KS - December 16 2024

1. DOE Drops Kansas Transmission Corridor Plan
2. Kansas Sees 58% Spike in Abortions, Fueled by Out-of-State Patients
3. New Hugoton Facility to Create 100 Jobs, $90M Investment
4. Kansas Secretly Offered $32M to Lure Chiefs Training Camp
5. Kansas Geological Survey Expands Core Library
Sports

1. DOE Drops Kansas Transmission Corridor Plan

The Department of Energy will no longer pursue the Midwest-Plains and Plains-Southwest National Interest Electric Transmission Corridor through Kansas. Earlier this year, Kansas residents met to discuss the proposed corridor, expressing concern that their land would be taken under eminent domain to build it. The corridor would have connected with the already approved Grain Belt Express, linking Kansas to a power transmission line stretching east through Missouri and Illinois to western Indiana. The DOE announced Monday that it had dropped that plan but is going ahead with the Lake Erie-Canada Corridor, the Southwest Grid Connector Corridor involving Colorado, Oklahoma, and New Mexico, and the Tribal Energy Access Corridor in the Dakotas and Nebraska. The Department of Energy said the National Interest Electric Transmission Corridor’s intent is to address the harm created by the lack of energy transmission infrastructure, including higher energy costs, frequent and prolonged power outages, and delayed access to energy due to high demand caused by weather extremes.

Article Source: KSN

2. Kansas Sees 58% Spike in Abortions, Fueled by Out-of-State Patients

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment is reporting a 58% uptick in the number of abortions performed in the state in 2023. The annual report containing the number of abortions performed in Kansas was released months after it traditionally has been in years past. The total number of abortions performed in the state was 19,467 in 2023, a substantial increase from the 2022 total of 12,319 and the 2021 total of 7,849. The number is largely driven by a rise in out-of-state patients, with 4,356 of the abortions being performed on Kansas residents. Kansas traditionally has had a high share of its abortions performed on out-of-state residents, with the data from the mid-2000s to 2021 having a near-even split of abortions performed on residents and nonresidents.    However the overturning of Roe v. Wade, which prevented states from banning abortion before 24 weeks, led many states to ban or restrict access to abortion. Kansas’s neighboring states Missouri and Oklahoma banned nonelective abortions.

Article Source: Topeka Capitol-Journal

3. New Hugoton Facility to Create 100 Jobs, $90M Investment

Governor Laura Kelly announced on Wednesday that Flora Food Group, a global food company, has purchased a manufacturing facility in Hugoton. This capital investment of around $90 million and the expected creation of approximately 100 new jobs over the next several years will elevate the workforce in Stevens County. The facility will be the hub for Flora Food Group’s creams and cream cheese products for the United States, Canada, and the rest of the Americas region over time.

Article Source: WIBW

4. Kansas Secretly Offered $32M to Lure Chiefs Training Camp

Two lawmakers allege that Kansas has tried and apparently failed in a secret attempt to lure the Kansas City Chiefs training camp to Washburn University in Topeka. The top Republican and top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee both said the governor's office put up about $32 million in funds as part of the attempt. They said the money was taken from the interest earned on idle federal funds and was done without legislative approval. The money has since been returned — indicating a failure to lure the Chiefs training camp.

Article Source: Topeka Capitol-Journal

5. Kansas Geological Survey Expands Core Library

Expansion of the Kansas Geological Survey’s drill core library will support analysis of oil and gas reservoir properties, hydrogen and carbon storage and identification of critical minerals. Construction is to begin in early 2025 on a 5,500-square-foot addition to KGS’ facility on the Lawrence campus of the University of Kansas. The project will triple the amount of storage for rock samples collected from drilling and double laboratory space for scientists and engineers analyzing the material.

Article Source: KS Reflector

Sports

KU 75 NCSU 60

Chiefs 21 Browns 7

Sources

1. https://www.ksn.com/news/state-regional/doe-says-it-will-no-longer-pursue-transmission-corridor-in-kansas/

2. https://www.cjonline.com/story/news/politics/state/2024/12/13/kansas-reported-a-58-increase-in-abortions-between-2022-and-2023/76973703007/

3. https://www.wibw.com/2024/12/14/new-facility-hugoton-create-100-new-jobs-investing-90m/

4. https://www.cjonline.com/story/news/politics/government/2024/12/15/did-kansas-try-to-lure-kc-chiefs-training-camp-to-topeka-for-32m/76929189007/

5. https://kansasreflector.com/briefs/kansas-geological-survey-expands-core-library-for-energy-sequestration-research/