FS Downtown Quarterly Meet and Greet April 13

Join us for the
Quarterly Downtown Meet & Greet
hosted by Common Ground Coffee Co.
Tuesday, April 13th, 2021
8:30 am to 9:30 am
Thank you to Common Ground Coffee Company for hosting the Fort Scott Chamber Downtown Meet & Greet on Tuesday, April 13th.
Join us in the Loading Dock Room from 8:30 am until 9:30 am and enjoy coffee, juice and light refreshments.
These informal, quarterly meetings are hosted by the Chamber for downtown business owners, representatives, and community members to network and share ideas on events, promotions, and anything related to downtown. Coffee, juice, and light refreshments will be served.
THE FORT SCOTT AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE 620.223.3566 | WWW.FORTSCOTT.COM

Legislative Update by State Senator Caryn Tyson

Caryn Tyson

 

April 2, 2021

 

Property Tax Transparency – GOOD NEWS FOR PROPERTY TAXPAYERS

Senate Bill 13, stopping automatic property tax increases that result from higher valuations, was signed into law.  Local property taxing authorities will have to provide notice of any proposed monetary increase and vote to go forward with the increase only after hearing public comments at an announced meeting.  The new law has initial payments for the required notices and software changes, removing any excuse to raise taxes because of an unfunded mandate.  It will also allow for normal maintenance on your property without increasing valuations, remove the property tax lid that was not working because of all of the exemptions, and allow county treasurers the option to setup property tax payment plans.  It will not stop property tax increases; however, it will allow taxpayers and taxing authorities an opportunity to be heard before increases occur.

 

I worked diligently for a couple of years on this legislation and other bills to help improve the property tax system.  I had meetings in locations away from Topeka where myself and other legislators heard the concerns of property tax paying Kansans from around the State.  Senate Bill 13 is the results of those concerns.   It’s a victory for Kansas.

 

Closing Power Plants

Talk about a trojan horse – Senate Substitute for House Bill (S Sub HB) 2072 is definitely one.  On the surface the bill looks like it helps utility customers, however, it will eventually result in much higher utility bills and puts us on a path for a similar disaster that occurred in Texas.  There were two parts to the bill.  First, it allows some natural gas companies to bond the expenses for the extremely high rates during the record-freeze earlier this year and pass the expenses on to customers.  Second, it allows utility companies to bond and pass on the expenses of closing plants to retail customers, including closing nuclear or coal plants.  Think about it, the current debt and expenses to close the plant will be paid by customers “to the benefit of the bondholders, any assignee, and any other financing parties” until they are paid in full.  It literally says that in the bill.  It is a trojan horse that looks good but guarantees higher utility bills long-term.

 

I did what I could to block it.  What is even more disappointing, the Chairman of the committee put the language in a house bill and the House concurred on the changes.  The bill passed the Senate 33 to 7.  I voted no.

 

Say No To A Veto of SB 50

The Governor is considering a veto of SB 50.  Members of her tax study group are putting out messages saying if the bill becomes law Kansas would have to pay back federal money because of Biden’s version of the Cares Act.  Twenty-one state Attorney Generals (AG) signed a letter challenging this federal overreach, including our KS AG.  Most of the items in SB 50 have been voted on several times since 2018, predating Biden’s legislation.  SB 50’s major components are: it addresses state income tax increases that resulted from the 2017 federal tax cuts, it increases the state standard deduction by $500, it provides language for collection of online sales tax (which is already the law), it stops any income tax obligation that results from stolen identity, it lines up the Kansas income tax filing deadline with federal dates while extending corporate filings by 30 days.

 

Too Many Bills

Over 40 pieces of legislation were worked on the Senate floor last week – too many to cover in this update.  All of the legislation is posted online at www.kslegislature.org.

 

It is an honor and a privilege to serve as your 12th District State Senator.

Caryn

FS Aglow Lighthouse Welcomes DeeAnna Currie on April 8

Fort Scott Aglow Lighthouse welcomes guest speaker, DeeAnna Currie, from Topeka, KS, Thursday, April 8th, 2021.
DeeAnna will bring a message of encouragement. She shares:
“I am so blessed and excited to come share with you at Fort Scott!
I have been involved in Aglow since 1979. I had two small children at home at the time and was drawn to every meeting I could attend and grow in Christ. The speakers would come and encourage us to be the best we could be by allowing God to lead us in our life. They came and shared the very character of God and His desire to bless us with becoming more like Him. I was driven without even truly recognizing my desire to fill the void in my life. I received true love from Him through this organization. The growth began with the connection of so many nonjudgmental men and women seeking the same thing, a closer walk with Him.”
Come as we share His purpose for you during these questionable times!
DeeAnna Currie
Area President North Kansas Aglow
Guests are welcome to visit our Lighthouse monthly gathering at 6:30 p.m., Thursday April 8th in the conference room of Fort Scott Inn, 101 State Street.
This is an interdenominational ministry opportunity for women, men and youth to worship, pray, fellowship and grow in unity. The goal of Aglow International is: Every nation touched, every heart changed.
Our Lighthouse desires the body of Christ to come together to meet the needs of those that cannot speak for themselves in Bourbon County.  For more information contact Amanda Gilmore at (620) 215-0418 or Bob Reazin at (620) 363-0257.

Nominations Requested For Chamber Celebration

CHAMBER REQUESTS AWARD NOMINATIONS FOR ANNUAL CELEBRATION

FORT SCOTT – The Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce will hold the 2021 Annual Dinner & Awards Celebration Thursday, April 29th at The River Room. The evening will be themed “Magic Happens When We Stand Together” as Chamber members, guests and the community come together to recognize businesses, organizations, and individuals who contribute greatly in different ways to benefit Fort Scott and Bourbon County.

The Chamber is now accepting nominations for awards to be presented that evening. Links to both online and printable nomination forms may be found on fortscott.com on the event link. Hard copy forms may be picked up at the Chamber. