KS - August 7 2025
Transmission Line Loan Pulled; Attorney Named to Court; Supreme Court Battle; Kansas Best for Driving; Fifth-Grader Wins Golf
Federal Government Pulls $5 Billion Loan for Kansas Wind Energy Transmission Line
Governor Kelly Names Leawood Attorney to Kansas Supreme Court
Battle Lines Drawn Over Supreme Court Election Amendment
Kansas Ranks Best State for Driving in National Study
Andale Fifth-Grader Wins Second Straight World Golf Championship
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1. Federal Government Pulls $5 Billion Loan for Kansas Wind Energy Transmission Line
The U.S. Department of Energy withdrew a $5 billion loan guarantee from the Grain Belt Express project, an 800-mile transmission line designed to carry Kansas wind energy across four states, citing the project's unlikely ability to meet loan conditions. Chicago-based Invenergy, which received approval from Kansas regulators 14 years ago to build the 5,000-megawatt line through Kansas, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana, said it will pursue private financing while state energy advocates called the move a direct attack on renewable energy development.
Kansas Reflector
2. Governor Kelly Names Leawood Attorney to Kansas Supreme Court
Governor Laura Kelly appointed Leawood attorney Larkin Walsh to the Kansas Supreme Court Thursday, a decision that comes as lawmakers prepare for a contentious statewide vote next August on whether to abandon the 60-year-old judicial nominating commission system in favor of directly electing high court justices.
Kansas City Star
3. Battle Lines Drawn Over Supreme Court Election Amendment
Campaigns for and against a constitutional amendment to directly elect Kansas Supreme Court justices kicked off their year-long push toward the August 2026 primary election, with Attorney General Kris Kobach promoting the change at an Americans for Prosperity dinner while opponents gathered at the University of Kansas to defend the current merit-based selection process that has been in place for six decades.
Kansas Reflector
4. Kansas Ranks Best State for Driving in National Study
Kansas claimed the top spot for driving conditions in a WalletHub analysis of all 50 states, earning high marks for road quality, safety, and low vehicle ownership costs despite having terrain "flatter than a pancake" that enhances driving safety.
Apple News
5. Andale Fifth-Grader Wins Second Straight World Golf Championship
Graham Schmidt, a 10-year-old from Andale—a town without a golf course—captured his second consecutive U.S. Kids Golf World Championship title in North Carolina, finishing 16-under par with a 200 total to beat a field of 150 top junior golfers from 20 countries and 46 states by four strokes.
Kansas.com
Sources
- https://kansasreflector.com/2025/08/05/trump-administration-yanks-loan-from-transmission-line-project-meant-to-carry-kansas-wind-energy/
- https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article311624426.html#storylink=cpy
- https://kansasreflector.com/2025/08/07/rivals-launch-fight-over-kansas-constitutional-amendment-to-elect-supreme-court-justices/
- https://apple.news/A3c9pTuGmSL6qdydmCPXwRA
- https://www.kansas.com/sports/varsity-kansas/other-varsity-sports/article311617140.html#storylink=cpy
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