NEW CAMBRIA, Mo. (AP) — Police in northern Missouri have arrested a New Cambria man accused of stealing a dozen beehives over four counties.

Ricky Elam was arrested Wednesday following the execution of a search warrant near his home that turned up the stolen beehives. Authorities in Macon, Linn, Schuyler and Randolph counties said they had fielded numerous reports of stolen hives over the last year.

The search warrant was issued after a beekeeper in Macon County installed a GPS tracker in one of his hives after experiencing a theft, authorities said. On Wednesday, that hive was stolen and traced to Elam’s property, according to deputies.

Elam was charged Thursday with one count of felony stealing, two counts of felony receiving stolen property and four counts of misdemeanor receiving stolen property. He was being held in the Macon County Jail on $15,000 cash-only bond.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1590182637388.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Elam photo Macon Co.NEW CAMBRIA, Mo. (AP) — Police in northern Missouri have arrested a New Cambria man accused of stealing a dozen beehives over four counties.Ricky Elam was arrested Wednesday following the execution of a search warrant near his home that turned up the stolen beehives. Authorities in Macon, Linn, Schuyler and Randolph counties said they had fielded numerous reports of stolen hives over the last year.The search warrant was issued after a beekeeper in Macon County installed a GPS tracker in one of his hives after experiencing a theft, authorities said. On Wednesday, that hive was stolen and traced to Elam’s property, according to deputies.Elam was charged Thursday with one count of felony stealing, two counts of felony receiving stolen property and four counts of misdemeanor receiving stolen property. He was being held in the Macon County Jail on $15,000 cash-only bond.

Man arrested, accused of stealing beehives

SHAWNEE COUNTY— Law enforcement authorities are investigating three suspects after a Friday standoff in Topeka.

Just after 2 a.m. Friday, sheriff's deputies responded to a disturbance in the 3100 block of NW Rochester Road, according to Shawnee County Deputy Shayna Anderson.

Following an argument, a suspect shot several rounds towards the house while driving away in a vehicle. No one was injured. The suspect vehicle was later found in the Oakland neighborhood of Topeka but the suspect&nbsp;later identified as 24-year-old Trey G. Martinez of Topeka fled.

At 7:45a.m., deputies attempted to arrest Martinez at a residence in the 700 block of NE Sumner Street in Topeka. The SWAT team and crisis negotiators were called to the scene. They were able to talk four other individuals out of the house but Martinez remained inside. Shortly after noon he was placed into custody and transported to the Law Enforcement Center for questioning. Authorities have not released the charges against him.

Two of the other individuals inside the house were placed into custody following this incident. Anthony A. Weems, 22, and Michael L. Frederick, 22, both of Topeka were arrested and booked into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections for felony interference with law enforcement. Frederick also had misdemeanor warrants.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1590249094319.png" alt="Martinez -photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Martinez -photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY— Law enforcement authorities are investigating three suspects after a Friday standoff in Topeka.Just after 2 a.m. Friday, sheriff's deputies responded to a disturbance in the 3100 block of NW Rochester Road, according to Shawnee County Deputy Shayna Anderson.Following an argument, a suspect shot several rounds towards the house while driving away in a vehicle. No one was injured. The suspect vehicle was later found in the Oakland neighborhood of Topeka but the suspect&nbsp;later identified as 24-year-old Trey G. Martinez of Topeka fled.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1590249348325.png" alt="Frederick -photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Frederick -photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>At 7:45a.m., deputies attempted to arrest Martinez at a residence in the 700 block of NE Sumner Street in Topeka. The SWAT team and crisis negotiators were called to the scene. They were able to talk four other individuals out of the house but Martinez remained inside. Shortly after noon he was placed into custody and transported to the Law Enforcement Center for questioning. Authorities have not released the charges against him.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1590249195303.png" alt="Weems- Photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Weems- Photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>Two of the other individuals inside the house were placed into custody following this incident. Anthony A. Weems, 22, and Michael L. Frederick, 22, both of Topeka were arrested and booked into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections for felony interference with law enforcement. Frederick also had misdemeanor warrants.

Kansas man fired gun toward house after argument

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A man is hospitalized with life-threatening injuries after a Kansas City, Kansas triple shooting. Police say they responded to the reported shooting Sunday. 

They found evidence at the scene and later located three men apparently hospitalized in connection to the shooting. One man is being treated for life-threatening injuries. Two other men suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

 Police have not yet identified the victims or released any additional information.&nbsp;

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A man is hospitalized with life-threatening injuries after a Kansas City, Kansas triple shooting. Police say they responded to the reported shooting Sunday. They found evidence at the scene and later located three men apparently hospitalized in connection to the shooting. One man is being treated for life-threatening injuries. Two other men suffered non-life-threatening injuries. Police have not yet identified the victims or released any additional information.&nbsp;

Man hospitalized after Kansas triple shooting

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Police say a driver ran a red light, hit a Kansas police SUV and then flipped it on its top Sunday morning.

The driver T-boned a Topeka police vehicle, rolling the SUV upside down, according to police.

The officer who was hit and a passenger from the other car were taken to the hospital for minor injuries.

Police have not yet released the names of the driver or the police officer involved.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1590349614759.png" alt="Sunday crash scene photo courtesy <a href="https://www.wibw.com/content/bios/505880751.html">Alyssa Willetts</a>&nbsp;WIBW TV" />
 <figcaption>Sunday crash scene photo courtesy <a href="https://www.wibw.com/content/bios/505880751.html">Alyssa Willetts</a>&nbsp;WIBW TV</figcaption>
 </figure>TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Police say a driver ran a red light, hit a Kansas police SUV and then flipped it on its top Sunday morning.The driver T-boned a Topeka police vehicle, rolling the SUV upside down, according to police.The officer who was hit and a passenger from the other car were taken to the hospital for minor injuries.Police have not yet released the names of the driver or the police officer involved.

Driver runs red light, flips Kansas police SUV

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A worker at a Frito-Lay plant in Topeka has tested positive for the coronavirus as more Kansas businesses reopened in advance of Memorial Day.

The company said in a statement Friday that it has taken steps to identify and notify employees who had direct contact with the infected worker and asked them to quarantine themselves. Frito-Lay’s Topeka facility employs about 1,000 people, The Topeka Capital-Journal&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cjonline.com/news/20200522/staff-members-at-brewster-place-frito-lay-test-positive-for-coronavirus" target="_blank">reported</a>.

“The employee did not come in contact with product and there is no food safety risk,” the company added. “As a precautionary measure, we have conducted a deep cleaning of the contacted areas and equipment based on CDC guidelines and using EPA-approved registered products for COVID-19.”

According to the company, it has also implemented symptom screenings and temperature checks and provided personal protective equipment for employees at the Topeka facility.

Museums, along with theaters, bowling alleys and other indoor leisure places, were included in the state’s latest reopening phase, which took effect Friday.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A worker at a Frito-Lay plant in Topeka has tested positive for the coronavirus as more Kansas businesses reopened in advance of Memorial Day.The company said in a statement Friday that it has taken steps to identify and notify employees who had direct contact with the infected worker and asked them to quarantine themselves. Frito-Lay’s Topeka facility employs about 1,000 people, The Topeka Capital-Journal&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cjonline.com/news/20200522/staff-members-at-brewster-place-frito-lay-test-positive-for-coronavirus" target="_blank">reported</a>.“The employee did not come in contact with product and there is no food safety risk,” the company added. “As a precautionary measure, we have conducted a deep cleaning of the contacted areas and equipment based on CDC guidelines and using EPA-approved registered products for COVID-19.”According to the company, it has also implemented symptom screenings and temperature checks and provided personal protective equipment for employees at the Topeka facility.Museums, along with theaters, bowling alleys and other indoor leisure places, were included in the state’s latest reopening phase, which took effect Friday.

Frito-Lay worker at Kan. plant tests positive for COVID-19

SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a homicide and have two suspects in custody.

Just after p.m. 5p.m. Thursday, police responded to a shooting call at an apartment complex near N. West Street and W. 13th&nbsp;Street in Wichita, according to officer Charley Davidson.

Upon arrival, officers located 21-year-old Earnest Jefferson with multiple gunshot wounds.&nbsp; Jefferson was pronounced dead on the scene.&nbsp;

Police also located&nbsp; 19-year-old man in the parking lot with multiple gunshot wounds.&nbsp; He was transported to an area hospital for medical treatment and remained in critical condition Friday.

