First Blizzard of 2025 Still Causing Trouble in Kansas
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KPR) - Kansans are still dealing with the fallout from the first blizzard of 2025. While the Kansas Turnpike remains open from Kansas City to the Oklahoma border - and I-70 has reopened across the state - a number of roadways remain icy and snow-packed in spots. So, officials urge motorists to drive with care. For the second straight day, a number of schools and other entities have decided to close.
The University of Kansas is closed Tuesday. State government buildings in Shawnee County are also closed, as is the Kansas Judicial Center in Topeka. Meanwhile, the following K-12 schools have called off classes for another day:
Lawrence, Leavenworth, Manhattan-Ogden, Oskaloosa, Shawnee Heights and Topeka. Cottonwood, Inc. in Lawrence is also closed for a second straight day.
See KPR's Weather Cancellation page.
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Disputes over Access to Gender-Affirming Health Care Could Spark Veto Battle in Kansas Legislature
TOPEKA, Kan. (KNS) – A potential veto battle is brewing in Topeka over access to gender-affirming health care for transgender teens. Republican leaders say they plan to pursue a ban on gender-affirming care for trans minors. The Kansas News Service reports that the GOP has tried passing similar bans in years past, but has been unable to defeat vetoes by Democratic Governor Laura Kelly. Republican Dan Hawkins, Speaker of the Kansas House of Representatives, said “I will tell you with 100% certainty that that will be back. And we will have votes on it, and she’ll veto it again, and we’ll override that veto.” Advocates of gender-affirming care say an early transition can reduce the risk of suicide for trans teens. Opponents say it amounts to mutilation. With the GOP gaining seats in the November election, Hawkins says it has a better chance of overriding Kelly’s vetoes. Kansas lawmakers will return to Topeka for the 2025 legislative session on Monday, Jan. 13.
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Proposed Bill Could Allow Resentencing of Young Offenders After 10 Years in Prison
UNDATED (KC Beacon) – Kansas inmates who broke the law when they were younger than 25 years old could be resentenced after 10 years if a proposed bill passes. Resentencing doesn’t guarantee someone is let out of prison. But The Beacon reports that the goal of the bill is to let young inmates prove they have matured and earned a second chance. Younger people are more impulsive and are less likely to break the law as they age, FBI data says. Kevin Steinmetz is a criminology professor at Kansas State University. He says the brain isn’t fully developed until around 25, which means youth don’t always make the best choices. “Kids are thrill-seeking and unfortunately a lot of crime is fun, and we are not thinking about the consequences of that as we do it,” he explained. The 2025 Legislative session starts next week.
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Whooping Cough Cases Trending Higher in Kansas
UNDATED (KNS) – Cases of whooping cough, a respiratory infection, are trending upward in Kansas. The Kansas News Service reports that federal data shows there were 253 cases in the state in 2024. That’s compared to only 69 cases in 2023. Angela Myers is division director of infectious diseases at Children’s Mercy hospital. She says cases of whooping cough typically spike in cycles of three to five years. But Myers explains that case numbers dropped during the pandemic. “We were socially distancing ourselves from others, we were wearing masks. We were probably a lot better about washing our hands and kind of all of those things to keep ourselves well,” she said. Myers says people should get the vaccine or booster shot for whooping cough. She says the disease is highly contagious and could be deadly, and that babies and elderly people are most at risk of severe illness.
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Kansas Among States Selected for Federal Maternal Health Program
UNDATED (KNS) – Kansas has been selected for a new federally funded program to improve maternal health and reduce disparities. As one of 15 states in the Transforming Maternal Health Model program, Kansas will receive up to $17 million over 10 years. The Kansas News Service reports that the funding will help increase access to birth centers and midwives and provide holistic care throughout pregnancy and postpartum. Sharla Smith, a professor at the University of Kansas Medical Center, says the funding could help Kansas address deep racial disparities in maternal health outcomes. “While Kansas has made some strides in maternal mortality, those strides are not among Black communities. Black women are dying at three to four times that of white women in our state,” she added. Smith hopes the program also helps address cardiovascular disease and suicide risk among Black mothers, and increase access to culturally competent providers.
