Legislation Introduced in Kansas Legislature Eliminate Vehicle Registration Renewals
TOPEKA, Kan. (KSNT) - A new bill introduced in the Kansas House this week would eliminate the requirement for residents to renew their car registrations every year. Under the proposed legislation, a vehicle registration would remain valid for as long as the owner keeps the car. According to KSNT-TV, Kansas is currently one of only a few states that charges annual fees to all car owners in the form of property taxes. Residents must currently renew their registration and pay their taxes annually. Data from the Kansas Department of Revenue indicates that there were nearly 3 million vehicles registered in Kansas in 2024 generating more than $207 million in revenue for the state. While new-vehicle owners would still pay initial fees under the bill, officials noted that the state’s total revenue would be drastically reduced.
Kansas Lawmakers Revisit Plan to Issue $60 Fine for Cellphone Use in School and Work Zones
TOPEKA (Kansas Reflector) - A bill heard by the Kansas Senate Transportation Committee would fine divers for using cellphones in school or construction zones. The bill would prohibit drivers from using cellphones while driving through a school zone when the reduced speed is enforced and in construction zones when the workers are present. For about the first year, guilty drivers would receive a warning citation. But after July 1, 2027, they would get a $60 fine. If passed, a driver holding a cellphone would be sufficient evidence for law enforcement. According to the Kansas Reflector, the Kansas Department of Transportation says distracted driving played a role in about one-fourth of all crashes in 2024. While cellphone use isn’t the only form of distraction, proponents say cellphones are the main culprit. Similar bills have appeared in previous sessions but have not become law.
Kansas Enjoys Best Pheasant Season in Years
WESTERN KANSAS (KNS) - Kansas state officials say this has been the best pheasant hunting season that western Kansas has seen in years. Western Kansas is a hotspot for wild upland bird game, and it attracts hunters from all over the country. The season runs from November through January in Kansas. This season, pheasant numbers are up, due to more rain and conservation practices, increasing their habitat in the region. Jeff Prendergast, with the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, says that good pheasant years means more money for rural towns. “These towns, historically, a large portion of their annual profits came from the three months during pheasant season, whenever you had huge amount of people flooding into these kind of rural areas," he said. The wildlife department estimates pheasant hunting brings millions of dollars to the state’s economy.
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Topeka Couple Facing Child Murder Charges Held on $5 Million Bonds
TOPEKA, Kan. (KSNT) — A couple accused of murdering a five-year-old girl in Topeka are being held on bonds of $5 million each. Lia J. Corbin, 24, and Kyle J. Valle, 35, face charges including first degree murder in connection with the death. KSNT reports the girl was found when police responded to a medical emergency at a home on Southwest Buchanan Street on Tuesday. The girl had suffered “life-threatening” injuries and was taken to a nearby hospital, where she died. Corbin and Valle are expected to be formally charged next week. They are currently being held in the Shawnee County Department of Corrections.
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Lawrence Prepares for World Cup Influx of Thousands of People
LAWRENCE, Kan. (KPR) - The city of Lawrence is gearing up for an influx of thousands of soccer fans in advance of the World Cup games which will be played in Kansas City. Ruth DeWitt, with Explore Lawrence, is one of those helping to prepare the city for an invasion of fans and possibly teams. "We are in the running to be base camp and we've been told that if we are selected as a team base camp to expect about 15,000 people to come with that," she said.
DeWitt says we still don't know - officially - which teams may be coming to Lawrence. "We do know who is sort of vying to be here. And that made the news as like 'these teams are coming here.' There is a giant gulf of logistics that happens between a team saying, 'sure, we want to be in Lawrence.' versus their being in Lawrence," she said. Unofficially, Lawrence is looking at hosting Algeria. Kansas City is looking at hosting Argentina, the Netherlands and England. But again, there's been no official word from FIFA, the sport's governing body. The World Cup runs from June 11 through July 19th.
Learn more at Lawrence2026.com.
(Tune in to #MyKPR next week to hear our interview with Ruth DeWitt about Lawrence and its preparations for the World Cup.)
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Wastewater into Tap Water: Bill Would Promote H2O Recycling in Kansas
TOPEKA, Kan. (Kansas Reflector) — A Kansas legislative committee heard testimony on a bill Thursday that would pave the way for the state to begin recycling wastewater into tap water. The bill would require the state health secretary to draft guidelines for water recycling. Ultimately, supporters would like to see Kansas do what several other states have done by allowing municipal water authorities to treat wastewater in such a way that it can be re-used as tap water. The Kansas Reflector reports Kansas is facing a water crisis, as groundwater in the western part of the state is rapidly being depleted.