At approximately 5:40 p.m., 18-year-old Preston Reynolds arrived at a local hospital with a gunshot wound to his leg.&nbsp;&nbsp; Reynolds was treated and released from the hospital and booked into jail, according to Davidson.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The investigation revealed that 20-year-old Missy Barber and Reynolds drove to the apartment complex to conduct a drug transaction with Jefferson and the 19-year-old victim.&nbsp; 

While they were in a vehicle in the parking lot, a disturbance occurred, and shots were fired, injuring Jefferson, the 19-year-old and Reynolds.&nbsp; Reynolds and Barber left the scene in the vehicle.

Investigators were able to learn of Barber’s involvement in the incident. She was located at an apartment complex in the 1700 block of South Glenn and arrested without incident.

Barber and Reynolds are being held on requested charges&nbsp; of 1st-degree murder and aggravated battery, according to Davidson.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1590164086715.png" alt="Reynolds photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>Reynolds photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating a homicide and have two suspects in custody.Just after p.m. 5p.m. Thursday, police responded to a shooting call at an apartment complex near N. West Street and W. 13th&nbsp;Street in Wichita, according to officer Charley Davidson.Upon arrival, officers located 21-year-old Earnest Jefferson with multiple gunshot wounds.&nbsp; Jefferson was pronounced dead on the scene.&nbsp;Police also located&nbsp; 19-year-old man in the parking lot with multiple gunshot wounds.&nbsp; He was transported to an area hospital for medical treatment and remained in critical condition Friday.At approximately 5:40 p.m., 18-year-old Preston Reynolds arrived at a local hospital with a gunshot wound to his leg.&nbsp;&nbsp; Reynolds was treated and released from the hospital and booked into jail, according to Davidson.&nbsp;&nbsp;<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1590164510351.png" alt="Barber" />
 <figcaption>Barber</figcaption>
 </figure>The investigation revealed that 20-year-old Missy Barber and Reynolds drove to the apartment complex to conduct a drug transaction with Jefferson and the 19-year-old victim.&nbsp; While they were in a vehicle in the parking lot, a disturbance occurred, and shots were fired, injuring Jefferson, the 19-year-old and Reynolds.&nbsp; Reynolds and Barber left the scene in the vehicle.Investigators were able to learn of Barber’s involvement in the incident. She was located at an apartment complex in the 1700 block of South Glenn and arrested without incident.Barber and Reynolds are being held on requested charges&nbsp; of 1st-degree murder and aggravated battery, according to Davidson.

Kansas man taken from hospital to jail for fatal shooting

NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump’s declaration that religious services should be “essential” comes at a precarious point in the national balancing act that pits the call of worship against the risk of coronavirus.

Even before Trump’s comments Friday, which came alongside the release of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/php/faith-based.html" target="_blank">guidance</a>&nbsp;for reopening faith organizations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Christian leaders in several states made plans to welcome back congregants on the week of Pentecost, May 31.

The new CDC guidance could energize houses of worship that might want to reopen their doors, despite evidence of ongoing risk of the virus spreading through communal gatherings. While it suggests steps such as asking congregants to cover their faces and limiting the sharing of worship aids, the CDC document says it is “not meant to regulate or prescribe standards for interactions of faith communities.”

The guidance released Friday is similar to draft guidance drawn up by the CDC more than a month ago but shelved by administration officials. One difference: The earlier version discussed opening in stages, such as video streaming and drive-in services, with later phases allowing in-person gatherings limited in size and with social distancing. The guidance released Friday has no discussion of a phased-in opening.

Tension over when and how to reopen houses of worship has varied depending on the state, as different areas set their own pace for easing pandemic stay-at-home orders. Trump called for the resumption of in-person religious services repeatedly this week and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/8a34b6599602dbd751f2c1fcb93387fe">said Friday that</a>&nbsp;he would “override” governors that did not do so, though it’s unclear whether Trump has any authority to supersede state leaders on the issue.

Still, the president’s comments come less than six months ahead of a reelection bid in which turnout from his conservative evangelical Christian base could prove critical. Trump suggested on Thursday that friction over the issue was more common in states run by Democrats because “churches are not being treated with respect” by many their governors.

One of those Democrats, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, was warned this week by Trump’s Justice Department that the state’s phased-in plan to restart economic activity puts an “unfair burden” on worship by not permitting churches to open earlier in the process. More than 1,200 California pastors are planning to restart worship on May 31 despite Newsom’s stay-at-home orders, which he has said would likely allow for religious gatherings within weeks.

Among the California pastors leading the call for resuming in-person gathering is Danny Carroll of Water of Life Community Church in Fontana. State officials “don’t understand that people of faith need contact, that they need to worship together,” Carroll said in an interview. “We’re trying to close the gap – thoughtfully, humbly, nicely.”

Carroll described his effort as disconnected from politics: “We don’t deal with how people vote. We deal with how people live.”

But another pastor involved, Ron Hill of Love and Unity Christian Fellowship, said that he finds “some merit” in Republicans’ claims that blue states have a less keen understanding of religion’s importance in public life.

“I really find it difficult to understand why they’re placing a different rule on the church than on the supermarket, café or restaurant,” said Hill, who added that he had not yet decided whether May 31 would mark the reopening of his church in Compton, Calif.

Pastors in other states, however, have already begun outlining plans to welcome back worshippers in person before the month’s end. Florida’s Rodney Howard-Browne –&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/6a6ffcc32101dd3eee86937202a1c7f2">arrested</a>&nbsp;in March for holding a large in-person service at his church, charges that were later dropped – is preparing to reopen with an outdoor service on Pentecost. Catholic and Lutheran churches in Minnesota have notified that state’s Democratic governor that they plan to resume Mass this week, in defiance of his order.

An evangelical pastor who’s been a key Trump backer, Jack Graham, plans to reopen his Texas megachurch on Pentecost weekend. Attendees of those services will be required to make reservations, but masks will not be mandated, according to the church’s website.

Graham told the Faithwire website this week that Pentecost, considered holy by Christians as the birthday of the church, was a fitting moment for “a kind of rebirth of the church” this year.

The momentum toward restarting in-person worship comes amid new reports of church gatherings spreading COVID-19. A CDC report released this week traced the spread of the virus to 35 out of 92 attendees at two March church events in Arkansas that were attended by two symptomatic people.

“Reopening faith communities, let alone reopening any other faith institutions, is unsafe” given the ongoing threat of spreading illness, said Maggie Siddiqi, director of the faith initiative at the liberal Center for American Progress. “My fear is we will learn the hard way and have to close again.”

While Pentecost promises to escalate the number of churches seeking to reopen, many other houses of worship are still expecting to wait until June or beyond to resume in-person services with restrictions aimed at protecting public health. Another prominent conservative evangelical ally of Trump, Pastor Robert Jeffress, said he is eyeing local metrics and could reopen next month.

Speaking before Trump’s Friday announcement, Jeffress said his Dallas-area megachurch would be “data-driven, instead of date-driven, when it comes to reopening.”

A spokeswoman for the ministry of Paula White-Cain, the pastor who leads Trump’s White House faith initiative, said earlier this week that at the moment Pentecost services at her Florida church were slated to be online-only.

The president, however, has projected eagerness to restart religious services. Trump held a Thursday conference call with 1,600 “pastors and faith leaders” to tout the importance of reopening in-person worship, later saying that deeming liquor stores and abortion clinics essential but not worship was an “injustice.”

Some governors designated faith gatherings as essential services in their states’ pandemic stay-at-home orders, although others restricted them as the virus began to spread.

Ralph Reed, chief of the Faith &amp; Freedom Coalition and another conservative evangelical ally of Trump, said before Trump’s Friday announcement that while Pentecost is “an important marker for the church,” he doesn’t expect most Christian leaders would be “guided particularly by that date” in deciding to reopen.

