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


HUTCHINSON — 
The voters of Reno County approved a special question on the expansion 
of the Board of County Commissioners from three to five members Tuesday.
 The vote was 4,164 for and 3,555 against expansion.

Proponents of the expansion feel that the rural areas of the county will get more representation.

The
 Hutchinson Community Foundation expressed support for the change, as 
did former county commissioner and KWBW newsman Dan Deming in a 
Hutchinson News column prior to election day.

It is the intent of 
the current three commissioners to have the two newly created seats 
filled in the November 2022 general election.&nbsp;

The final election canvass is November 9.

<a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>
HUTCHINSON — 
The voters of Reno County approved a special question on the expansion 
of the Board of County Commissioners from three to five members Tuesday.
 The vote was 4,164 for and 3,555 against expansion.Proponents of the expansion feel that the rural areas of the county will get more representation.The
 Hutchinson Community Foundation expressed support for the change, as 
did former county commissioner and KWBW newsman Dan Deming in a 
Hutchinson News column prior to election day.It is the intent of 
the current three commissioners to have the two newly created seats 
filled in the November 2022 general election.&nbsp;The final election canvass is November 9.

Reno County voters approve move from 3 to 5 commissioners

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


HUTCHINSON — Creighton University economist Ernie Goss explains that on 
Wednesday, the Federal Reserve is expected to announce it will start 
unwinding its $120 billion monthly bond purchases.

"What that does
 is, they buy the bonds and that pushes down interest rates, or keeps 
interest rates low," Goss said. "They're going to pull back, which means
 there will be some upward pressure on interest rates, long-term 
interest rates. Again, they're pulling back on their stimulus, they're 
not pulling back on all of it, only about $15 billion a month."

Investors see inflation as a serious danger going forward.

"Inflationary
 pressures penalize the consumer out there and the worker," Goss said. 
"It's like anything. Too much of a good thing is not a good thing, in 
this case, inflation. The Federal Reserve seeks to have 2% inflation. 
Now, we're running at more than twice that."

Headline inflation 
including food and energy rose at a 4.4% annual rate in September, 
according to the Department of Commerce last Friday.

"What's the 
transition?" Goss asked rhetorically. "What's the period of transition? I
 think it's much longer than what the Federal Reserve anticipated."

The taper of the bond purchases does not necessarily mean that rate hikes will follow.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/6/1622642233344.jpeg" alt="Creighton Professor Ernie Goss" />
 <figcaption>Creighton Professor Ernie Goss</figcaption>
 </figure>
By
NICK GOSNELL<a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch
Post</a> 
HUTCHINSON — Creighton University economist Ernie Goss explains that on 
Wednesday, the Federal Reserve is expected to announce it will start 
unwinding its $120 billion monthly bond purchases."What that does
 is, they buy the bonds and that pushes down interest rates, or keeps 
interest rates low," Goss said. "They're going to pull back, which means
 there will be some upward pressure on interest rates, long-term 
interest rates. Again, they're pulling back on their stimulus, they're 
not pulling back on all of it, only about $15 billion a month."Investors see inflation as a serious danger going forward."Inflationary
 pressures penalize the consumer out there and the worker," Goss said. 
"It's like anything. Too much of a good thing is not a good thing, in 
this case, inflation. The Federal Reserve seeks to have 2% inflation. 
Now, we're running at more than twice that."Headline inflation 
including food and energy rose at a 4.4% annual rate in September, 
according to the Department of Commerce last Friday."What's the 
transition?" Goss asked rhetorically. "What's the period of transition? I
 think it's much longer than what the Federal Reserve anticipated."The taper of the bond purchases does not necessarily mean that rate hikes will follow.

Professor: Fed action coming, but some stimulus will continue


HUTCHINSON — Gas prices continue to increase.

"In Kansas today, we are 
$3.12 a gallon on average," said Shawn Steward with AAA Kansas. "That is
 up four cents from a week ago, from $3.08."

The nationwide average is increasing more slowly.

"The
 national average gas price for a gallon of unleaded rose to $3.40 a 
gallon," Steward said. "That two cent rise over last week is the 
smallest increase we've seen in a month."

The fundamentals may be improving, as well.

"There's
 news that Iranian oil, which has not been sold globally in large 
quantities since 2018 may return to the world market," Steward said. 
"That coupled with an OPEC plus meeting on Nov. 4, is creating some 
market volatility, but slowing the pump prices right now."

It remains to be seen if those additions to supply will materialize, though.

By
NICK GOSNELLHutch
Post 
HUTCHINSON — Gas prices continue to increase."In Kansas today, we are 
$3.12 a gallon on average," said Shawn Steward with AAA Kansas. "That is
 up four cents from a week ago, from $3.08."The nationwide average is increasing more slowly."The
 national average gas price for a gallon of unleaded rose to $3.40 a 
gallon," Steward said. "That two cent rise over last week is the 
smallest increase we've seen in a month."The fundamentals may be improving, as well."There's
 news that Iranian oil, which has not been sold globally in large 
quantities since 2018 may return to the world market," Steward said. 
"That coupled with an OPEC plus meeting on Nov. 4, is creating some 
market volatility, but slowing the pump prices right now."It remains to be seen if those additions to supply will materialize, though.

Price of gas still going up, but more slowly

HAYS, Kan. - The Fort Hays State women's soccer team blanked Washburn, 2-0, on Sunday (Oct. 31) for Senior Day. The Tigers netted a goal in each half while holding the Ichabod attack to secure their seventh shutout victory of the season and eighth shutout overall. The Tigers improved to 8-7-3 overall and 5-6 in the MIAA, while the Ichabods fell to 9-6-2 overall and 5-5-1 in conference play. The Tigers wrapped up the regular season by winning four of the last five matches. The Tigers netted their first goal in the 35th&nbsp;minute as&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6216">Emily Hutchings</a>&nbsp;received a chain of passes from&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6222">Jadyn Newell</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6610">Hannah Mares</a>&nbsp;to score her second goal of the weekend, and the season. The next score came in the second half when&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6229">Jordan Thompson</a>&nbsp;sent a laser that was just high, bounced off of the crossbar, and tapped in by&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6233">Alex Hutton</a>&nbsp;with about 10 minutes to play. Neither team got much going offensively with only 13 total shots, nine of which were by the Tigers. Goalkeeper&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6231">Deonna Wellbrock</a>&nbsp;posted her seventh shutout with two saves. With the win, the Tigers punched their ticket for the quarterfinals of the MIAA Tournament next week by finishing eighth in the MIAA standings. The MIAA will release the official tournament bracket soon. First round games will be next Sunday (Nov. 7) at home sites of the higher seeds. Prior to the match, Fort Hays State recognized eight seniors that played their final match at FHSU Soccer Stadium. The group includes&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6217">Tessa Irvine</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6212">Katie Evans</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6224">Maja Persa</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6229">Jordan Thompson</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6211">Macy Decker</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6223">Cailey Perkins</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6231">Deonna Wellbrock</a>, and&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6228">Zariah Smith</a>.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/10/1635722225027.jpeg" alt="FHSU Seniors (Courtesy FHSU Athletics, Ryan Prickett)" />
 <figcaption>FHSU Seniors (Courtesy FHSU Athletics, Ryan Prickett)</figcaption>
 </figure>HAYS, Kan. - The Fort Hays State women's soccer team blanked Washburn, 2-0, on Sunday (Oct. 31) for Senior Day. The Tigers netted a goal in each half while holding the Ichabod attack to secure their seventh shutout victory of the season and eighth shutout overall. The Tigers improved to 8-7-3 overall and 5-6 in the MIAA, while the Ichabods fell to 9-6-2 overall and 5-5-1 in conference play. The Tigers wrapped up the regular season by winning four of the last five matches. The Tigers netted their first goal in the 35th&nbsp;minute as&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6216">Emily Hutchings</a>&nbsp;received a chain of passes from&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6222">Jadyn Newell</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6610">Hannah Mares</a>&nbsp;to score her second goal of the weekend, and the season. The next score came in the second half when&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6229">Jordan Thompson</a>&nbsp;sent a laser that was just high, bounced off of the crossbar, and tapped in by&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6233">Alex Hutton</a>&nbsp;with about 10 minutes to play. Neither team got much going offensively with only 13 total shots, nine of which were by the Tigers. Goalkeeper&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6231">Deonna Wellbrock</a>&nbsp;posted her seventh shutout with two saves. With the win, the Tigers punched their ticket for the quarterfinals of the MIAA Tournament next week by finishing eighth in the MIAA standings. The MIAA will release the official tournament bracket soon. First round games will be next Sunday (Nov. 7) at home sites of the higher seeds. Prior to the match, Fort Hays State recognized eight seniors that played their final match at FHSU Soccer Stadium. The group includes&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6217">Tessa Irvine</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6212">Katie Evans</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6224">Maja Persa</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6229">Jordan Thompson</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6211">Macy Decker</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6223">Cailey Perkins</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6231">Deonna Wellbrock</a>, and&nbsp;<a href="https://fhsuathletics.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=6228">Zariah Smith</a>.FHSU Athletics