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FDIC Imposes $20 Million Fine on Southeast Kansas Bank; Bank Challenges Penalty
WEIR, Kan. (BankingDive.com/KPR) - A single-branch bank in southeast Kansas is challenging a $20 million penalty imposed by the Federal Desposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). The penalty was lodged against CBW Bank, of Weir, for failing to maintain adequate anti-money laundering controls. The FDIC says the bank “recklessly engaged in unsafe or unsound practices” and benefited financially from doing so. The website BankingDive.com reports that the FDIC's action was taken in November and made public in late December, 2024. CBW Bank has filed a lawsuit challenging the agency’s action.
Without explicitly saying so, the FDIC paints a picture that makes it look as though the bank either knowingly - or unknowingly - laundered money for Mexican drug cartels.
While the bank provides banking services to its rural, retail customer base, investigators say it also also ran a multibillion-dollar international money transfer business. The FDIC says CBW provided international financial services to about 30 foreign banks in Central and South America, Europe, Africa and the Middle East. In 2018 alone, the bank processed about $27 billion in wire transactions for foreign banks. The FDIC says the bank also failed to file hundreds of suspicious activity reports.
The FDIC pointed to U.S. dollar repatriation services the bank provided, “including millions of dollars in bulk cash shipments from Mexico for five Mexico-chartered banks and a money services business.”
“Bulk cash shipments from Mexico are a major concern for U.S. law enforcement because they are often associated with money laundering in connection with drug trafficking activities,” the agency said.
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Police Investigating After Body Found Near North Kansas City Hospital
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The North Kansas City Police Department is investigating after a woman’s body was found near North Kansas City Hospital. WDAF TV reports that police and fire crews responded around 9:45 Monday morning (to the 2700 block of Clay Edwards Drive) after a body was discovered and determined to be deceased. The victim is said to be a woman, likely in her 60’s. Investigators say were no obvious signs of trauma. The North Kansas City Police Department is working the investigation and said no further information will be released until the victim is identified and family is notified.
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Still No Farm Bill in Sight
LIBERAL, Kan. (KNS) - It’s been two years since a new Farm Bill was supposed to be drafted by Congress. Instead, the 2018 version has been extended for another year, causing mixed reactions from Kansans working in agriculture. Congress is supposed to renew the Farm Bill every five years. The bill encompasses not just agriculture policy, but also rural development and nutrition programs. The extension provides disaster relief and economic assistance to farmers but doesn’t offer more funding for conservation. Ryan Flickner is senior director of advocacy for the Kansas Farm Bureau. He says although the extension was needed, a new Farm Bill is needed more. “Very different times here in 2025 than it was in 2018, so we got to make sure that we do update a farm bill, a safety net for modern agriculture," he said. Flickner says the Kansas Farm Bureau hopes a new Farm Bill will adjust for inflation and use recent data for developing new policies.
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Land Conservation Efforts Underway in Kansas
UNDATED (KNS) - The Nature Conservancy acquired hundreds of acres of threatened habitat in Kansas last year. The Nature Conservancy gained about 400 acres in the badlands of western Kansas. It owns a wildlife-friendly ranch there, plus Little Jerusalem - part of which is open to the public as a state park. The group now protects nearly 20,000 acres in total in that area, where rare species like lesser prairie chickens thrive on native mixed-grass prairie. The conservancy also gained several hundred acres at Cheyenne Bottoms in central Kansas. That’s the country’s biggest inland wetland basin. It’s critical to migrating birds. The group is converting farm fields back into wetlands.
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Star Player Caitlin Clark Endorses WNBA Team for Kansas City
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCUR) – Kansas City has been buzzing about the possibility of adding a professional women’s basketball team. And now a major player in that world has voiced her approval: WNBA star Caitlin Clark. KCUR reports that Clark is an Iowa native and lifelong Chiefs fan who now plays for the Indiana Fever. In an interview on the New Heights podcast, hosted by Travis and Jason Kelce, Clark said she hoped a Kansas City team could play at the T-Mobile Center. "It’s a great spot. And the Power & Light District down there. Women’s basketball could be great there, so I’d support it," Clark added. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes announced in October that he’s interested in bringing a WNBA expansion team to Kansas City. The league commissioner said she wants to add another franchise by 2028.
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