But Reed lauded the growing push in that direction. “Churches are doing a good job” adapting to necessary public health constraints, he said, “but I do think it’s time for the country to reopen.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1590173193204.png" alt="President Trump opened Friday's press briefing with comments on religious services." />
 <figcaption>President Trump opened Friday's press briefing with comments on religious services.</figcaption>
 </figure>NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump’s declaration that religious services should be “essential” comes at a precarious point in the national balancing act that pits the call of worship against the risk of coronavirus.Even before Trump’s comments Friday, which came alongside the release of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/php/faith-based.html" target="_blank">guidance</a>&nbsp;for reopening faith organizations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Christian leaders in several states made plans to welcome back congregants on the week of Pentecost, May 31.The new CDC guidance could energize houses of worship that might want to reopen their doors, despite evidence of ongoing risk of the virus spreading through communal gatherings. While it suggests steps such as asking congregants to cover their faces and limiting the sharing of worship aids, the CDC document says it is “not meant to regulate or prescribe standards for interactions of faith communities.”The guidance released Friday is similar to draft guidance drawn up by the CDC more than a month ago but shelved by administration officials. One difference: The earlier version discussed opening in stages, such as video streaming and drive-in services, with later phases allowing in-person gatherings limited in size and with social distancing. The guidance released Friday has no discussion of a phased-in opening.Tension over when and how to reopen houses of worship has varied depending on the state, as different areas set their own pace for easing pandemic stay-at-home orders. Trump called for the resumption of in-person religious services repeatedly this week and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/8a34b6599602dbd751f2c1fcb93387fe">said Friday that</a>&nbsp;he would “override” governors that did not do so, though it’s unclear whether Trump has any authority to supersede state leaders on the issue.Still, the president’s comments come less than six months ahead of a reelection bid in which turnout from his conservative evangelical Christian base could prove critical. Trump suggested on Thursday that friction over the issue was more common in states run by Democrats because “churches are not being treated with respect” by many their governors.One of those Democrats, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, was warned this week by Trump’s Justice Department that the state’s phased-in plan to restart economic activity puts an “unfair burden” on worship by not permitting churches to open earlier in the process. More than 1,200 California pastors are planning to restart worship on May 31 despite Newsom’s stay-at-home orders, which he has said would likely allow for religious gatherings within weeks.Among the California pastors leading the call for resuming in-person gathering is Danny Carroll of Water of Life Community Church in Fontana. State officials “don’t understand that people of faith need contact, that they need to worship together,” Carroll said in an interview. “We’re trying to close the gap – thoughtfully, humbly, nicely.”Carroll described his effort as disconnected from politics: “We don’t deal with how people vote. We deal with how people live.”But another pastor involved, Ron Hill of Love and Unity Christian Fellowship, said that he finds “some merit” in Republicans’ claims that blue states have a less keen understanding of religion’s importance in public life.“I really find it difficult to understand why they’re placing a different rule on the church than on the supermarket, café or restaurant,” said Hill, who added that he had not yet decided whether May 31 would mark the reopening of his church in Compton, Calif.Pastors in other states, however, have already begun outlining plans to welcome back worshippers in person before the month’s end. Florida’s Rodney Howard-Browne –&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/6a6ffcc32101dd3eee86937202a1c7f2">arrested</a>&nbsp;in March for holding a large in-person service at his church, charges that were later dropped – is preparing to reopen with an outdoor service on Pentecost. Catholic and Lutheran churches in Minnesota have notified that state’s Democratic governor that they plan to resume Mass this week, in defiance of his order.An evangelical pastor who’s been a key Trump backer, Jack Graham, plans to reopen his Texas megachurch on Pentecost weekend. Attendees of those services will be required to make reservations, but masks will not be mandated, according to the church’s website.Graham told the Faithwire website this week that Pentecost, considered holy by Christians as the birthday of the church, was a fitting moment for “a kind of rebirth of the church” this year.The momentum toward restarting in-person worship comes amid new reports of church gatherings spreading COVID-19. A CDC report released this week traced the spread of the virus to 35 out of 92 attendees at two March church events in Arkansas that were attended by two symptomatic people.“Reopening faith communities, let alone reopening any other faith institutions, is unsafe” given the ongoing threat of spreading illness, said Maggie Siddiqi, director of the faith initiative at the liberal Center for American Progress. “My fear is we will learn the hard way and have to close again.”While Pentecost promises to escalate the number of churches seeking to reopen, many other houses of worship are still expecting to wait until June or beyond to resume in-person services with restrictions aimed at protecting public health. Another prominent conservative evangelical ally of Trump, Pastor Robert Jeffress, said he is eyeing local metrics and could reopen next month.Speaking before Trump’s Friday announcement, Jeffress said his Dallas-area megachurch would be “data-driven, instead of date-driven, when it comes to reopening.”A spokeswoman for the ministry of Paula White-Cain, the pastor who leads Trump’s White House faith initiative, said earlier this week that at the moment Pentecost services at her Florida church were slated to be online-only.The president, however, has projected eagerness to restart religious services. Trump held a Thursday conference call with 1,600 “pastors and faith leaders” to tout the importance of reopening in-person worship, later saying that deeming liquor stores and abortion clinics essential but not worship was an “injustice.”Some governors designated faith gatherings as essential services in their states’ pandemic stay-at-home orders, although others restricted them as the virus began to spread.Ralph Reed, chief of the Faith &amp; Freedom Coalition and another conservative evangelical ally of Trump, said before Trump’s Friday announcement that while Pentecost is “an important marker for the church,” he doesn’t expect most Christian leaders would be “guided particularly by that date” in deciding to reopen.But Reed lauded the growing push in that direction. “Churches are doing a good job” adapting to necessary public health constraints, he said, “but I do think it’s time for the country to reopen.”___

Trump’s urging stokes furor in debate over in-person worship

MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — The founder of a Kansas City-area plumbing company who is running for an open U.S. Senate seat in Kansas acknowledged Saturday that he would love to have a highly coveted seat on the Senate Agriculture Committee but doesn’t know how he’d go about getting it.

<a href="https://www.facebook.com/kansasrepublicanparty/videos/195421514855059/">Click here to watch</a> the debate.

The question to Bob Hamilton and four other Republicans during a debate was a natural one, given the importance of farm policy to Kansas and the fact that retiring GOP Sen. Pat Roberts has served as chairman of both the Senate and House agriculture committees.

“I am an outsider, and you’ve just got to show me how to do that,” said Hamilton, who was participating in his first debate in Manhattan, home to the Kansas Farm Bureau’s headquarters and the state’s only agriculture college at Kansas State University.

Republicans both in Kansas and Washington are watching to see whether the 60-year-old Hamilton’s late-entry candidacy takes off in what had seemed increasingly&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/4c401c53183b8f7c2b8aa4e1eecd9811">like a two-person primary race</a>&nbsp;between U.S. Rep. Roger Marshall of western Kansas and former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, nationally known for advocating tough immigration policies.

Hamilton opened by saying that Republicans watching the livestream of the audience-less event didn’t know much about him, though he’s been running television ads for weeks. He sometimes seemed to search for words and phrases and focused on broad themes as other candidates touched on policy specifics.

“Finding the words and that kind of thing, you know, I’ll get better at that, and I don’t ever want to be a professional politician,” he said after the debate. “I want to be the guy who will help fix problems.”

Hamilton was able to match Marshall’s $2 million-plus in fundraising by the end of March with his own money. The possibility that he could self-fund a campaign — and a flood of ads telling his story as someone who with his wife raised 12 children while building a company from scratch — have caught many Republicans’ attention.

Many Republicans are nervous about Kobach winning the GOP nomination because he alienated moderate voters in the 2018 governor’s race and lost to Democrat Laura Kelly after emerging from another crowded GOP field. With the GOP worried about keeping its U.S. Senate majority, the party doesn’t need a money-pit race in Kansas when Republicans have won every U.S. Senate race there since 1932.

Hamilton’s story seems designed to appeal to President Donald Trump’s base, just as Trump’s business credentials and outsider status did in 2016. The Hamiltons started their plumbing company in 1983, from nothing, he says, with him making the calls and his wife answering the phone. He eventually had about 160 employees and sold the firm in 2017, though it still carries his name and appears in ads.

There are plenty of skeptics. Kansas Republican Party Chairman Mike Kuckelman said said Hamilton has a “bright future” but that “I don’t think this race is the right race for him to be starting in.”

Knuckelman has sought to narrow the field before the June 1 candidate filing deadline, including by urging state Senate President Susan Wagle and Dave Lindstrom, a Kansas City-area businessman and former Kansas City Chiefs professional football player, to drop out.

Marshall touted his work on the House Agriculture Committee in four years in Congress and endorsements from the Kansas Farm Bureau and Kansas Livestock Association. Kobach noted that he has been an informal adviser to Trump and promised to push the president’s immigration agenda. Wagle and touted a long list of initiatives from her nearly three decades in the Legislature that she said show she can deliver.

Lindstrom also described himself as a businessman-outsider, but he has served on an elected community college board and the Kansas Turnpike Authority. He also was the GOP nominee for lieutenant governor in 2002.

For his part, Hamilton said he wasn’t intimidated during his first debate. Asked whether someone with no experience in politics could handle work in Washington — just as he perhaps wouldn’t send someone with no training to fix a sink — he didn’t hesitate.