⚽ Tiger women extend season with home win over Washburn

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Another case that will help draw some lines regarding gun laws in the United States is due to be argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday.

"In two previous cases, the person who was expressing their right to have a handgun without a license kept it in their home," said KU Law professor Lou Mulligan. "The court in both cases ruled that an individual has an individual right to have a handgun in their home without a special license, again, in the home. What we're seeing in this New York case, New York State Rifle &amp; Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen case, is we're seeing, does this individual right to have a handgun without a license, does that extend to carrying a handgun out in public?"

New York law requires anyone who wants a license to carry a concealed handgun outside of the home to show “proper cause” for the license. Courts in New York have defined “proper cause” to require applicants to show a special need to defend themselves. The petitioners argue that you keep arms inside the home, but you bear arms outside the home and both are in the Second Amendment.

The three most recent appointees, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett are thought to be likely to interpret the text in the context of the time when it was written, rather than any modern interpretation of the words.

"On the left or the right, they are going to take their authentically held approach to interpreting the Constitution and they're going to bring it to this question," Mulligan said. "I don't know enough about the individual justices second amendment jurisprudence to give you a prediction."

There are numerous friend of the court briefs that have been filed in the case on both sides. The question isn't even necessarily what the decision will be as much as it is clarifying what the standard of scrutiny will be going forward. The justices traditionally take several months to decide a case once oral arguments are held, so it will likely be well into 2022 before the result is known.

By NICK GOSNELLHutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — Another case that will help draw some lines regarding gun laws in the United States is due to be argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday."In two previous cases, the person who was expressing their right to have a handgun without a license kept it in their home," said KU Law professor Lou Mulligan. "The court in both cases ruled that an individual has an individual right to have a handgun in their home without a special license, again, in the home. What we're seeing in this New York case, New York State Rifle &amp; Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen case, is we're seeing, does this individual right to have a handgun without a license, does that extend to carrying a handgun out in public?"New York law requires anyone who wants a license to carry a concealed handgun outside of the home to show “proper cause” for the license. Courts in New York have defined “proper cause” to require applicants to show a special need to defend themselves. The petitioners argue that you keep arms inside the home, but you bear arms outside the home and both are in the Second Amendment.The three most recent appointees, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett are thought to be likely to interpret the text in the context of the time when it was written, rather than any modern interpretation of the words."On the left or the right, they are going to take their authentically held approach to interpreting the Constitution and they're going to bring it to this question," Mulligan said. "I don't know enough about the individual justices second amendment jurisprudence to give you a prediction."There are numerous friend of the court briefs that have been filed in the case on both sides. The question isn't even necessarily what the decision will be as much as it is clarifying what the standard of scrutiny will be going forward. The justices traditionally take several months to decide a case once oral arguments are held, so it will likely be well into 2022 before the result is known.

2nd amendment question once again before SCOTUS

WASHINGTON— In a call with radio stations from across Kansas on Friday,&nbsp; U.S. Senator Roger Marshall said the price tag for President Biden's infrastructure package could be even higher than is being reported.

"If all this legislation goes through that the President and the Democrats are wanting, it will be $7 trillion of spending over 10 years," Marshall said. "They're playing some budget gimmicks right now, where they are saying, maybe it's only $1.5 trillion. Only $1.5 trillion. If these programs would go through for the next 10 years, if they are reauthorized, I think it will still be $7 trillion. I think that's reckless spending, and that's on top of our annual budgets already."

Marshall is concerned about the continued threat of an increase of the stepped up basis on the sale of farmland.

"The land that my grandparents paid $50 an acre for back in 1910, is probably worth $2000 an acre," Marshall said. "My parents own that land now and someday, my brother and sister and I will inherit it. They would ask us to pay some type of tax on that increase. It would force us to sell the farm."

Marshall also believes that there will be an alternative minimum tax on corporations to help pay for the administration's spending.

"The latest is, they are going to do something with corporate taxes," Marshall said. "It sounds like Joe Manchin and probably Kyrsten Sinema moreso have pushed back on the taxing part of it for the corporations, but they're going to have an alternative minimum tax. Just remember, any type of corporate tax, 70% of that's going to go back to hard working Kansas. They'll be paying 70% of that tax increase, as well."

Marshall said that inflation is one of the top concerns he is hearing about from Kansans, along with the proposed vaccine mandates from the Biden administration.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/10/1635518423886.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>By NICK GOSNELLHutch PostWASHINGTON— In a call with radio stations from across Kansas on Friday,&nbsp; U.S. Senator Roger Marshall said the price tag for President Biden's infrastructure package could be even higher than is being reported."If all this legislation goes through that the President and the Democrats are wanting, it will be $7 trillion of spending over 10 years," Marshall said. "They're playing some budget gimmicks right now, where they are saying, maybe it's only $1.5 trillion. Only $1.5 trillion. If these programs would go through for the next 10 years, if they are reauthorized, I think it will still be $7 trillion. I think that's reckless spending, and that's on top of our annual budgets already."Marshall is concerned about the continued threat of an increase of the stepped up basis on the sale of farmland."The land that my grandparents paid $50 an acre for back in 1910, is probably worth $2000 an acre," Marshall said. "My parents own that land now and someday, my brother and sister and I will inherit it. They would ask us to pay some type of tax on that increase. It would force us to sell the farm."Marshall also believes that there will be an alternative minimum tax on corporations to help pay for the administration's spending."The latest is, they are going to do something with corporate taxes," Marshall said. "It sounds like Joe Manchin and probably Kyrsten Sinema moreso have pushed back on the taxing part of it for the corporations, but they're going to have an alternative minimum tax. Just remember, any type of corporate tax, 70% of that's going to go back to hard working Kansas. They'll be paying 70% of that tax increase, as well."Marshall said that inflation is one of the top concerns he is hearing about from Kansans, along with the proposed vaccine mandates from the Biden administration.

Marshall: Price tag for infrastructure bill likely more than reported


HUTCHINSON — Creighton University economist Ernie Goss expects action from the Federal Reserve soon.

"I
 think it's going to be probably November," Goss said. "Certainly, 
before the end of the first quarter of 2022 we are going to see the 
Federal Reserve pull back ... some of their stimulus. That
 doesn't mean they are stopping their stimulus, they are just going to 
put less money out there into long-term bonds."

Some long-term rates are already higher in anticipation of future action.

"The 10-year Treasury yield on U.S. Treasury bonds, that's almost to 1.7 percent,"
 Goss said. "Historically, that's way below the historical average. 
Still, in these times, that's a bit higher than what we've seen in the 
past."