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Appeals Court Says Kansas Troopers Violated Drivers’ Rights
UNDATED (TCJ) — A federal appeals court has ruled that Kansas state troopers violated the constitutional rights of drivers, but the judges lifted a lower court’s injunction against the troopers. At issue are traffic stops that target drivers traveling from Colorado, where marijuana is legal. The judges agreed the tactics used by Kansas troopers were unconstitutional. The ACLU argued troopers disproportionately targeted out-of-state drivers and used illegal techniques to obtain information to formulate probable cause for a search. However, the Topeka Capital-Journal reports the judges ruled that an injunction imposed by a lower court was too broad.
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Kansas, Colorado Farmers Sue Railroads for Alleged Collusion
UNDATED (KSN) — A group of Kansas and Colorado farmers is suing two railroads for alleged anti-trust violations. The lawsuit was filed this week in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas against Union Pacific Railroad and the Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad. The suit alleges Union Pacific conspired with the K&O to stifle competition from a newly rehabilitated rail line and keep control over westward shipments of grain from western Kansas and eastern Colorado. KSN reports the railroads are accused of violating the Sherman Anti-Trust Act as well as Kansas and Colorado laws. In a statement to KSN, Union Pacific denied the allegations.
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Two Kansans Indicted for Threatening Federal Officials in Separate, Unrelated Incidents
WICHITA, Kan. (KPR) — In separate and unrelated cases, two Kansas men have been indicted for allegedly threatening violence against federal officials. A federal grand jury in Wichita returned the indictments earlier this month against two Wichita men.
In one case, prosecutors accuse 23-year-old Joaquin Hernandez of threatening to murder federal law enforcement agents with ICE, Immigration and Customs Enforcement. In a separate case, prosecutors say 60-year-old Adam Lee Osborn threatened to kill Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar. Both men are accused of using social media to convey the threats.
The Wichita Police Department and the FBI are investigating both cases.
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Transgender Bathroom Ban Bill Fast-Tracked Through Kansas Legislature
UNDATED (KNS) — Republican lawmakers in Kansas have rushed to pass a bill that bars transgender people from using bathrooms based on their gender identity. The Kansas News Service reports that the bill requires government agencies to divide restrooms and locker rooms by sex. Individuals who violate the law could face financial and criminal penalties. Legislative leaders used a procedural maneuver known as “gut and go” to fast-track the bill and avoid holding public hearings on the bathroom provisions. Republican Representative Susan Humphries chairs the committee where the bill was introduced. She says everything she did was aboveboard, explaining that “...procedurally, it was permissible to add it in and that really just seemed like the best way to do it.” Democratic Governor Laura Kelly is expected to veto the bill. But two-thirds of lawmakers in each chamber support the legislation, which could allow Republicans to pass it anyway. (Read more.)
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NTSB Presents Findings on Fatal Wichita-to-Washington DC Flight
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS) — The National Transportation Safety Board presented its findings Tuesday on what led to the deadly crash of an American Airlines flight from Wichita to Washington, D.C., last year. The Kansas News Service reports that Flight 5342 was approaching the runway at Reagan National Airport last January when it collided with an Army helicopter. Sixty-seven people died. In its report, the NTSB said a local air traffic controller was communicating with six planes and five helicopters at the same time. Board member Mike Graham, a Wichita native, says evidence points to systemwide issues, adding that "I want to make it crystal clear: Any individual shortcomings were set up for failure by the systems around them." Some family members of victims are in D.C. to hear the investigators' findings. The NTSB is expected to publish its final report and recommendations in coming weeks.
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Child Sexual Abuse Survivors Group Seeks Kansas Passage of "Erin's Law"
WICHITA, Kan. (KNS) — A group of survivors of child sexual abuse is advocating for Kansas to pass what’s known as Erin’s Law. The Kansas News Service reports that the bill would require K-12 public schools to teach students once per year about preventing sexual abuse. It calls for age-appropriate lessons to help students identify and report behavior that amounts to grooming or abuse.
Kim Bergman is with the group Protecting Kansas Children From Sexual Predators. She is also a survivor of childhood sexual abuse, and says that “when kids are educated, they are more likely to speak up themselves and/or be able to help their friends.”
The national group behind Erin’s Law offers free course materials, but local school boards would ultimately decide which curriculum to use. Parents could also opt their students out of the classes.
At least 38 other states have adopted Erin’s Law.
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