“I guess we can ask President Trump how he did it,” Hamilton said. “Politics and problems — it’s not rocket science. We need business people that actually know how to fix problems to get up there and fix problems.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1590268976772.png" alt="Kansas GOP Senate debate in Manhattan&nbsp; with Dave Lindstrom, Senate president Susan Wagle, Kris Kobach, Bob Hamilton and&nbsp; Rep. Roger Marshall" />
 <figcaption>Kansas GOP Senate debate in Manhattan&nbsp; with Dave Lindstrom, Senate president Susan Wagle, Kris Kobach, Bob Hamilton and&nbsp; Rep. Roger Marshall</figcaption>
 </figure>MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — The founder of a Kansas City-area plumbing company who is running for an open U.S. Senate seat in Kansas acknowledged Saturday that he would love to have a highly coveted seat on the Senate Agriculture Committee but doesn’t know how he’d go about getting it.<a href="https://www.facebook.com/kansasrepublicanparty/videos/195421514855059/">Click here to watch</a> the debate.The question to Bob Hamilton and four other Republicans during a debate was a natural one, given the importance of farm policy to Kansas and the fact that retiring GOP Sen. Pat Roberts has served as chairman of both the Senate and House agriculture committees.“I am an outsider, and you’ve just got to show me how to do that,” said Hamilton, who was participating in his first debate in Manhattan, home to the Kansas Farm Bureau’s headquarters and the state’s only agriculture college at Kansas State University.Republicans both in Kansas and Washington are watching to see whether the 60-year-old Hamilton’s late-entry candidacy takes off in what had seemed increasingly&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/4c401c53183b8f7c2b8aa4e1eecd9811">like a two-person primary race</a>&nbsp;between U.S. Rep. Roger Marshall of western Kansas and former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, nationally known for advocating tough immigration policies.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1590269441213.png" alt="Candidate Bob Hamilton" />
 <figcaption>Candidate Bob Hamilton</figcaption>
 </figure>Hamilton opened by saying that Republicans watching the livestream of the audience-less event didn’t know much about him, though he’s been running television ads for weeks. He sometimes seemed to search for words and phrases and focused on broad themes as other candidates touched on policy specifics.“Finding the words and that kind of thing, you know, I’ll get better at that, and I don’t ever want to be a professional politician,” he said after the debate. “I want to be the guy who will help fix problems.”Hamilton was able to match Marshall’s $2 million-plus in fundraising by the end of March with his own money. The possibility that he could self-fund a campaign — and a flood of ads telling his story as someone who with his wife raised 12 children while building a company from scratch — have caught many Republicans’ attention.Many Republicans are nervous about Kobach winning the GOP nomination because he alienated moderate voters in the 2018 governor’s race and lost to Democrat Laura Kelly after emerging from another crowded GOP field. With the GOP worried about keeping its U.S. Senate majority, the party doesn’t need a money-pit race in Kansas when Republicans have won every U.S. Senate race there since 1932.Hamilton’s story seems designed to appeal to President Donald Trump’s base, just as Trump’s business credentials and outsider status did in 2016. The Hamiltons started their plumbing company in 1983, from nothing, he says, with him making the calls and his wife answering the phone. He eventually had about 160 employees and sold the firm in 2017, though it still carries his name and appears in ads.There are plenty of skeptics. Kansas Republican Party Chairman Mike Kuckelman said said Hamilton has a “bright future” but that “I don’t think this race is the right race for him to be starting in.”Knuckelman has sought to narrow the field before the June 1 candidate filing deadline, including by urging state Senate President Susan Wagle and Dave Lindstrom, a Kansas City-area businessman and former Kansas City Chiefs professional football player, to drop out.Marshall touted his work on the House Agriculture Committee in four years in Congress and endorsements from the Kansas Farm Bureau and Kansas Livestock Association. Kobach noted that he has been an informal adviser to Trump and promised to push the president’s immigration agenda. Wagle and touted a long list of initiatives from her nearly three decades in the Legislature that she said show she can deliver.Lindstrom also described himself as a businessman-outsider, but he has served on an elected community college board and the Kansas Turnpike Authority. He also was the GOP nominee for lieutenant governor in 2002.For his part, Hamilton said he wasn’t intimidated during his first debate. Asked whether someone with no experience in politics could handle work in Washington — just as he perhaps wouldn’t send someone with no training to fix a sink — he didn’t hesitate.“I guess we can ask President Trump how he did it,” Hamilton said. “Politics and problems — it’s not rocket science. We need business people that actually know how to fix problems to get up there and fix problems.”____

 🎥 Kan. GOP waits to see whether plumber's Senate bid surges

MONTGOMERY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas felon on new charges after a high-speed chase.

Just after 5p.m. Wednesday, sheriff's deputies were notified of a pursuit that was taking place in Coffeyville with a subject who had fired shots at a law enforcement Officer, according to Sheriff Ron Wade.

This pursuit continued into rural Montgomery county. 

Deputies picked up the pursuit of the maroon minivan at Highway 160 and County Road 4900.

 The vehicle being pursued was a maroon minivan. During pursuit the vehicle committed multiple traffic infractions and reached speeds of up to 90 mph. 

This pursuit proceeded through Wilson County and into Labette County where spike strips were deployed and the pursuit ended near Cherokee, Kansas. 

The driver of the vehicle was identified as 27-year-old Brice Bethel of Coffeyville. Bethel also had two children in the vehicle. 

Authorities also recovered several firearms that were recovered from vehicle.

Bethel was brought back to Montgomery county jail for Coffeyville PD and booked on requested charges of Aggravated Assault of LEO; us of a deadly weapon, Stalking after being served a protection order, Criminal Possession of a weapon by a felon, Criminal discharge of a firearm, Flee or attempt to elude LEO by engaging in reckless driving, Aggravated endangering a child and numerous traffic violations, according to Wade.

Bethel has a previous burglary conviction in 2016, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1590091908216.png" alt="Bethel -photo Montgomery County" />
 <figcaption>Bethel -photo Montgomery County</figcaption>
 </figure>MONTGOMERY COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a Kansas felon on new charges after a high-speed chase.Just after 5p.m. Wednesday, sheriff's deputies were notified of a pursuit that was taking place in Coffeyville with a subject who had fired shots at a law enforcement Officer, according to Sheriff Ron Wade.This pursuit continued into rural Montgomery county. Deputies picked up the pursuit of the maroon minivan at Highway 160 and County Road 4900. The vehicle being pursued was a maroon minivan. During pursuit the vehicle committed multiple traffic infractions and reached speeds of up to 90 mph. This pursuit proceeded through Wilson County and into Labette County where spike strips were deployed and the pursuit ended near Cherokee, Kansas. The driver of the vehicle was identified as 27-year-old Brice Bethel of Coffeyville. Bethel also had two children in the vehicle. Authorities also recovered several firearms that were recovered from vehicle.Bethel was brought back to Montgomery county jail for Coffeyville PD and booked on requested charges of Aggravated Assault of LEO; us of a deadly weapon, Stalking after being served a protection order, Criminal Possession of a weapon by a felon, Criminal discharge of a firearm, Flee or attempt to elude LEO by engaging in reckless driving, Aggravated endangering a child and numerous traffic violations, according to Wade.Bethel has a previous burglary conviction in 2016, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.

Sheriff: 2 kids in car during high-speed chase with Kan. felon

Hertz filed for bankruptcy protection Friday, unable to withstand&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak">the coronavirus pandemic</a>&nbsp;that has crippled global travel and with it, the heavily indebted 102-year-old car rental company’s business.

The Estero, Florida-based company’s lenders were unwilling to grant it another extension on its auto lease debt payments past a Friday deadline, triggering the filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware.

Hertz and its subsidiaries will continue to operate, according to a release from the company. Hertz’s principal international operating regions and franchised locations are not included in the filing, the statement said.

By the end of March, Hertz Global Holdings Inc. had racked up more than $24 billion in debt, according to the bankruptcy filing, with only $1 billion of available cash.

Starting in mid-March, the company — whose car-rental brands also include Dollar and Thrifty — lost all revenue when travel shut down due to the coronavirus. The company made “significant efforts” but couldn’t raise money on the capital markets, so it started missing payments to creditors in April, the filing said. Hertz has also been plagued by management upheaval, naming its fourth CEO in six years on May 18.