That will have an upward impact on consumer interest rates 
throughout 2022 and with continued supply chain issues, overall prices 
look to continue to rise. Also, people are not yet getting back in the 
workforce in large numbers.

"Despite the fact that we continue to 
grow, we're not growing jobs," Goss said. "We're not getting back those 
jobs we lost to the pandemic. It's an odd situation. The President's 
been speaking about it, but I'd have to say, some of what he's said is 
not exactly what I would agree with."

President Biden sees passing
 his human infrastructure plan as a key to long-term economic growth, 
but negotiations on the overall size of that bill are still ongoing.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/5/1620071466817.jpeg" alt="Creighton Professor Ernie Goss&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>Creighton Professor Ernie Goss&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure>
By
NICK GOSNELL<a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch
Post</a> 
HUTCHINSON — Creighton University economist Ernie Goss expects action from the Federal Reserve soon."I
 think it's going to be probably November," Goss said. "Certainly, 
before the end of the first quarter of 2022 we are going to see the 
Federal Reserve pull back ... some of their stimulus. That
 doesn't mean they are stopping their stimulus, they are just going to 
put less money out there into long-term bonds."Some long-term rates are already higher in anticipation of future action."The 10-year Treasury yield on U.S. Treasury bonds, that's almost to 1.7 percent,"
 Goss said. "Historically, that's way below the historical average. 
Still, in these times, that's a bit higher than what we've seen in the 
past."That will have an upward impact on consumer interest rates 
throughout 2022 and with continued supply chain issues, overall prices 
look to continue to rise. Also, people are not yet getting back in the 
workforce in large numbers."Despite the fact that we continue to 
grow, we're not growing jobs," Goss said. "We're not getting back those 
jobs we lost to the pandemic. It's an odd situation. The President's 
been speaking about it, but I'd have to say, some of what he's said is 
not exactly what I would agree with."President Biden sees passing
 his human infrastructure plan as a key to long-term economic growth, 
but negotiations on the overall size of that bill are still ongoing.

Economist: Fed will move on reducing stimulus in coming months


HUTCHINSON — Despite the higher visibility of some school board races due to controversy over COVID response and what some may see as future threats in curriculum, from a fundamental standpoint, new school board members will walk in to a situation where the math problems may not change.

"It appears that the funding situation is relatively stable," said Mark Tallman with the Kansas Association of School Boards. "The system we're trying to have in place to do some things around looking at student learning, both measurements and supports are relatively stable, but that can change at any time and I guess that's the exciting thing about being part of this."

There are state issues that constrain local school board actions, to a point.

"By and large, how much money a district gets is determined by the state," Tallman said. "How we measure progress is often determined by the state. The framework of things like how you negotiate with teachers is an issue that will be coming up next spring for a lot of boards. Many new board members are not very familiar with this. It really is a balance between the powers you have that are very important, but also understanding the limits on those powers, that I think surprise many new board members."

In addition, because they are the appropriators, the legislature can pass bills to open or close the checkbook based on their political wants and needs and not those of a local district, but eventually, there is hope that local boards will be able to get back to some of the priorities they were working on before COVID challenged normal for a couple of years.

"We've had a lot of good achievements educationally," Tallman said. "We know that there are kids who still aren't getting to where we need to be and we know we're struggling with having people with the skills to do the things that we want done. Some of those efforts, I think, were really pushed out of the spotlight by the pandemic."

It's also still unknown exactly how much real learning loss there was as a result of COVID and what kinds of supports will even be possible to help patch that up, since schools are having just as hard a time hiring people as the rest of the economy.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/2/1582221969260.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>
By
NICK GOSNELL
Hutch
Post
HUTCHINSON — Despite the higher visibility of some school board races due to controversy over COVID response and what some may see as future threats in curriculum, from a fundamental standpoint, new school board members will walk in to a situation where the math problems may not change."It appears that the funding situation is relatively stable," said Mark Tallman with the Kansas Association of School Boards. "The system we're trying to have in place to do some things around looking at student learning, both measurements and supports are relatively stable, but that can change at any time and I guess that's the exciting thing about being part of this."There are state issues that constrain local school board actions, to a point."By and large, how much money a district gets is determined by the state," Tallman said. "How we measure progress is often determined by the state. The framework of things like how you negotiate with teachers is an issue that will be coming up next spring for a lot of boards. Many new board members are not very familiar with this. It really is a balance between the powers you have that are very important, but also understanding the limits on those powers, that I think surprise many new board members."In addition, because they are the appropriators, the legislature can pass bills to open or close the checkbook based on their political wants and needs and not those of a local district, but eventually, there is hope that local boards will be able to get back to some of the priorities they were working on before COVID challenged normal for a couple of years."We've had a lot of good achievements educationally," Tallman said. "We know that there are kids who still aren't getting to where we need to be and we know we're struggling with having people with the skills to do the things that we want done. Some of those efforts, I think, were really pushed out of the spotlight by the pandemic."It's also still unknown exactly how much real learning loss there was as a result of COVID and what kinds of supports will even be possible to help patch that up, since schools are having just as hard a time hiring people as the rest of the economy.

Tallman: Balance key for new school board members


HUTCHINSON — 
Gas prices continue to rise in Kansas and across the country.

"If
 there is some silver lining here, Kansas is the sixth-lowest gas price 
in the nation ($3.07),"&nbsp;said Shawn Steward with AAA Kansas.

As it has been throughout this increase, it's driven by crude oil market prices.

"The
 WTI crude futures prices right now are over $82 a barrel," Steward 
said. "When we look at where we were in August, those prices were in the
 low-$60s."

There's no way to know if any end is in sight.

"It's
 hard to predict all the market factors and competitive issues and those
 crude oil producers having an impact on where we are with those 
prices," Steward said.

There is also concern that heating oil 
prices being elevated for the winter months could continue to give 
overall support to the market.

By
NICK GOSNELL<a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch
Post</a> 
HUTCHINSON — 
Gas prices continue to rise in Kansas and across the country."If
 there is some silver lining here, Kansas is the sixth-lowest gas price 
in the nation ($3.07),"&nbsp;said Shawn Steward with AAA Kansas.As it has been throughout this increase, it's driven by crude oil market prices."The
 WTI crude futures prices right now are over $82 a barrel," Steward 
said. "When we look at where we were in August, those prices were in the
 low-$60s."There's no way to know if any end is in sight."It's
 hard to predict all the market factors and competitive issues and those
 crude oil producers having an impact on where we are with those 
prices," Steward said.There is also concern that heating oil 
prices being elevated for the winter months could continue to give 
overall support to the market.

Gas prices continue to climb

By NICK GOSNELL Hutch Post

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said they are still waiting on the final wording of the vaccination regulations from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration before they can challenge them.

"We're watching that eagle-eyed, every day," Schmidt said. "We expect it's going to be published soon. That's based on a number of reports out of Washington. We know that the regulation, the rule, has been sent from OSHA over to OMB, that's the Office of Management and Budget, which ordinarily is the last stop before it becomes published in the federal register."

Legal experts think it will be sometime this month.

"We are in constant communication with other states that are like-minded," Schmidt said. "We'll be challenging it. When I say, as soon, I'm using litigation time, it could be several days, but we're going to get in there and challenge it."

His office is already looking at other related policy that is also in place.

"There are other mandates in place and we're taking a hard look at them," Schmidt said. "The federal contractor mandate, for example. It's caused so much disruption in Wichita and elsewhere, so there's a lot of uncertainty right now, but we're doing our darnedest and we're stepping up and fighting it."

