Hutchinson

• The Hutchinson City Council approved temporary zoning regulations requiring conditional use permits for large-scale data centers. →
• The Hutchinson City Council voted to signal its intent to exceed the revenue neutral rate to maintain a flat mill levy of 42.096 mills. →
• The Hutchinson City Council will review a study comparing repair costs to a full replacement of the aging wastewater treatment plant. →
• The City of Hutchinson proposed a 10-year deficit recovery plan to set aside $570,000 annually to restore general fund balances. →
• The Hutchinson Police Department has earned professional state accreditation from the Kansas Law Enforcement Accreditation Program. →
• The Hutchinson Recreation Commission has opened registration for fall youth sports leagues, including football, volleyball, and soccer. →
• Grab your sunglasses and get ready for a sunny Wednesday here in Hutchinson, with clear skies and a hot high reaching 96°F alongside some breezy afternoon winds.

🌾 Kansas

• Overall reported crime in Kansas fell in 2025 to its lowest level in 57 years — down 19.7% from the 10-year average — though violent crime rose 7.5% from 2024, according to a Kansas Bureau of Investigation report released July 6. →

• The Republican primary for Kansas governor grew combative as candidate Philip Sarnecki attacked Senate President Ty Masterson over data center tax breaks, while Secretary of State Scott Schwab campaigned on property tax cuts ahead of the Aug. 4 primary to succeed term-limited Gov. Laura Kelly. →

• Kansans voting in the Aug. 4 primary are scheduled to decide a constitutional amendment that would replace the state's appointment system for Supreme Court justices with direct elections phased in between 2028 and 2032. →

• Contract talks between Wichita Public Schools and the United Teachers of Wichita moved to federal mediation after a July 2 session and follow-up talks around the July 4 holiday failed to resolve disputes over teacher pay, planning time and graduation duties. →

• A federal judge ordered the USDA to reinstate roughly $127 million in canceled grants in a June 30 preliminary injunction, restoring about $2.5 million for Kansas City-area nonprofit Cultivate KC to fund urban farming and farmer-training programs. →

🇺🇸 US

• The U.S. military struck more than 80 targets in Iran late July 7 after President Trump declared his ceasefire deal dead following renewed Iranian attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz, with Iran retaliating early July 8 by firing missiles and drones at U.S. bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE, sending Brent crude up roughly 5% to above $78 a barrel. →

• NATO's 32 leaders concluded a two-day summit in Ankara on July 8, with Trump meeting Ukrainian President Zelenskyy, who pressed for additional Patriot air-defense systems, as the alliance backed roughly 70 billion euros in annual military aid to Ukraine and endorsed a longer-term goal of raising defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035. →

• Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner faced calls to withdraw from top party leaders on July 7 after a former girlfriend alleged he sexually assaulted her in 2021, with Platner calling the allegation "categorically untrue" but saying he was weighing the best path forward ahead of a July 13 deadline to exit the race. →

• New York City officials evacuated a 37-story Midtown tower at 235 East 42nd Street on July 7 after construction crews discovered buckling structural columns on the 21st floor, with seven nearby buildings also cleared and temporary shoring put in place by evening to stabilize the structure. →

• Marine Le Pen announced July 7 she will run for the French presidency in 2027 after an appeals court upheld her embezzlement conviction but lifted the ban that had barred her from seeking public office. →

Weather

JULY 8 1959: FIRST AMERICANS KILLED IN SOUTH VIETNAM

In the early years of the Cold War struggle in Southeast Asia, Viet Cong guerrillas attacked a U.S. Military Assistance Advisory Group compound near Saigon, killing Maj. Dale R. Buis and Master Sgt. Chester M. Ovnand. Their deaths marked the first American combat fatalities in the U.S. phase of the Vietnam War, at a time when Washington still described its role as limited “advisory” support. Under President Dwight D. Eisenhower, the United States was deepening its commitment to South Vietnam, seeing the country as a key front in the global effort to contain communism.

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