“No business is built for zero revenue,” former CEO Kathryn Marinello said on the company’s first-quarter earnings conference call May 12. “There’s only so long that companies’ reserves will carry them.”

In late March, Hertz shed 12,000 workers and put another 4,000 on furlough, cut vehicle acquisitions by 90% and stopped all nonessential spending. The company said the moves would save $2.5 billion per year.

But the cuts came too late to save Hertz, the nation’s No. 2 auto rental company founded in 1918 by Walter L. Jacobs, who started in Chicago with a fleet of a dozen Ford Model Ts. Jacobs sold the company, initially called Rent-A-Car Inc., to John D. Hertz in 1923.

In a note to investors in late April, Jefferies analyst Hamzah Mazari predicted that rival Avis would survive the coronavirus crisis but Hertz had only a 50-50 chance “given it was slower to cut costs.”

On May 18, Hertz named operations chief Paul Stone as CEO and announced that Marinello would step down as CEO and from the company’s board. Mazari called the step unusual just days before a potential bankruptcy filing. He also noted that CEO changes have been common at Hertz since financier Carl Icahn entered the company in 2014.

Icahn’s holding company is Hertz’s largest shareholder, with a 38.9% stake in the company, according to FactSet.

Deutsche Bank analyst Chris Woronka credited Marinello with reigniting Hertz’s revenue growth, writing in a note to investors that it rose 16% in 2018 and 2019 combined.

Hertz’s bankruptcy protection filing was hardly a surprise. In its first-quarter report filed earlier in May with securities regulators, the company said it may not be able to repay or refinance debt and may not have enough cash to keep operating.

“Management has concluded there is substantial doubt regarding the company’s ability to continue as a going concern within one year from the issuance date of this quarterly report,” it said.

Under a Chapter 11 restructuring, creditors will have to settle for less than full repayment. Its biggest creditors are banks, but the filing lists IBM, Lyft, United and Southwest Airlines as others owed between $6 million and $23 million each.

Hertz isn’t the first struggling company to be pushed into bankruptcy by the coronavirus crisis. The company joins&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/c1c81cf36150f0586993e8bd15410b10">department store chain J.C. Penney,&nbsp;</a>as well as Neiman Marcus, J.Crew and Stage Stores.

By TOM KRISHER, Associated PressHertz filed for bankruptcy protection Friday, unable to withstand&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak">the coronavirus pandemic</a>&nbsp;that has crippled global travel and with it, the heavily indebted 102-year-old car rental company’s business.The Estero, Florida-based company’s lenders were unwilling to grant it another extension on its auto lease debt payments past a Friday deadline, triggering the filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware.Hertz and its subsidiaries will continue to operate, according to a release from the company. Hertz’s principal international operating regions and franchised locations are not included in the filing, the statement said.By the end of March, Hertz Global Holdings Inc. had racked up more than $24 billion in debt, according to the bankruptcy filing, with only $1 billion of available cash.Starting in mid-March, the company — whose car-rental brands also include Dollar and Thrifty — lost all revenue when travel shut down due to the coronavirus. The company made “significant efforts” but couldn’t raise money on the capital markets, so it started missing payments to creditors in April, the filing said. Hertz has also been plagued by management upheaval, naming its fourth CEO in six years on May 18.“No business is built for zero revenue,” former CEO Kathryn Marinello said on the company’s first-quarter earnings conference call May 12. “There’s only so long that companies’ reserves will carry them.”In late March, Hertz shed 12,000 workers and put another 4,000 on furlough, cut vehicle acquisitions by 90% and stopped all nonessential spending. The company said the moves would save $2.5 billion per year.But the cuts came too late to save Hertz, the nation’s No. 2 auto rental company founded in 1918 by Walter L. Jacobs, who started in Chicago with a fleet of a dozen Ford Model Ts. Jacobs sold the company, initially called Rent-A-Car Inc., to John D. Hertz in 1923.In a note to investors in late April, Jefferies analyst Hamzah Mazari predicted that rival Avis would survive the coronavirus crisis but Hertz had only a 50-50 chance “given it was slower to cut costs.”On May 18, Hertz named operations chief Paul Stone as CEO and announced that Marinello would step down as CEO and from the company’s board. Mazari called the step unusual just days before a potential bankruptcy filing. He also noted that CEO changes have been common at Hertz since financier Carl Icahn entered the company in 2014.Icahn’s holding company is Hertz’s largest shareholder, with a 38.9% stake in the company, according to FactSet.Deutsche Bank analyst Chris Woronka credited Marinello with reigniting Hertz’s revenue growth, writing in a note to investors that it rose 16% in 2018 and 2019 combined.Hertz’s bankruptcy protection filing was hardly a surprise. In its first-quarter report filed earlier in May with securities regulators, the company said it may not be able to repay or refinance debt and may not have enough cash to keep operating.“Management has concluded there is substantial doubt regarding the company’s ability to continue as a going concern within one year from the issuance date of this quarterly report,” it said.Under a Chapter 11 restructuring, creditors will have to settle for less than full repayment. Its biggest creditors are banks, but the filing lists IBM, Lyft, United and Southwest Airlines as others owed between $6 million and $23 million each.Hertz isn’t the first struggling company to be pushed into bankruptcy by the coronavirus crisis. The company joins&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/c1c81cf36150f0586993e8bd15410b10">department store chain J.C. Penney,&nbsp;</a>as well as Neiman Marcus, J.Crew and Stage Stores.___

Debt and coronavirus push Hertz into bankruptcy protection

PRAIRIE VILLAGE, Kan. (AP) — A suburban Kansas City nursing home with 81 coronavirus cases and 15 deaths allowed a nurse’s aide to work despite having symptoms of the illness, a new state report shows.

The Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services cited Brighton Gardens in Prairie Village, Kansas, on May 11 after finding that it placed residents in “immediate jeopardy related to the spread of COVID-19.”

Records show that the aide recorded having positive symptoms of COVID-19 on a screening form on April 16 and April 17 but was still allowed to care for residents in seven rooms. The employee, along with three residents, then tested positive for COVID-19 on April 22.

The documents also cited issues with improper use of personal protective equipment and inadequate cleaning. Additionally, a staff member said that sometimes the person taking employees’ temperatures at the start of each shift “did not wipe off the temporal thermometer before taking the next person’s,” the records said.

The “Immediate Jeopardy” tag, which is the most severe citation, describes a provider’s noncompliance that “has caused or is likely to cause serious injury, harm, impairment, or death to a resident,” according to the Centers for Medicare &amp; Medicaid Services. The tag was removed after the facility addressed concerns related to the screening of employees for COVID-19.

Denise Falco, regional vice president of operations for Sunrise Senior Living, which owns Brighton Gardens, said Thursday evening in an emailed statement that it “swiftly” took steps to retrain staff on screening protocols.

“We take our responsibility to our residents seriously and move decisively whenever improvements may be needed,” she said.

Meanwhile, Kansas was beginning to reopen further Friday as unemployment numbers soared to 11.2% in April from a historical low of 2.8% in March, according to preliminary estimates reported by the Kansas Department of Labor.

Seasonally adjusted job estimates indicate total Kansas nonfarm jobs decreased by 130,400 from March. Private sector jobs, a subset of total nonfarm jobs, decreased by 121,600 from the previous month, while government decreased by 8,800 jobs.

The maximum size of mass gatherings has increased from 10 to 15 people, and state-owned casinos can reopen, along with theaters, museums, bowling alleys and other indoor leisure places. Sports tournaments and practices also can resume, with some exceptions. But bars, nightclubs and swimming pools must stay closed for now, and individual communities can approve stricter rules.