Some private employers are already making the decision to mandate vaccines ahead of the OSHA rule.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/10/1634033667226.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>By NICK GOSNELL Hutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said they are still waiting on the final wording of the vaccination regulations from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration before they can challenge them."We're watching that eagle-eyed, every day," Schmidt said. "We expect it's going to be published soon. That's based on a number of reports out of Washington. We know that the regulation, the rule, has been sent from OSHA over to OMB, that's the Office of Management and Budget, which ordinarily is the last stop before it becomes published in the federal register."Legal experts think it will be sometime this month."We are in constant communication with other states that are like-minded," Schmidt said. "We'll be challenging it. When I say, as soon, I'm using litigation time, it could be several days, but we're going to get in there and challenge it."His office is already looking at other related policy that is also in place."There are other mandates in place and we're taking a hard look at them," Schmidt said. "The federal contractor mandate, for example. It's caused so much disruption in Wichita and elsewhere, so there's a lot of uncertainty right now, but we're doing our darnedest and we're stepping up and fighting it."Some private employers are already making the decision to mandate vaccines ahead of the OSHA rule.

Schmidt: Still waiting on final language before challenging OSHA rule

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The fundamentals behind the price at the pump are headed in a higher direction again this week.

"High crude oil prices are pushing the average gas prices up both nationally and in Kansas," said Shawn Steward with AAA Kansas. "At the close of Thursday's trading, West Texas Intermediate Crude was trading at more than $78 a barrel. That's up more than three dollars from the previous weeks."

That's contributing to gas prices nationally that are the highest in several years.

"Since Monday, the national average gas price has risen by four cents to $3.24 a gallon," Steward said. "That's a price that we haven't seen since October 2014."

Prices are still lower in Kansas than nationwide.

"We are up three cents in the last week to an average today of $2.97 a gallon," Steward said. "That still puts us at eighth-cheapest in the country. Reno County is $2.96 a gallon, about a cent cheaper than the statewide average."

Part of what is pushing crude prices higher is OPEC going back on what was an anticipated increase in production later this year.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/7/1627259328916.jpg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>By NICK GOSNELLHutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — The fundamentals behind the price at the pump are headed in a higher direction again this week."High crude oil prices are pushing the average gas prices up both nationally and in Kansas," said Shawn Steward with AAA Kansas. "At the close of Thursday's trading, West Texas Intermediate Crude was trading at more than $78 a barrel. That's up more than three dollars from the previous weeks."That's contributing to gas prices nationally that are the highest in several years."Since Monday, the national average gas price has risen by four cents to $3.24 a gallon," Steward said. "That's a price that we haven't seen since October 2014."Prices are still lower in Kansas than nationwide."We are up three cents in the last week to an average today of $2.97 a gallon," Steward said. "That still puts us at eighth-cheapest in the country. Reno County is $2.96 a gallon, about a cent cheaper than the statewide average."Part of what is pushing crude prices higher is OPEC going back on what was an anticipated increase in production later this year.

AAA: Crude is keeping pump prices up

HUTCHINSON — Buhler USD 313 announced Monday that, due to an 
increase in COVID cases, Prairie Hills Middle School is implementing 
stage 2 protocols.

The active case count is 14 after nine new cases were identified.

All
 staff and students (and visitors) will be required to wear a mask 
inside PHMS for two weeks starting Tuesday, Oct. 4, and ending Sunday, 
Oct. 17.

All new close contacts that may be identified in the next
 two weeks will not be eligible for Stay to Learn testing and must serve
 the 8-day or 10-day quarantine. This is due to being at full capacity 
with daily testing at PHMS.

All students and staff will be asked 
to wash/sanitize hands at the beginning of each hour. Hand sanitizer is 
available in every classroom and at the entrances of the building.

Those students already in the Stay to Learn testing protocol will continue to test every morning.

The district says it is not able to add any more students into the test-and-stay protocol for the next two weeks.

<a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>HUTCHINSON — Buhler USD 313 announced Monday that, due to an 
increase in COVID cases, Prairie Hills Middle School is implementing 
stage 2 protocols.The active case count is 14 after nine new cases were identified.All
 staff and students (and visitors) will be required to wear a mask 
inside PHMS for two weeks starting Tuesday, Oct. 4, and ending Sunday, 
Oct. 17.All new close contacts that may be identified in the next
 two weeks will not be eligible for Stay to Learn testing and must serve
 the 8-day or 10-day quarantine. This is due to being at full capacity 
with daily testing at PHMS.All students and staff will be asked 
to wash/sanitize hands at the beginning of each hour. Hand sanitizer is 
available in every classroom and at the entrances of the building.Those students already in the Stay to Learn testing protocol will continue to test every morning.The district says it is not able to add any more students into the test-and-stay protocol for the next two weeks.

After cases spike, Buhler middle school moves to masks

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Newly released AAA research indicates that some drivers may not fully grasp the danger they pose to roadside workers.

"Ninety-nine percent of Kansas drivers responded that it's either very dangerous or somewhat dangerous for roadside workers if motorists don't comply with the Move Over law," said Shawn Steward with AAA Kansas. "92% of Kansas motorists said that they would support such a law, one-third of them, 33% of Kansas drivers, answered that they were unsure whether a law existed or thought there was no Move Over law."

An average of 24 emergency responders, including tow providers, are struck and killed by vehicles while working at the roadside each year.

The Move Over law was originally to protect law enforcement officers," Steward said. "Over the years, it's been expanded to reduce risk to roadside construction crews, emergency responders, tow operators and even waste collection vehicles. Most recently, it was broadened during the 2021 legislative session to include utility and telecommunications crews working alongside the road."

A AAA Tow Driver in Ohio was killed on July 4th while placing a disabled vehicle on the back of a flatbed on the side of the road. Only three weeks later, a AAA driver in Colorado was also struck and killed. As of August of this year, 14 tow providers have lost their lives while helping others at the roadside.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/10/1633343156885.png" alt="Move Over graphic courtesy AAA Kansas" />
 <figcaption>Move Over graphic courtesy AAA Kansas</figcaption>
 </figure>By NICK GOSNELLHutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — Newly released AAA research indicates that some drivers may not fully grasp the danger they pose to roadside workers."Ninety-nine percent of Kansas drivers responded that it's either very dangerous or somewhat dangerous for roadside workers if motorists don't comply with the Move Over law," said Shawn Steward with AAA Kansas. "92% of Kansas motorists said that they would support such a law, one-third of them, 33% of Kansas drivers, answered that they were unsure whether a law existed or thought there was no Move Over law."An average of 24 emergency responders, including tow providers, are struck and killed by vehicles while working at the roadside each year.The Move Over law was originally to protect law enforcement officers," Steward said. "Over the years, it's been expanded to reduce risk to roadside construction crews, emergency responders, tow operators and even waste collection vehicles. Most recently, it was broadened during the 2021 legislative session to include utility and telecommunications crews working alongside the road."A AAA Tow Driver in Ohio was killed on July 4th while placing a disabled vehicle on the back of a flatbed on the side of the road. Only three weeks later, a AAA driver in Colorado was also struck and killed. As of August of this year, 14 tow providers have lost their lives while helping others at the roadside.

Some Kansas drivers unsure of state's Move Over law

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Board of Reno County Commissioners has placed a moratorium on wind development in the county and due to this policy shift, County Counselor Joe O' Sullivan sees it as best to go back through the planning commission process.

"We thought that the process would be much cleaner and more transparent, whatever decision this board of county commissioners makes, when new proposed legislation comes before it, as well as the pending recommendation for zoning regulations with respect to wind energy, and that any decision that the board makes might well be appealed. What we're doing will not prevent anybody from appealing to the district court, a decision that you ultimately make in this case, but we think whatever decision you make would be better legally supported if we follow this process."

The original wind regulation process was presented to the public as just that and not as a potential ban.

"In the publications for the hearings, it was for wind energy conversion systems regulations," said County Administrator Randy Partington. "All the input they received, the public comments were based on that. Then, when the county commission started making changes, or it became known that they were wanting to ban wind, or at least put a ban in the zoned areas, it made practical sense for people to have a understanding and have the chance to participate in public hearings to know that the new focus is to ban wind in the zoned areas."

