Kansas Crime Hits 57-Year Low as Violent Offenses Rise

Data Center Tax Breaks Roil Kansas Governor's Primary

Kansans to Vote on Electing Supreme Court Justices

Wichita Teacher Contract Talks Head to Federal Mediation

Judge Restores $2.5 Million USDA Grant to Cultivate KC

Kansas Crime Hits 57-Year Low as Violent Offenses Rise

TOPEKA, Kan. — Overall reported crime in Kansas fell in 2025 to its lowest level in 57 years, according to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation's annual Crime Index Report released July 6. Law enforcement agencies logged 66,947 index crimes, a standardized tally of serious offenses, down 19.7% from the state's 10-year average and driven largely by an 8.3% drop in property crime, which fell nearly 25% below the decade average. Violent crime moved in the opposite direction, rising 7.5% from 2024 with 13,588 reported offenses of murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault. The KBI attributed the increase mainly to an 8.5% jump in aggravated assaults and batteries, while the 122 murders reported statewide came in 19.2% below the 10-year average. The report offers one of the longest-running measures of public safety in Kansas, and the continued climb in assaults is likely to draw attention from law enforcement and lawmakers as budget and policy debates approach.

WIBW · KAKE · KOAM · KSNT

Data Center Tax Breaks Roil Kansas Governor's Primary

TOPEKA, Kan. — The Republican primary for Kansas governor turned openly combative this week as candidate Philip Sarnecki attacked Senate President Ty Masterson over his vote for data center tax breaks, while Secretary of State Scott Schwab campaigned on cutting property taxes. The exchanges sharpen an Aug. 4 primary that is shaping up as unusually consequential, with term-limited Gov. Laura Kelly leaving office in January 2027 and crowded fields competing for the open seat and for congressional races. Insurance Commissioner Vicki Schmidt is also seeking the Republican nomination, while state Sens. Cindy Holscher and Ethan Corson are among the Democratic contenders. Democrats have won the last two governor's races in the Republican-leaning state, leaving the open seat closely contested. Kansans must register by July 14 to vote in the primary, which will set the November matchups that determine who leads the state after eight years of divided government.

KCUR · Kansas Reflector

Kansans to Vote on Electing Supreme Court Justices

TOPEKA, Kan. — Kansans voting in the Aug. 4 primary will also decide a constitutional amendment that would replace the state's appointment system for Supreme Court justices with direct elections. Under the current process, a nine-member nominating commission screens applicants and sends finalists to the governor, who appoints a justice subject to later yes-or-no retention votes; the amendment would instead phase in elections for the seven seats between 2028 and 2032, with justices continuing to serve six-year terms. Republican lawmakers who placed the measure on the ballot argue the appointment system gives lawyers too much influence and insulates justices from voters. Opponents, including some bar and civic groups, warn that elections would inject campaign money and partisanship into the courts. Kansans for Democracy, a group backing the change, has reported spending about $802,000 on advertising. The outcome could reshape the state's judiciary for a generation after years of friction between the Legislature and a court that has issued major rulings on abortion, school funding and elections.

KSNT · Kansas Reflector · Ballotpedia

Wichita Teacher Contract Talks Head to Federal Mediation

WICHITA, Kan. — Contract talks between Wichita Public Schools and the United Teachers of Wichita broke down again in early July, sending the two sides into federal mediation. After the district, Kansas's largest, declared an impasse in June, the school board directed its negotiators back to the table, but a July 2 session and further talks around the July 4 holiday failed to close the gap, and both sides again declared an impasse. The main sticking points are teacher pay, guaranteed classroom planning time and flexibility over weekend graduation duties. A federal mediator will now broker the negotiations under Kansas rules, and those sessions will be closed to the public. In a July 8 update, a union organizer said the two sides are "not as far away as I think people might expect." The outcome will set salaries and working conditions for thousands of teachers just weeks before classes resume, as districts across the state compete for educators amid tight budgets and a teacher shortage.

KMUW · KWCH · HPPR · KSN

Judge Restores $2.5 Million USDA Grant to Cultivate KC

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — A federal judge has ordered the U.S. Department of Agriculture to reinstate roughly $127 million in canceled grants, reviving about $2.5 million for the Kansas City-area nonprofit Cultivate KC. In a June 30 preliminary injunction, U.S. District Judge Beryl A. Howell directed the USDA to restore 24 of the awards by July 3 and report back, finding the terminations were "likely contrary to statute" and would cause irreparable harm. The money comes from the Increasing Land, Capital and Market Access program, a Biden-era initiative that awarded $300 million to 50 community-led projects meant to help beginning, small and historically disadvantaged farmers reach land and markets. The Trump administration had terminated 49 of the 50 projects on March 23, including Cultivate KC's, prompting a coalition of farm groups to sue. Cultivate KC runs urban farms and farmer-training programs across the metro that straddles the Kansas-Missouri line, and the ruling restores funding for food access and new-farmer training in a state where agriculture anchors the economy.

Earthjustice · Cultivate KC · WYSO · Civil Eats

Sources

1. WIBW / KAKE / KOAM / KSNT
2. KCUR / Kansas Reflector / KCUR
3. KSNT / Kansas Reflector / Ballotpedia
4. KMUW / KWCH / HPPR / KSN
5. Earthjustice / Cultivate KC / WYSO / Civil Eats

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