Johns Hopkins University reported 204 deaths and 8,600 cases, although the number is believed to be higher because of limits in testing.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1589905440854.png" alt="Google image" />
 <figcaption>Google image</figcaption>
 </figure>PRAIRIE VILLAGE, Kan. (AP) — A suburban Kansas City nursing home with 81 coronavirus cases and 15 deaths allowed a nurse’s aide to work despite having symptoms of the illness, a new state report shows.The Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services cited Brighton Gardens in Prairie Village, Kansas, on May 11 after finding that it placed residents in “immediate jeopardy related to the spread of COVID-19.”Records show that the aide recorded having positive symptoms of COVID-19 on a screening form on April 16 and April 17 but was still allowed to care for residents in seven rooms. The employee, along with three residents, then tested positive for COVID-19 on April 22.The documents also cited issues with improper use of personal protective equipment and inadequate cleaning. Additionally, a staff member said that sometimes the person taking employees’ temperatures at the start of each shift “did not wipe off the temporal thermometer before taking the next person’s,” the records said.The “Immediate Jeopardy” tag, which is the most severe citation, describes a provider’s noncompliance that “has caused or is likely to cause serious injury, harm, impairment, or death to a resident,” according to the Centers for Medicare &amp; Medicaid Services. The tag was removed after the facility addressed concerns related to the screening of employees for COVID-19.Denise Falco, regional vice president of operations for Sunrise Senior Living, which owns Brighton Gardens, said Thursday evening in an emailed statement that it “swiftly” took steps to retrain staff on screening protocols.“We take our responsibility to our residents seriously and move decisively whenever improvements may be needed,” she said.Meanwhile, Kansas was beginning to reopen further Friday as unemployment numbers soared to 11.2% in April from a historical low of 2.8% in March, according to preliminary estimates reported by the Kansas Department of Labor.Seasonally adjusted job estimates indicate total Kansas nonfarm jobs decreased by 130,400 from March. Private sector jobs, a subset of total nonfarm jobs, decreased by 121,600 from the previous month, while government decreased by 8,800 jobs.The maximum size of mass gatherings has increased from 10 to 15 people, and state-owned casinos can reopen, along with theaters, museums, bowling alleys and other indoor leisure places. Sports tournaments and practices also can resume, with some exceptions. But bars, nightclubs and swimming pools must stay closed for now, and individual communities can approve stricter rules.Johns Hopkins University reported 204 deaths and 8,600 cases, although the number is believed to be higher because of limits in testing.

Kan. nursing home aide allowed to work despite virus symptoms 

KANSAS CITY (AP) — About 1,000 contract employees of a federal agency have received notice that their jobs face elimination in what would be one of the largest mass layoffs of the year for the Kansas City area.

The employees work for the National Benefits Center, which processes paperwork for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, at offices in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, and Overland Park, Kansas.

The fee-funded U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has taken a financial hit amid the coronavirus pandemic and is seeking emergency funding from Congress, saying that it is going to run out of money this summer.

In a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act letter obtained by The Star, Virginia-based PAE, a private contractor that provides staffing for the center, explained that it received notice from the agency that it was significantly reducing the scope of its contract with PAE, effective May 30.

The positions are anticipated to be eliminated by May 29.

Some of the paperwork the center processes is for international adoptions. Catherine Frazier, a spokeswoman for PAE, said that “people who waited years to adopt a child or become an American will be unable to do so.

KANSAS CITY (AP) — About 1,000 contract employees of a federal agency have received notice that their jobs face elimination in what would be one of the largest mass layoffs of the year for the Kansas City area.The employees work for the National Benefits Center, which processes paperwork for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, at offices in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, and Overland Park, Kansas.The fee-funded U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has taken a financial hit amid the coronavirus pandemic and is seeking emergency funding from Congress, saying that it is going to run out of money this summer.In a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act letter obtained by The Star, Virginia-based PAE, a private contractor that provides staffing for the center, explained that it received notice from the agency that it was significantly reducing the scope of its contract with PAE, effective May 30.The positions are anticipated to be eliminated by May 29.Some of the paperwork the center processes is for international adoptions. Catherine Frazier, a spokeswoman for PAE, said that “people who waited years to adopt a child or become an American will be unable to do so.

About 1,000 Kansas City workers learn of potential layoffs

TOPEKA —The Department for Children and Families in collaboration with the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE) announced this week the creation of the Pandemic Electronic Benefit Program (P-EBT). The program will help families who have been impacted by school closures due to COVID-19 to purchase food for their children.

“We know the pandemic has made it difficult for families to access food, especially if they relied on school meals,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “Thanks to the partnership between DCF and KSDE the state will be able to automatically enroll most families into the P-EBT program, so they receive their benefit as quickly as possible.”

“Food insecurity should be the last thing our Kansas children should have to face right now,” Cheryl Johnson KSDE director of child nutrition and wellness said. “P-EBT provides temporary funding to address emergency food needs and avert financial hardship for families affected by the pandemic. I am thankful that through this partnership, Kansas is able to put healthy food on the table for Kansas children.”

P-EBT provides a one-time benefit of up to $291 on a Kansas Benefits Card to Kansas families whose children between the age of 5 to 18 would receive free or reduced-price meals at participating schools. There is no application process to receive the P-EBT benefit.

DCF will issue the benefit in phases. Those Kansas families who currently receive free or reduced-price meals and are enrolled in the food assistance or TANF programs should begin to receive their benefit later this week.

The second phase also will include an automatic match with those families on free or reduced-price meals and who also are receiving Medicaid or child care assistance.

The final phase will include families that need to provide additional information to receive the benefit. Those families will receive access to a parent portal to register for the program beginning June 5. Parents should receive information from their school district on how to access the parent portal.

“Most families should expect to see their benefit in the next two weeks,” DCF Secretary Laura Howard said. “If families have not yet received information about P-EBT, I encourage them to reach out to their local school district.”

In order to provide additional information about P-EBT and to answer questions, DCF is hosting a virtual town hall meeting tomorrow from 11 a.m. to noon.

Use this link to join:&nbsp;<a href="https://bit.ly/KansasP-EBTTownHall" target="_blank">https://bit.ly/KansasP-EBTTownHall</a>

TOPEKA —The Department for Children and Families in collaboration with the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE) announced this week the creation of the Pandemic Electronic Benefit Program (P-EBT). The program will help families who have been impacted by school closures due to COVID-19 to purchase food for their children.“We know the pandemic has made it difficult for families to access food, especially if they relied on school meals,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “Thanks to the partnership between DCF and KSDE the state will be able to automatically enroll most families into the P-EBT program, so they receive their benefit as quickly as possible.”“Food insecurity should be the last thing our Kansas children should have to face right now,” Cheryl Johnson KSDE director of child nutrition and wellness said. “P-EBT provides temporary funding to address emergency food needs and avert financial hardship for families affected by the pandemic. I am thankful that through this partnership, Kansas is able to put healthy food on the table for Kansas children.”P-EBT provides a one-time benefit of up to $291 on a Kansas Benefits Card to Kansas families whose children between the age of 5 to 18 would receive free or reduced-price meals at participating schools. There is no application process to receive the P-EBT benefit.DCF will issue the benefit in phases. Those Kansas families who currently receive free or reduced-price meals and are enrolled in the food assistance or TANF programs should begin to receive their benefit later this week.The second phase also will include an automatic match with those families on free or reduced-price meals and who also are receiving Medicaid or child care assistance.The final phase will include families that need to provide additional information to receive the benefit. Those families will receive access to a parent portal to register for the program beginning June 5. Parents should receive information from their school district on how to access the parent portal.“Most families should expect to see their benefit in the next two weeks,” DCF Secretary Laura Howard said. “If families have not yet received information about P-EBT, I encourage them to reach out to their local school district.”In order to provide additional information about P-EBT and to answer questions, DCF is hosting a virtual town hall meeting tomorrow from 11 a.m. to noon.Virtual P-EBT Town HallThursday, May 21 from 11 a.m. to noon.Use this link to join:&nbsp;<a href="https://bit.ly/KansasP-EBTTownHall" target="_blank">https://bit.ly/KansasP-EBTTownHall</a>

Kan. families receive additional food support through Pandemic EBT program

SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating an armed robbery have made an arrest.

Just before 4 a.m. Thursday, officers responded to the Kwik Shop at 1700 SW Topeka Blvd. on a report of an armed robbery, according to police spokesperson Gretchen Koenen.

The suspect reportedly entered the store, brandished a firearm and left with an undisclosed item.

Based on descriptions from witnesses and the assistance of security camera footage, officers were able to develop a description of the suspect. He was identified as 34-year-old Richard D. Youngberg. Police located Youngberg and arrested him on charges of aggravated robbery, theft and Topeka bench warrants, according to Koenen.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1590170874951.png" alt="Youngberg photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Youngberg photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating an armed robbery have made an arrest.Just before 4 a.m. Thursday, officers responded to the Kwik Shop at 1700 SW Topeka Blvd. on a report of an armed robbery, according to police spokesperson Gretchen Koenen.The suspect reportedly entered the store, brandished a firearm and left with an undisclosed item.Based on descriptions from witnesses and the assistance of security camera footage, officers were able to develop a description of the suspect. He was identified as 34-year-old Richard D. Youngberg. Police located Youngberg and arrested him on charges of aggravated robbery, theft and Topeka bench warrants, according to Koenen.