The moratorium officially stretches into March 2022 as written, but it is the intent of the commission to take up the issue in December after the planning commission has public input between now and then.

By NICK GOSNELLHutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Board of Reno County Commissioners has placed a moratorium on wind development in the county and due to this policy shift, County Counselor Joe O' Sullivan sees it as best to go back through the planning commission process."We thought that the process would be much cleaner and more transparent, whatever decision this board of county commissioners makes, when new proposed legislation comes before it, as well as the pending recommendation for zoning regulations with respect to wind energy, and that any decision that the board makes might well be appealed. What we're doing will not prevent anybody from appealing to the district court, a decision that you ultimately make in this case, but we think whatever decision you make would be better legally supported if we follow this process."The original wind regulation process was presented to the public as just that and not as a potential ban."In the publications for the hearings, it was for wind energy conversion systems regulations," said County Administrator Randy Partington. "All the input they received, the public comments were based on that. Then, when the county commission started making changes, or it became known that they were wanting to ban wind, or at least put a ban in the zoned areas, it made practical sense for people to have a understanding and have the chance to participate in public hearings to know that the new focus is to ban wind in the zoned areas."The moratorium officially stretches into March 2022 as written, but it is the intent of the commission to take up the issue in December after the planning commission has public input between now and then.

Reno Co. commission approves moratorium on wind development


HUTCHINSON,
Kan. — 
Haven USD 312 Superintendent Clark Wedel said Friday that references made to hundreds of dollars in damage to restrooms at Haven Grade School alluded to in a Facebook post are thought to be because of the devious licks TikTok trend.

Obviously, we haven't really caught our perpetrators yet," Wedel said. "We do believe it's related to the TikTok challenges."

Wedel said the damage or additional cleaning needed to the school is minor.

"We haven't closed any restrooms," Wedel said. "We've been a little more mindful as to who is going to the restrooms and when and trying to be a little more organized in how we do that."

Wedel hasn't heard of any issues at the middle or high school level, but he wanted to praise principal Laurel Scott for her efforts.

"Give credit to our elementary principal who put that out," Wedel said. "She's just trying to involve the families in it, trying to get some parent support and be proactive and maybe they can help us from the home aspect."

No other Reno County schools have publicly expressed any difficulties related to the social media trend, which has caused damage and even some closed restrooms in larger districts in Kansas.

By
NICK GOSNELL
Hutch
Post
HUTCHINSON,
Kan. — 
Haven USD 312 Superintendent Clark Wedel said Friday that references made to hundreds of dollars in damage to restrooms at Haven Grade School alluded to in a Facebook post are thought to be because of the devious licks TikTok trend.<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FUSD312HavenGrade%2Fposts%2F1652253854971092&show_text=true&width=500" width="500" height="225" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share"></iframe></div>Obviously, we haven't really caught our perpetrators yet," Wedel said. "We do believe it's related to the TikTok challenges."Wedel said the damage or additional cleaning needed to the school is minor."We haven't closed any restrooms," Wedel said. "We've been a little more mindful as to who is going to the restrooms and when and trying to be a little more organized in how we do that."Wedel hasn't heard of any issues at the middle or high school level, but he wanted to praise principal Laurel Scott for her efforts."Give credit to our elementary principal who put that out," Wedel said. "She's just trying to involve the families in it, trying to get some parent support and be proactive and maybe they can help us from the home aspect."No other Reno County schools have publicly expressed any difficulties related to the social media trend, which has caused damage and even some closed restrooms in larger districts in Kansas.

Damage at Kan. school thought to be related to TikTok trend


HUTCHINSON — Shawn Steward with AAA Kansas notes that gas prices have 
continued to stay pretty much where they have been in recent weeks.

"Here
 in Kansas and nationally, we're up about a cent from where we were a 
week ago," Steward said Wednesday. "The average in Kansas is $2.92 a 
gallon, compared to $3.19 at the national level."

Kansas is 10th cheapest in the nation this week.

"Hurricane
 Nicholas sort of complicated and slowed the recovery from Hurricane 
Ida," Steward said. "The seasonal dropoff in demand has helped mitigate 
price increases on the week."

The fundamentals may be there for price declines in the medium term.

"Supplies
 are strong right now and are definitely keeping up with demand," 
Steward said. "We'll just have to take a look once those refineries here
 domestically are all back up online. As always, we'll be looking at 
geopolitical issues in other parts of the world that will impact oil 
prices."

Traditionally, prices also drop during the period when refineries switch from summer to winter blend gasoline.

By
NICK GOSNELL<a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch
Post</a> 
HUTCHINSON — Shawn Steward with AAA Kansas notes that gas prices have 
continued to stay pretty much where they have been in recent weeks."Here
 in Kansas and nationally, we're up about a cent from where we were a 
week ago," Steward said Wednesday. "The average in Kansas is $2.92 a 
gallon, compared to $3.19 at the national level."Kansas is 10th cheapest in the nation this week."Hurricane
 Nicholas sort of complicated and slowed the recovery from Hurricane 
Ida," Steward said. "The seasonal dropoff in demand has helped mitigate 
price increases on the week."The fundamentals may be there for price declines in the medium term."Supplies
 are strong right now and are definitely keeping up with demand," 
Steward said. "We'll just have to take a look once those refineries here
 domestically are all back up online. As always, we'll be looking at 
geopolitical issues in other parts of the world that will impact oil 
prices."Traditionally, prices also drop during the period when refineries switch from summer to winter blend gasoline.

AAA: Gas prices stable again this week

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

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt still doesn't have the language of the rule proposed by President Joe Biden earlier this month that would give employers with over 100 employees the choice to vaccinate or frequently test their employees for COVID-19.

"Those rules have not been published yet and so we continue to wait," Schmidt said. "We have to see them before we have a chance to evaluate their legality, which I think is suspect on its face and then decide how we're going to challenge them."

Schmidt notes that the legal ground is different for some of the other potential mandates from the administration.

"There's the so-called CMS mandate, the mandate for nursing home workers and for public health workers," Schmidt said. "We're in the process with some other states of really taking a hard look at those to see if there's a legal basis to challenge them. They're a little legally different from the general employer mandate. The analysis is a bit different. The bottom line, I was talking with some folks the other day who operate nursing facilities, long-term care facilities in Kansas and they said they are losing employees."

According to a survey from the American Health Care Association and the National Center for Assisted Living, 86 percent of nursing homes and 77 percent of assisted living providers said their workforce situation has gotten worse over the last three months.

"At the end of the day, we have a number of facilities that barely are hanging on as it is," Schmidt said. "They have trouble getting employees. The last thing we need is a federal mandate that puts long-term care facilities out of business in this state."

Only one percent of nursing homes nationally describe themselves as fully staffed.

By NICK GOSNELL <a href="https://hutchpost.com/">Hutch Post</a>HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt still doesn't have the language of the rule proposed by President Joe Biden earlier this month that would give employers with over 100 employees the choice to vaccinate or frequently test their employees for COVID-19."Those rules have not been published yet and so we continue to wait," Schmidt said. "We have to see them before we have a chance to evaluate their legality, which I think is suspect on its face and then decide how we're going to challenge them."Schmidt notes that the legal ground is different for some of the other potential mandates from the administration."There's the so-called CMS mandate, the mandate for nursing home workers and for public health workers," Schmidt said. "We're in the process with some other states of really taking a hard look at those to see if there's a legal basis to challenge them. They're a little legally different from the general employer mandate. The analysis is a bit different. The bottom line, I was talking with some folks the other day who operate nursing facilities, long-term care facilities in Kansas and they said they are losing employees."According to a survey from the American Health Care Association and the National Center for Assisted Living, 86 percent of nursing homes and 77 percent of assisted living providers said their workforce situation has gotten worse over the last three months."At the end of the day, we have a number of facilities that barely are hanging on as it is," Schmidt said. "They have trouble getting employees. The last thing we need is a federal mandate that puts long-term care facilities out of business in this state."Only one percent of nursing homes nationally describe themselves as fully staffed.

