GOSNELL Hutch PostHUTCHINSON — 
The Hutchinson City Council moved on Tuesday to rescind the offer they 
had made for the Atrium Hotel to Joshua Joseph, who closed the hotel in 
2019. "I feel strongly that any investment made into that 
property made sense two years ago," said Mayor Jade Piros de Carvalho. 
"We were trying to save a convention center worth $4 million. But, I 
don't think in good conscience, we can rightfully invest $1.6 million in
 a structure that is then going to require another half-million dollars 
in asbestos mitigation and then going to require another half-million to
 a million to demo it. The owner has been non-responsive to Jeff. Today 
is the deadline that we gave the owner."The motion passed unanimously.<a href="https://archive.hayspost.com/?s=ambassador+hotel">Joseph was the former owner of the Ambassador hotel in Hays, which was razed in 2017 after years of falling into disrepair.&nbsp;</a>"I
 agree completely with what you said," said City Manager Jeff Cantrell. 
"We now have a non-responsive seller and that tells me everything. 
Additional attempts were made in the past two weeks, to no avail. These 
were prior methods of communication that were clearly our method of 
communication. Multiple means of communication were attempted."Joseph
 owned the Ambassador Hotel property in Hays before that city finished 
the tearing down of that property through its nuisance abatement process
 in 2017.

Hutch withdraws offer as its 'Ambassador-style' problem drags out

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — There are those who argue that between funding for KPERS and the incentives promised to a mystery company in the APEX bill in the Kansas Legislature, that tax relief, even reducing the food sales tax, may not be affordable. Democrat Rep. Jason Probst disagrees.

"In my view, it can still absolutely happen," Probst said. "We have a good, healthy budget. We'll see, in April, additional revenue numbers come in, I think all indications are that those will be strong. We're sitting at close to $3 billion in excess revenue. The APEX issue hasn't been decided. From what I can gather, they are down there courting Oklahoma, trying to get a sweeter deal out of them."

It's not as if legislators can't make the decision on how to reprioritize if they want to, that's their function.

"If they have the will to do something, they can find a way," Probst said. "We've cut taxes before on the upper income brackets and corporations. We've done that without too much concern for the future of the budget. I think we can do that on the other end of the spectrum and provide some relief for food sales tax."

Everyone eats, which makes taxing food or not one of the biggest ways to have an effect on all pocketbooks.

"Food sales tax is something that hits every single person in the state," Probst said. "It's very broad based. I think it's been something we've talked about for a long time, but we haven't done it. I think, when we have this sort of flexibility in our budget, we owe it to people to do it. I think there's a conversation about where to do that, but we've tried the income tax thing on the upper brackets before. That didn't yield the results that we thought it would."

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/1/1579201323708.jpeg" alt="Photo by Nomin Ujiyediin / Kansas News Service" />
 <figcaption>Photo by Nomin Ujiyediin / Kansas News Service</figcaption>
 </figure>By NICK GOSNELL Hutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — There are those who argue that between funding for KPERS and the incentives promised to a mystery company in the APEX bill in the Kansas Legislature, that tax relief, even reducing the food sales tax, may not be affordable. Democrat Rep. Jason Probst disagrees."In my view, it can still absolutely happen," Probst said. "We have a good, healthy budget. We'll see, in April, additional revenue numbers come in, I think all indications are that those will be strong. We're sitting at close to $3 billion in excess revenue. The APEX issue hasn't been decided. From what I can gather, they are down there courting Oklahoma, trying to get a sweeter deal out of them."It's not as if legislators can't make the decision on how to reprioritize if they want to, that's their function."If they have the will to do something, they can find a way," Probst said. "We've cut taxes before on the upper income brackets and corporations. We've done that without too much concern for the future of the budget. I think we can do that on the other end of the spectrum and provide some relief for food sales tax."Everyone eats, which makes taxing food or not one of the biggest ways to have an effect on all pocketbooks."Food sales tax is something that hits every single person in the state," Probst said. "It's very broad based. I think it's been something we've talked about for a long time, but we haven't done it. I think, when we have this sort of flexibility in our budget, we owe it to people to do it. I think there's a conversation about where to do that, but we've tried the income tax thing on the upper brackets before. That didn't yield the results that we thought it would."<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/11/1636397666116.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>The concern, as always, is politics. Republicans may not want to give Gov. Laura Kelly the issue to potentially run on in the fall, even though Republican Derek Schmidt, here expected challenger, also supports the idea.