Police track down, arrest Kansas armed robbery suspect

The Kansas Legislature worked for about 24 hours on a GOP-backed bill that pulls some emergency powers away from Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly. She has the ability to veto it, though has not said she'd do that directly.

TOPEKA, Kansas —&nbsp;In a one-day marathon session that wrapped up a legislative year upended by the coronavirus, Kansas lawmakers reined in the governor’s powers to respond to the public health crisis.

Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly sharply criticized the&nbsp;all-night rush that drafted the bill, but she stopped short of threatening a veto.

A wide-ranging bill that passed after sunrise Friday lets the governor’s emergency declaration — notably, the power to shut down businesses — extend through the end of May. After that, she’d need a panel of lawmakers to have it go longer.

And businesses that broke with the governor’s orders would face just civil penalties, rather than the misdemeanor criminal charges they'd currently face.

The Republican-controlled Legislature also passed protections for businesses against some lawsuits related to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Meanwhile, efforts to expand Medicaid to cover the health care bills of another 130,000 or so people in the state evaporated for another year.

Lawmakers also didn’t adjust state spending to account for a&nbsp;<a href="https://kansaspublicradio.org/kpr-news/coronavirus-put-650-million-hole-kansas-budget-and-even-k-12-cutting-board" target="_blank">dramatic drop in tax revenue</a>&nbsp;— yet another effect of the economic shutdown triggered by the pandemic. A special session could bring legislators back to Topeka to balance the books, the governor could make cuts herself or any action may wait until next year.

Fears of spreading the coronavirus cut the first part of the session short. And ongoing concerns about infections resulted in a single, particularly contentious day that made clear the pandemic hasn't pushed aside partisan rivalries.

“It is our job to oversee this governor, to oversee her emergency orders,” Republican Senate President Susan Wagle said. “It is our job to open up Kansas safely.”

After some extended comments from a Democrat, the Senate’s Republican majority leader said he would use a procedural move to end debate and move bills forward as quickly as possible.

“I’m basically out of patience,” Sen. Jim Denning said.

The top Democrat in the Senate said the high-speed process, which ended in a vote Friday morning, meant lawmakers couldn’t have a full debate and offer amendments.

“We ought to close the blinds and turn out the lights because this is a dark day for democracy,” Sen. Anthony Hensley said.

And House Democratic Leader Tom Sawyer called the day "simply bad governing."

“This is no time for fulfilling political agendas,” Sawyer said.

Republicans argued they had little choice but to hurry bills through.

“This is the first time we’ve had a pandemic and had mere hours to come up with a solution,” Republican Rep. Fred Patton said.

Protesters rallied outside the Capitol to press Kelly and lawmakers to more quickly and fully open up the state’s economy. Their chants came as conservatives inside the Statehouse continued to criticize Kelly for what they see as a too-sluggish phasing out of her stay-at-home orders. Meanwhile, coronavirus clusters persist in southwest Kansas, where workers at meatpacking plants are in close quarters.

Lawmakers took precautions in the Statehouse, with some in the House and Senate wearing masks. The House allowed members to stay in their offices and return to the chamber for votes.

Kelly has clashed with some Republicans for weeks over her actions to control the coronavirus. Some lawmakers grew increasingly frustrated that many businesses were closed and that&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2020-05-19/kansas-rolls-back-more-restrictions-but-the-pool-wont-be-open-for-memorial-day" target="_blank">some have not yet been allowed to reopen</a>. And they were upset that she put limits on the number of people who could gather for religious services just before Easter.

Lawmakers<a href="http://kslegislature.org/li/b2019_20/measures/hb2054/" target="_blank">&nbsp;moved to put some limits</a>&nbsp;and oversight on her authority. They voted to extend her disaster declaration through the end of May, but a panel of legislative leaders and the governor would need to&nbsp;<a href="http://kslegislature.org/li/b2019_20/measures/documents/ccrb_hb2054_02_0000.pdf" target="_blank">approve any further extensions</a>.

“Her emergency declarations apply to all of Kansas and there are counties that still have had no cases,” Wagle said.

<a href="https://ag.ks.gov/docs/default-source/ag-opinions/2020/2020-006.pdf?sfvrsn=1997ac1a_8" target="_blank">Attorney General Derek Schmidt said</a>&nbsp;just hours before lawmakers returned that Kelly may not have had the authority to issue a second emergency declaration after the first one expired.

Jim McLeanState Rep. Richard Prohel, a Republican from Parsons, listens to lobbyist John Federico.

Kelly’s office issued a statement early Friday morning, saying she was open to a discussion about changing the state’s emergency law. But it criticized the hasty effort to approve changes.

“Governor Kelly welcomes an honest conversation about the Kansas Emergency Management Act,” the statement said. “Unfortunately, this is not an honest conversation.”

Kelly has a few things to consider in a larger coronavirus response bill that the Legislature passed, too.

Legislative leaders would have oversight of the<a href="https://www.cbpp.org/research/how-much-each-state-will-receive-from-the-coronavirus-relief-fund-in-the-cares-act" target="_blank">&nbsp;$1.25 billion</a>&nbsp;in federal coronavirus aid for Kansas.

Health care providers would be protected from lawsuits over things like procedures that were delayed because of the pandemic.

And businesses would also have some protections against lawsuits over coronavirus infections unless they took reckless action. The bill also bars some product liability lawsuits.

The provisions were scaled back somewhat from what business groups initially requested.

Medicaid expansion falters ... again

The year started with high hopes from Medicaid expansion supporters.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kcur.org/health/2020-01-09/kansas-paves-medicaid-expansion-path-after-governor-and-top-republican-break-partisan-logjam" target="_blank">A bipartisan compromise</a>&nbsp;forged by the governor and a top Senate Republican would have provided health coverage for more than 100,000 low-income Kansans.

But Republican leaders&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kcur.org/politics-elections-and-government/2020-02-15/kansas-medicaid-expansion-blocked-supporters-frustrated-and-lawmakers-considering-nuclear-option" target="_blank">blocked Medicaid expansion</a>&nbsp;after tying it to a constitutional amendment on abortion. That frustrated expansion supporters, who threatened to block the budget.

Democrats made a last-ditch effort in the Senate on Thursday to offer Medicaid expansion as an amendment. But that was shut down on procedural grounds.

“We have been bridled and throttled this entire year when the votes exist from this chamber to pass Medicaid expansion,” Democratic Sen. Barbara Bollier said. (She, like Wagle, is running for the U.S. Senate.) “We have the votes.”

A constitutional amendment saying there’s no right to abortion in the Kansas Constitution suffered the same fate as the Medicaid expansion plan it was tied to.

The amendment came in response to a<a href="https://www.kcur.org/health/2019-04-26/kansas-supreme-court-the-state-constitution-protects-abortion-rights" target="_blank">&nbsp;state Supreme Court decision&nbsp;</a>that found a right to abortion in the Kansas Constitution. Conservatives want to undo that with the amendment. They fear the court’s decision could pave the way for knocking down abortion restrictions already in state law.

Critics of the amendment say it could open the door to fully banning abortion in Kansas.

Jim McLeanState Rep. Kristey Williams, a Republican from Augusta, surrounded by colleagues.

Lawmakers voted to give taxpayers&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2019_20/measures/documents/ccrb_hb2702_01_taxb.pdf" target="_blank">more information</a>&nbsp;about their property tax rates. Cities and counties would have to send notices to residents when property tax collections will go up, starting next year. It also requires local governments to hold public hearings on tax rates.

Republican Sen. Caryn Tyson said it gives property taxpayers a better chance to weigh in on increases.

“The bill is about transparency,” she said. “It’s about local control, and it’s about taxpayers having a voice.”

The bill repeals a 2015 cap on property tax increases by local governments.

In response to the economic challenges caused by coronavirus, the plan also gives people three additional months to pay their May property taxes without penalty.