Kansas AG: Don't mandate longterm care facilities out of business

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says supply chain issues that are keeping vehicles from being built in the U.S. have many causes.

"We've got a real shortage of truck drivers out there," Goss said. "We've got some bottlenecks in terms of shipping, the ports. Some of that's tied to inability to get workers. Workers still have not come back. We're talking about the labor participation rate. That's the percentage of workers over 16 that are in the workforce. That has not revived for the nation yet. We're seeing that the unemployment rate has come down."

Goss believes that the final version of the so-called infrastructure bill still working its way through the Senate will be smaller before it gets done.

"Senator Joe Manchin says you've got to stop this," Goss said. "He's cutting and cutting, he wants a lot of it cut out. You've got Senator Bernie Sanders saying, I already compromised. I wanted $6 trillion and you cut it down to $3.5 trillion. Well, he's going to have to."

The supply chain doesn't care what kind of supplies it's running, when you have less of things, it inflates the prices of those things.

"I eat this, it's called Crackling Oat Bran for breakfast," Goss said. "You can't get it. I saw a bid, it's up to $11 per box. That's up from about $3.50 a box, it's amazing. We're seeing this push, we have a bidding war for my Crackling Oat Bran, I guess. It's just quite amazing for Americans to go into their grocery store and find some of the shelves empty."

Until the supply chain on employees refills, there will continue to be holes in the supply chain for everything from car computer chips to Crackling Oat Bran.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/7/1595014550898.jpeg" alt="&nbsp;Creighton University economist Ernie Goss" />
 <figcaption>&nbsp;Creighton University economist Ernie Goss</figcaption>
 </figure>By NICK GOSNELLHutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says supply chain issues that are keeping vehicles from being built in the U.S. have many causes."We've got a real shortage of truck drivers out there," Goss said. "We've got some bottlenecks in terms of shipping, the ports. Some of that's tied to inability to get workers. Workers still have not come back. We're talking about the labor participation rate. That's the percentage of workers over 16 that are in the workforce. That has not revived for the nation yet. We're seeing that the unemployment rate has come down."Goss believes that the final version of the so-called infrastructure bill still working its way through the Senate will be smaller before it gets done."Senator Joe Manchin says you've got to stop this," Goss said. "He's cutting and cutting, he wants a lot of it cut out. You've got Senator Bernie Sanders saying, I already compromised. I wanted $6 trillion and you cut it down to $3.5 trillion. Well, he's going to have to."The supply chain doesn't care what kind of supplies it's running, when you have less of things, it inflates the prices of those things."I eat this, it's called Crackling Oat Bran for breakfast," Goss said. "You can't get it. I saw a bid, it's up to $11 per box. That's up from about $3.50 a box, it's amazing. We're seeing this push, we have a bidding war for my Crackling Oat Bran, I guess. It's just quite amazing for Americans to go into their grocery store and find some of the shelves empty."Until the supply chain on employees refills, there will continue to be holes in the supply chain for everything from car computer chips to Crackling Oat Bran.

Goss: Supply chain of goods and employees creating issues

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


HUTCHINSON — 
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly said Thursday that vaccine mandates are not a direction she plans to go right now.

"I don't have any intention of going down that road right now," Kelly said. "I think what we are doing with vaccines and taking them out to the community, taking them out to places where people feel comfortable and trust those around them is the road that we're going to continue on down now."

Kelly acknowledged that different jurisdictions and different businesses will make their own policy in that regard.

"I was just in New York on a trade mission," Kelly said. "In order to get into a restaurant in New York, I had to show my vaccine card. There's a lot of that going on, just sort of organically. I'm fully aware that the President has announced the mandate for businesses with over 100 employees. We don't really know what that means. We haven't seen the guidelines. The mandate is also softened though, by, if you don't want to get vaccinated, at least get tested."

Pfizer has said it will seek emergency use authorization for children. Kelly plans to make sure the rollout happens if approved.

"When the vaccines are available for our 5- to 12-year-olds, then you can trust that we will make sure that we get those vaccines into our schools and hopefully into the arms of all of our schoolchildren," Kelly said. 

Kelly was in Hutchinson for the Governor's Day at the Kansas State Fair and to speak to students at Hutchinson Community College.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1631819791493.png" alt="Gov. Laura Kelly on a tour of Centennial Hall Thursday at the Kansas State Fair" />
 <figcaption>Gov. Laura Kelly on a tour of Centennial Hall Thursday at the Kansas State Fair</figcaption>
 </figure>
By
NICK GOSNELL <a href="https://hutchpost.com/">Hutch Post</a>
HUTCHINSON — 
Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly said Thursday that vaccine mandates are not a direction she plans to go right now."I don't have any intention of going down that road right now," Kelly said. "I think what we are doing with vaccines and taking them out to the community, taking them out to places where people feel comfortable and trust those around them is the road that we're going to continue on down now."Kelly acknowledged that different jurisdictions and different businesses will make their own policy in that regard."I was just in New York on a trade mission," Kelly said. "In order to get into a restaurant in New York, I had to show my vaccine card. There's a lot of that going on, just sort of organically. I'm fully aware that the President has announced the mandate for businesses with over 100 employees. We don't really know what that means. We haven't seen the guidelines. The mandate is also softened though, by, if you don't want to get vaccinated, at least get tested."Pfizer has said it will seek emergency use authorization for children. Kelly plans to make sure the rollout happens if approved."When the vaccines are available for our 5- to 12-year-olds, then you can trust that we will make sure that we get those vaccines into our schools and hopefully into the arms of all of our schoolchildren," Kelly said. Kelly was in Hutchinson for the Governor's Day at the Kansas State Fair and to speak to students at Hutchinson Community College.&nbsp;

Gov. Kelly: 'Don't have any intention' of mandating vaccines

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


HUTCHINSON — The Board of County Commissioners on Tuesday approved a solar farm in the far northeast corner of Reno County.

"It's
 averaging about a dollar a kilowatt," said Commissioner Daniel Friesen.
 "This is an expected $1.4 million investment in the county in an area 
that probably would never see that kind of investment if we hadn't 
fostered this."

The property is located on the south side of E. 
108th Avenue, approximately 825 feet east of the intersection of N. 
Sunrise Road and E. 108th Avenue. 

"Unlike some solar farms, this 
power generator will stay with Ark Valley customers only," said County 
Planner Mark Vonachen. "It will not be sold or distributed elsewhere. 
It's strictly for the benefit of customers from Ark Valley. The area 
around the solar farm is going to be secured by a six-foot fence with 
barbed wire. The project will also comply with the national electric 
code standards. The project is designed to last at least 25 years."

The Planning Commission recommended approval of the request by a 5-0 vote and the County Commission also passed it unanimously.

By
NICK GOSNELL <a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch Post</a>
HUTCHINSON — The Board of County Commissioners on Tuesday approved a solar farm in the far northeast corner of Reno County."It's
 averaging about a dollar a kilowatt," said Commissioner Daniel Friesen.
 "This is an expected $1.4 million investment in the county in an area 
that probably would never see that kind of investment if we hadn't 
fostered this."The property is located on the south side of E. 
108th Avenue, approximately 825 feet east of the intersection of N. 
Sunrise Road and E. 108th Avenue. "Unlike some solar farms, this 
power generator will stay with Ark Valley customers only," said County 
Planner Mark Vonachen. "It will not be sold or distributed elsewhere. 
It's strictly for the benefit of customers from Ark Valley. The area 
around the solar farm is going to be secured by a six-foot fence with 
barbed wire. The project will also comply with the national electric 
code standards. The project is designed to last at least 25 years."The Planning Commission recommended approval of the request by a 5-0 vote and the County Commission also passed it unanimously.Cover image courtesy Pixabay

Solar farm approved by Reno County commissioners

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


HUTCHINSON — Kansas U.S. Senator Jerry Moran used a word Saturday he rarely 
uses on the record when talking about President Biden's choices in the 
pullout from Afghanistan.

