Kansas Lawmakers Call Special-Ed Lawsuit Threat Premature

Marshall County Asks State to Regulate Storm Chasers

Early Voting Begins in Morton County Sheriff Recall

Hexcel, NIAR Break Ground on $10M Composites Center

Nearly 22,000 Kansans Lose SNAP Benefits Under New Law

Kansas Lawmakers Call Special-Ed Lawsuit Threat Premature

TOPEKA, Kan. — Kansas legislators on May 28 publicly responded to a May 20 joint statement from the Blue Valley, Olathe, Shawnee Mission and De Soto school districts threatening to sue the state over a special-education funding gap exceeding $200 million. Rep. Susan Estes, R-Sedgwick County, who chairs the Education Funding Task Force, called the lawsuit "too soon" and "premature," noting the task force is mid-redesign of the school funding formula. Rep. Nikki McDonald, D-Johnson County, took a different view, saying "I'm not at all surprised that litigation is being considered." The task force is targeting the 2027 legislative session to deliver a new formula.

KSNT

Marshall County Asks State to Regulate Storm Chasers

MARYSVILLE, Kan. — The Marshall County Board of Commissioners voted May 26 to send a letter to Kansas legislators, senators and the attorney general calling for a state task force to regulate storm chasing, after roughly 500 chasers swarmed the county during the May 18 EF-3 tornado at Blue Rapids. Sheriff Tim Ackerman said he was forced to drive two miles on the wrong side of the road because a "train of chasers" would not pull over. Emergency Management Director Bill Schwindaman Jr. estimated that the congestion delayed emergency-vehicle response by 20 to 30 minutes. Dickinson County Emergency Management Director Chancy Smith opposed formal licensing but agreed the congestion hinders first responders. The county's letter calls for "walking a fine line" around chasers who conduct scientific research.

WIBW · KWCH

Early Voting Begins in Morton County Sheriff Recall

ELKHART, Kan. — Early voting began May 28 at the Morton County Clerk's Office in Elkhart in a recall election targeting Sheriff Thad Earls, with the vote set for June 9. Morton County Attorney David Thompson and the Board of County Commissioners jointly accuse Earls of mishandling drug evidence, falsifying employee time sheets and failing to pay departmental bills on time. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation is examining the allegations. Earls disputes the claims, saying the deputy who mishandled evidence was placed on leave and later fired, and that the office is current on its bills.

KSN

Hexcel, NIAR Break Ground on $10M Composites Center

WICHITA, Kan. — Hexcel Corporation and Wichita State University's National Institute for Aviation Research broke ground May 28 on the new Hexcel Applications Center at NIAR's Advanced Technologies Lab for Aerospace Systems on South Oliver in Wichita. Hexcel is donating more than $10 million in composite manufacturing equipment, including an Advanced Fiber Placement machine and an autoclave. The company said the center is intended to help aerospace producers scale narrow-body jet output from roughly 10 to 12 aircraft per month to between 50 and 70. Hexcel Chairman and CEO Tom Gentile, the former Spirit AeroSystems CEO, joined NIAR Executive Director John Tomblin and U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran at the ceremony.

KWCH

Nearly 22,000 Kansans Lose SNAP Benefits Under New Law

TOPEKA, Kan. — A Center on Budget and Policy Priorities report released May 28 and amplified by Kansas Appleseed found that 21,900 Kansans, including 10,300 children, have left SNAP since President Donald Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act on July 4, 2025, a 12% drop in state enrollment. The law imposed a 20-hour weekly work requirement on recipients ages 18 to 64 and shifted 75% of administrative costs, up from 50%, onto the states. The Congressional Budget Office projects $186 billion in national SNAP cuts through 2034. Harvesters chief resource officer Elizabeth Keever said food banks cannot absorb the loss, noting "For every meal our food bank provides, SNAP provides nine."

KCTV5

Sources

1. KSNT
2. WIBW / KWCH
3. KSN
4. KWCH
5. KCTV5

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