Stephen Koranda is the Statehouse reporter for Kansas Public Radio and the Kansas News Service. You can follow him on Twitter<a href="https://twitter.com/kprkoranda" target="_blank">&nbsp;</a><a href="https://twitter.com/kprkoranda" target="_blank">@kprkoranda</a>.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/5/1590176708515.png" alt="State Sen. John Skubal, an Overland Park Republican, waits out a long night in Topeka.-photo by Jim McLean -Kansas News Service" />
 <figcaption>State Sen. John Skubal, an Overland Park Republican, waits out a long night in Topeka.-photo by Jim McLean -Kansas News Service</figcaption>
 </figure>By Stephen Koranda, Kansas News Service<h2>The Kansas Legislature worked for about 24 hours on a GOP-backed bill that pulls some emergency powers away from Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly. She has the ability to veto it, though has not said she'd do that directly.</h2>TOPEKA, Kansas —&nbsp;In a one-day marathon session that wrapped up a legislative year upended by the coronavirus, Kansas lawmakers reined in the governor’s powers to respond to the public health crisis.Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly sharply criticized the&nbsp;all-night rush that drafted the bill, but she stopped short of threatening a veto.A wide-ranging bill that passed after sunrise Friday lets the governor’s emergency declaration — notably, the power to shut down businesses — extend through the end of May. After that, she’d need a panel of lawmakers to have it go longer.And businesses that broke with the governor’s orders would face just civil penalties, rather than the misdemeanor criminal charges they'd currently face.The Republican-controlled Legislature also passed protections for businesses against some lawsuits related to the COVID-19 outbreak.Meanwhile, efforts to expand Medicaid to cover the health care bills of another 130,000 or so people in the state evaporated for another year.Lawmakers also didn’t adjust state spending to account for a&nbsp;<a href="https://kansaspublicradio.org/kpr-news/coronavirus-put-650-million-hole-kansas-budget-and-even-k-12-cutting-board" target="_blank">dramatic drop in tax revenue</a>&nbsp;— yet another effect of the economic shutdown triggered by the pandemic. A special session could bring legislators back to Topeka to balance the books, the governor could make cuts herself or any action may wait until next year.Fears of spreading the coronavirus cut the first part of the session short. And ongoing concerns about infections resulted in a single, particularly contentious day that made clear the pandemic hasn't pushed aside partisan rivalries.“It is our job to oversee this governor, to oversee her emergency orders,” Republican Senate President Susan Wagle said. “It is our job to open up Kansas safely.”After some extended comments from a Democrat, the Senate’s Republican majority leader said he would use a procedural move to end debate and move bills forward as quickly as possible.“I’m basically out of patience,” Sen. Jim Denning said.The top Democrat in the Senate said the high-speed process, which ended in a vote Friday morning, meant lawmakers couldn’t have a full debate and offer amendments.“We ought to close the blinds and turn out the lights because this is a dark day for democracy,” Sen. Anthony Hensley said.And House Democratic Leader Tom Sawyer called the day "simply bad governing."“This is no time for fulfilling political agendas,” Sawyer said.Republicans argued they had little choice but to hurry bills through.“This is the first time we’ve had a pandemic and had mere hours to come up with a solution,” Republican Rep. Fred Patton said.Protesters rallied outside the Capitol to press Kelly and lawmakers to more quickly and fully open up the state’s economy. Their chants came as conservatives inside the Statehouse continued to criticize Kelly for what they see as a too-sluggish phasing out of her stay-at-home orders. Meanwhile, coronavirus clusters persist in southwest Kansas, where workers at meatpacking plants are in close quarters.Lawmakers took precautions in the Statehouse, with some in the House and Senate wearing masks. The House allowed members to stay in their offices and return to the chamber for votes.The governor’s powersKelly has clashed with some Republicans for weeks over her actions to control the coronavirus. Some lawmakers grew increasingly frustrated that many businesses were closed and that&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kcur.org/news/2020-05-19/kansas-rolls-back-more-restrictions-but-the-pool-wont-be-open-for-memorial-day" target="_blank">some have not yet been allowed to reopen</a>. And they were upset that she put limits on the number of people who could gather for religious services just before Easter.Lawmakers<a href="http://kslegislature.org/li/b2019_20/measures/hb2054/" target="_blank">&nbsp;moved to put some limits</a>&nbsp;and oversight on her authority. They voted to extend her disaster declaration through the end of May, but a panel of legislative leaders and the governor would need to&nbsp;<a href="http://kslegislature.org/li/b2019_20/measures/documents/ccrb_hb2054_02_0000.pdf" target="_blank">approve any further extensions</a>.“Her emergency declarations apply to all of Kansas and there are counties that still have had no cases,” Wagle said.<a href="https://ag.ks.gov/docs/default-source/ag-opinions/2020/2020-006.pdf?sfvrsn=1997ac1a_8" target="_blank">Attorney General Derek Schmidt said</a>&nbsp;just hours before lawmakers returned that Kelly may not have had the authority to issue a second emergency declaration after the first one expired.<figure>
 <img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/fca5df8/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5709x3805+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fe7%2F14%2Ffa1e4fd44937bef78649a03e277c%2F052120-jm-rep.RichardProhel_LobbyistJohnFederico_Rotunda%20%281%29.jpg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Jim McLeanState Rep. Richard Prohel, a Republican from Parsons, listens to lobbyist John Federico.Kelly’s office issued a statement early Friday morning, saying she was open to a discussion about changing the state’s emergency law. But it criticized the hasty effort to approve changes.“Governor Kelly welcomes an honest conversation about the Kansas Emergency Management Act,” the statement said. “Unfortunately, this is not an honest conversation.”COVID-19 detailsKelly has a few things to consider in a larger coronavirus response bill that the Legislature passed, too.Legislative leaders would have oversight of the<a href="https://www.cbpp.org/research/how-much-each-state-will-receive-from-the-coronavirus-relief-fund-in-the-cares-act" target="_blank">&nbsp;$1.25 billion</a>&nbsp;in federal coronavirus aid for Kansas.Health care providers would be protected from lawsuits over things like procedures that were delayed because of the pandemic.And businesses would also have some protections against lawsuits over coronavirus infections unless they took reckless action. The bill also bars some product liability lawsuits.The provisions were scaled back somewhat from what business groups initially requested.Medicaid expansion falters ... againThe year started with high hopes from Medicaid expansion supporters.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kcur.org/health/2020-01-09/kansas-paves-medicaid-expansion-path-after-governor-and-top-republican-break-partisan-logjam" target="_blank">A bipartisan compromise</a>&nbsp;forged by the governor and a top Senate Republican would have provided health coverage for more than 100,000 low-income Kansans.But Republican leaders&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kcur.org/politics-elections-and-government/2020-02-15/kansas-medicaid-expansion-blocked-supporters-frustrated-and-lawmakers-considering-nuclear-option" target="_blank">blocked Medicaid expansion</a>&nbsp;after tying it to a constitutional amendment on abortion. That frustrated expansion supporters, who threatened to block the budget.Democrats made a last-ditch effort in the Senate on Thursday to offer Medicaid expansion as an amendment. But that was shut down on procedural grounds.“We have been bridled and throttled this entire year when the votes exist from this chamber to pass Medicaid expansion,” Democratic Sen. Barbara Bollier said. (She, like Wagle, is running for the U.S. Senate.) “We have the votes.”Abortion constitutional amendmentA constitutional amendment saying there’s no right to abortion in the Kansas Constitution suffered the same fate as the Medicaid expansion plan it was tied to.The amendment came in response to a<a href="https://www.kcur.org/health/2019-04-26/kansas-supreme-court-the-state-constitution-protects-abortion-rights" target="_blank">&nbsp;state Supreme Court decision&nbsp;</a>that found a right to abortion in the Kansas Constitution. Conservatives want to undo that with the amendment. They fear the court’s decision could pave the way for knocking down abortion restrictions already in state law.Critics of the amendment say it could open the door to fully banning abortion in Kansas.<figure>
 <img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ba42b6d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5777x3851+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fd6%2Fc0%2F46e972a04b17a1cbee861b8bc5a3%2F052120-jm-housemembersnomasks-1.jpg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Jim McLeanState Rep. Kristey Williams, a Republican from Augusta, surrounded by colleagues.Property tax provisionsLawmakers voted to give taxpayers&nbsp;<a href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2019_20/measures/documents/ccrb_hb2702_01_taxb.pdf" target="_blank">more information</a>&nbsp;about their property tax rates. Cities and counties would have to send notices to residents when property tax collections will go up, starting next year. It also requires local governments to hold public hearings on tax rates.Republican Sen. Caryn Tyson said it gives property taxpayers a better chance to weigh in on increases.“The bill is about transparency,” she said. “It’s about local control, and it’s about taxpayers having a voice.”The bill repeals a 2015 cap on property tax increases by local governments.In response to the economic challenges caused by coronavirus, the plan also gives people three additional months to pay their May property taxes without penalty.Stephen Koranda is the Statehouse reporter for Kansas Public Radio and the Kansas News Service. You can follow him on Twitter<a href="https://twitter.com/kprkoranda" target="_blank">&nbsp;</a><a href="https://twitter.com/kprkoranda" target="_blank">@kprkoranda</a>.