"I'm angry about what's transpired," 
Moran said. "The decision was made to leave and I don't think that's the
 topic of conversation. That's not necessarily the debate today, but how
 we leave Afghanistan is hugely important and we did it in a way that 
angers me and creates lots of challenges for us."

Moran doesn't see the logic behind the administration's actions.

"I
 don't know why any administration, why you would ever set a deadline 
for a departure of a war. If you set a deadline that was your goal, you 
wouldn't make it public. If you had a goal of a certain date, you 
wouldn't have to live up to it, if there were still things that needed 
to be done, like the evacuation of Americans and our allies from 
Afghanistan."

That's not the only issue left behind, though, according to Moran.

"Our
 pastor's daughter and her husband in Hays were Afghan missionaries," 
Moran said. "Their request is, can you help us get Christians out of 
Afghanistan? I cannot understand the failure to have a plan to evacuate 
those people whose lives are in danger before we started the process of 
leaving and why the visas weren't more readily available and why we 
didn't have an airport and a secure place in which to take care of those
 people during the process of our departure."

Moran is back in Washington on Monday, weeks after he asked leader Schumer to bring them back to get answers to these questions.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/11/1604336319153.png" alt="Moran" />
 <figcaption>Moran</figcaption>
 </figure>
By
NICK GOSNELL <a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch
Post</a> 
HUTCHINSON — Kansas U.S. Senator Jerry Moran used a word Saturday he rarely 
uses on the record when talking about President Biden's choices in the 
pullout from Afghanistan."I'm angry about what's transpired," 
Moran said. "The decision was made to leave and I don't think that's the
 topic of conversation. That's not necessarily the debate today, but how
 we leave Afghanistan is hugely important and we did it in a way that 
angers me and creates lots of challenges for us."Moran doesn't see the logic behind the administration's actions."I
 don't know why any administration, why you would ever set a deadline 
for a departure of a war. If you set a deadline that was your goal, you 
wouldn't make it public. If you had a goal of a certain date, you 
wouldn't have to live up to it, if there were still things that needed 
to be done, like the evacuation of Americans and our allies from 
Afghanistan."That's not the only issue left behind, though, according to Moran."Our
 pastor's daughter and her husband in Hays were Afghan missionaries," 
Moran said. "Their request is, can you help us get Christians out of 
Afghanistan? I cannot understand the failure to have a plan to evacuate 
those people whose lives are in danger before we started the process of 
leaving and why the visas weren't more readily available and why we 
didn't have an airport and a secure place in which to take care of those
 people during the process of our departure."Moran is back in Washington on Monday, weeks after he asked leader Schumer to bring them back to get answers to these questions.

Moran still has questions about Afghanistan pullout

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt is still waiting to see what action needs to be taken regarding vaccine mandates from the Biden administration.

"The President gave a speech, but he hasn't actually done anything legally yet," Schmidt said Saturday. "He has to act. He has to write something down. There has to be a regulation actually adopted, or at least proposed, in order for us to legally challenge it. We've drawn the line in the sand. It's clear he's going to proceed. Once he does, we're going to file an action. We're going to try to get a court to block it. We don't think that the federal government, a government of limited, enumerated powers, has the authority to order Americans to get a vaccine, especially not tens of millions of Americans in a very general sense like this."

The legal precedent for a vaccine mandate is from a state, not the federal government.

"Something very fundamental in our system of federal and state government is that there are different powers at different levels of government," Schmidt said. "It's something you learned in civics class, but sometimes it gets lost in the fog of the issue of the day. States have a general police power. The federal government does not. If the Constitution doesn't grant a power to the federal government, it does not have it. In this case, we don't see a legal basis for the President's order."

Because the Biden administration hasn't started the clock on any legal action by writing the policy, it's hard to know what sort of timeline any final decision might have.

By NICK GOSNELLHutch PostHUTCHINSON, Kan. — Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt is still waiting to see what action needs to be taken regarding vaccine mandates from the Biden administration."The President gave a speech, but he hasn't actually done anything legally yet," Schmidt said Saturday. "He has to act. He has to write something down. There has to be a regulation actually adopted, or at least proposed, in order for us to legally challenge it. We've drawn the line in the sand. It's clear he's going to proceed. Once he does, we're going to file an action. We're going to try to get a court to block it. We don't think that the federal government, a government of limited, enumerated powers, has the authority to order Americans to get a vaccine, especially not tens of millions of Americans in a very general sense like this."<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">AG Derek Schmidt statement on proposed federal vaccine mandate <a href="https://t.co/tFqomUy230">https://t.co/tFqomUy230</a>&mdash; Kansas AG&#39;s Office (@KSAGOffice) <a href="https://twitter.com/KSAGOffice/status/1436347390949265409?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 10, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>The legal precedent for a vaccine mandate is from a state, not the federal government."Something very fundamental in our system of federal and state government is that there are different powers at different levels of government," Schmidt said. "It's something you learned in civics class, but sometimes it gets lost in the fog of the issue of the day. States have a general police power. The federal government does not. If the Constitution doesn't grant a power to the federal government, it does not have it. In this case, we don't see a legal basis for the President's order."Because the Biden administration hasn't started the clock on any legal action by writing the policy, it's hard to know what sort of timeline any final decision might have.

AG considering challenge to Biden vaccine mandates

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


HUTCHINSON — On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, Kansas State Fair Assistant
 General Manager Denny Stoecklein had a problem on the fairgrounds he 
was working to fix.

"I think it was on the opening night of the 
fair, it might have been on the Saturday, I got a call, I got an 
anonymous phone call," Stoecklein said. "Somebody said, you've got some 
people working at one of your gates, actually two of your gates that are
 stealing from you. The fair hires 500 to 600 seasonal folks and a lot 
of them had been there for many, many years. The people they were saying
 were doing this were veteran employees."

After auditing tickets for a couple of days, it was time to see if they could catch anyone.

"Lt.
 Randy Moon with the Highway Patrol, Randy was officed on the 
Fairgrounds at that time," Stoecklein said. "The lieutenant in that 
office is typically the one who is kind of over the Fair for the Highway
 Patrol on site and we're talking about this and making the plan that 
we're going to park a horse trailer right next to this gate and put some
 troopers in the back with cameras and film the goings on and see if we 
can pick up on anything."

"His
 pager goes off and he looks down at it and he says, a plane just hit 
the World Trade Center," Stoecklein said. "We kind of commented that, 
you know, tragic accident, you know, and we get back to our meeting and 
we're planning and doing some things. The pager goes off again. Randy 
looks at it. He goes, another plane just hit the World Trade Center and 
then you knew. This is not an accident."

Given that everyone 
wanted information more than anything at the time and smartphones 
weren't in every pocket, the next question for the fair was easy to 
figure out, but hard to answer.

"What do we do now, do we keep 
having a fair, what's going on?" Stoecklein said. "I would say, within 
60 to 90 minutes, we were gathered on the Fairgrounds with Highway 
Patrol, city police, emergency management, you name it. Every emergency 
management, certainly at the local level and they were in touch with 
people at the state and federal level, trying to get a better 
understanding of, what are we dealing with? From that, we kind of just 
started to make plans as to what we wanted to do and tried to figure 
out, how do we continue, if we continue?"

Any decision involving the fair involves the Governor's office.

"Bill
 Graves was the governor at that time," Stoecklein said. "It just so 
happened that the governor, on that day, was in Wichita. Wichita was 
hosting what was called a midwest U.S.-Japan association conference. 
There were people from a number of states as well as Japan in Wichita. 
We were able to get in touch with the governor, because, as you would 
imagine, that conference was canceled. Now you've got people with a lot 
of anxiety at this conference that just want to get home, some of them 
to Japan, but there's no air travel."

