Topeka

• Shawnee County opened a new 60-bed, $20 million mental health wing at the county jail in Topeka to provide treatment for inmates. →
• Topeka and Shawnee County offer 10-year, 95% property tax rebates on increased value for residential improvements and infill building. →
• Shawnee County will host its annual judicial tax foreclosure sale online this September to return abandoned properties to tax rolls. →
• The Topeka Land Bank is forgiving back taxes, assessments, and code violations on donated distressed properties to spur housing infill. →
• The Topeka City Council approved $931,947 from the Affordable Housing Trust Fund across three projects supporting 229 housing units. →
• The City of Topeka, GO Topeka, and the Topeka Area Building Association will host the first Residential Development Forum on Nov. 6. →
• Expect partly sunny skies across Topeka today with light winds and a high near 91.

🌾 Kansas

• Finney County planners recommended a special use permit for Triple Oak Power's proposed 600-megawatt Sherlock Generation natural gas plant near Holcomb, part of the larger Home Range Clean Power energy project. →

• Republican Ty Masterson and Democrat Cindy Holscher clashed over property tax policy Monday at a gubernatorial forum hosted by the Kansas Independent Oil and Gas Association in Wichita. →

• Ness County deputies arrested Western Plains USD 106 Superintendent Jeff Michael Jones on 10 allegations including misuse of public funds and official misconduct, and the school board placed him on administrative leave. →

• The U.S. allowed the first Mexican cattle shipments in more than a year to cross at the Douglas, Arizona, port Monday as USDA began a 30-day trial reopening, sending cattle futures lower. →

• Kansas Republican Sens. Jerry Moran and Roger Marshall criticized President Trump's plan to allow up to 300,000 metric tons of tariff-free ground beef imports, warning it could undercut price incentives for ranchers rebuilding herds. →

🇺🇸 US

• Nearly 200 ships crossed the Strait of Hormuz last week, up from 150 the prior week, as more than 80% of transiting vessels used a U.S.-backed Omani corridor or went dark, marking a partial rebound in traffic despite Iran's rejection of the route. →

• Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced the first sanctions under "Operation Economic Outcast" targeting Iranian oil brokers and vessels linked to the Revolutionary Guard's Quds Force, while Iran's parliament approved new fees for ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz. →

• The Supreme Court on Monday lifted a lower-court injunction and let two provisions of President Trump's executive order on federal elections take effect, allowing USPS to set mail-ballot rules and DHS to compile voter-eligibility lists while litigation continues. →

• ICE arrested 1,328 people in a two-week sweep across the D.C.-area Virginia and Maryland suburbs, with DHS attributing criminal charges or convictions to about 400 of those detained. →

• The FDA cleared Roche's Elecsys pTau217 blood test, developed with Eli Lilly, to help detect amyloid buildup linked to Alzheimer's disease, expanding access to diagnosis beyond costly PET scans or spinal taps. →

AUGUST 25 1939: “THE WIZARD OF OZ” OPENS IN U.S. THEATERS

The film adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s 1900 novel introduces audiences to Dorothy, Toto and a vivid Technicolor land of Oz, a striking contrast to its black-and-white Kansas scenes. Initially only a modest box-office success, the movie grows into one of the most beloved films in history, with “Over the Rainbow” winning an Academy Award and becoming Judy Garland’s signature song.

This article was written using our proprietary AI system, Cronkite. The final decision to publish this article was made by a human. For more info, read our AI policy.