Since getting from Wichita to Hutchinson on the ground wasn't an issue, Graves was able to visit.

"The
 governor came over to Hutch, met with the board and management of the 
fair and talked to law enforcement and the decision was made that we're 
going to continue," Stoecklein said. "We're going to have the fair. I 
don't remember all of the pros and cons and things we talked about, but,
 you know, one of the things that was commonly mentioned by all of us 
was, you know, if we shut the doors then, whoever is doing this, they 
win."

The crowd that day was understandably somber.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1631381103707.png" alt="STYX 2001 Kansas State Fair / Courtesy Denny Stoecklein" />
 <figcaption>STYX 2001 Kansas State Fair / Courtesy Denny Stoecklein</figcaption>
 </figure>
By
NICK GOSNELL <a href="https://hutchpost.com">Hutch
Post</a>
HUTCHINSON — On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, Kansas State Fair Assistant
 General Manager Denny Stoecklein had a problem on the fairgrounds he 
was working to fix."I think it was on the opening night of the 
fair, it might have been on the Saturday, I got a call, I got an 
anonymous phone call," Stoecklein said. "Somebody said, you've got some 
people working at one of your gates, actually two of your gates that are
 stealing from you. The fair hires 500 to 600 seasonal folks and a lot 
of them had been there for many, many years. The people they were saying
 were doing this were veteran employees."After auditing tickets for a couple of days, it was time to see if they could catch anyone."Lt.
 Randy Moon with the Highway Patrol, Randy was officed on the 
Fairgrounds at that time," Stoecklein said. "The lieutenant in that 
office is typically the one who is kind of over the Fair for the Highway
 Patrol on site and we're talking about this and making the plan that 
we're going to park a horse trailer right next to this gate and put some
 troopers in the back with cameras and film the goings on and see if we 
can pick up on anything."Lieutenant Moon had a pager on his hip."His
 pager goes off and he looks down at it and he says, a plane just hit 
the World Trade Center," Stoecklein said. "We kind of commented that, 
you know, tragic accident, you know, and we get back to our meeting and 
we're planning and doing some things. The pager goes off again. Randy 
looks at it. He goes, another plane just hit the World Trade Center and 
then you knew. This is not an accident."Given that everyone 
wanted information more than anything at the time and smartphones 
weren't in every pocket, the next question for the fair was easy to 
figure out, but hard to answer."What do we do now, do we keep 
having a fair, what's going on?" Stoecklein said. "I would say, within 
60 to 90 minutes, we were gathered on the Fairgrounds with Highway 
Patrol, city police, emergency management, you name it. Every emergency 
management, certainly at the local level and they were in touch with 
people at the state and federal level, trying to get a better 
understanding of, what are we dealing with? From that, we kind of just 
started to make plans as to what we wanted to do and tried to figure 
out, how do we continue, if we continue?"Any decision involving the fair involves the Governor's office."Bill
 Graves was the governor at that time," Stoecklein said. "It just so 
happened that the governor, on that day, was in Wichita. Wichita was 
hosting what was called a midwest U.S.-Japan association conference. 
There were people from a number of states as well as Japan in Wichita. 
We were able to get in touch with the governor, because, as you would 
imagine, that conference was canceled. Now you've got people with a lot 
of anxiety at this conference that just want to get home, some of them 
to Japan, but there's no air travel."Since getting from Wichita to Hutchinson on the ground wasn't an issue, Graves was able to visit."The
 governor came over to Hutch, met with the board and management of the 
fair and talked to law enforcement and the decision was made that we're 
going to continue," Stoecklein said. "We're going to have the fair. I 
don't remember all of the pros and cons and things we talked about, but,
 you know, one of the things that was commonly mentioned by all of us 
was, you know, if we shut the doors then, whoever is doing this, they 
win."The crowd that day was understandably somber."One of 
the probably most visited booths at the fair, right in the heart of the 
fairgrounds is the KWCH booth," Stoecklein said. "They have all those 
windows open and they had TVs in there and you can imagine what the TVs 
were tuned to. People were just gathered around that en masse, trying to
 understand what was going on and learning everything we could. 
Obviously, we increased the security at the gates significantly, but 
decided we were going to continue through the rest of the fair."One fair grandstand act did not perform."Blessid
 Union of Souls was scheduled to perform that night," Stoecklein said. 
"They likely were on the Fairgrounds and had arrived. I don't know that 
they were flying in that day, but, even if they were there, probably 
having a concert that night wasn't the appropriate thing to do. They did
 not perform."There was another change to the lineup at the last minute."Lee
 Ann Womack was supposed to perform, I think with Keith Urban," 
Stoecklein said. "She couldn't get there. The group Lonestar, I think, 
was traveling back to Nashville. I want to say they'd been out west. 
Maybe they'd been in Utah. The Utah State Fair runs the same time as the
 Kansas State Fair, which would make sense. Our agency got in touch with
 them and said, hey, do you want to make a pit stop in Hutch and do a 
show, which they did."Stoecklein's favorite memory surrounds another grandstand act that year."The
 group Styx was scheduled to perform on September 15th," Stoecklein 
said. "I don't recall where they were. For some reason, I think that 
they were maybe on a little break and they were all going to meet up 
again in Hutch. They weren't on tour buses or anything. I think they 
were going to fly into Wichita for the show. Obviously, airfare being 
shut down put a stop to that, but they were determined not to miss the 
show. They felt it was important to get there. "It would have 
been their first performance since the events of 9-11. They got rental 
cars, any way, any how that they could get to Hutchinson, Kansas. They 
found a way to do it and put on just an incredible show. We had a 
gentleman that worked for the agency that the fair used to book talent, 
Romeo Entertainment Group. His name was Steve Bogdanovich. We called him
 Bogie. Bogie was our guy backstage and his favorite saying, no matter 
what the situation, he would just look at you and his glasses always 
rode low on his nose and he'd look over the top of them and say, it's 
all good. It's all good. "Bogie called me early that day and he 
said, boss, I need a flag on a pole. An American flag on a pole. I said 
okay, what do you need that for, Bogie? He said, Styx wants it. I said 
okay. We rounded up a long wooden pole and a flag. I got with our 
carpenter and he put the screws through the grommets and got it affixed 
to the pole and I took it down to the grandstand and gave it to Bogie. I
 didn't think much of it until that night. I go down to check on the 
show. Bogie and I are near the back of the stage and I see this flag 
rolled up and it's back behind the drum kit, while the show is going on."Styx
 does their set. They walk off and we're waiting for the encore. People 
are getting worked up and getting excited and ready for them to come 
back. Twenty years ago, and I'm not as young as I once was, but I'm 
pretty sure I remember this pretty closely to how it happened. One of 
the members of Styx walks back to that flag and grabs it and then they 
all just walked to the front of the stage and lifted it up as high as 
they could. I have never been in a place so loud as it was when they did
 that. It just about blew the roof off the grandstand."Stoecklein
 got the band to sign a photo of them with the flag when they returned 
later in their careers and he has that photo at home."There's 
never been a moment when I looked back and thought, did we make the 
right call?" Stoecklein said. "I never doubted that continuing with it 
was the right thing to do and the appropriate and safe thing to do. When
 you look at the history of the fair, it was there through the Great 
Depression, through two world wars, how many other conflicts and then 
9-11."Stoecklein currently serves as Director of Marketing and 
Public Relations. He was with the fair until 2015 before going to the 
college.Below is the full podcast with Stoecklein on his memories...<div><iframe title="Denny Stoecklein on 20 years since 9-11" style="border: none;" scrolling="no" data-name="pb-iframe-player" src="https://www.podbean.com/player-v2/?i=ehexr-10d9003-pb&from=pb6admin&share=1&download=1&rtl=0&fonts=Arial&skin=1&font-color=&btn-skin=7" allowfullscreen="" width="100%" height="150"></iframe></div>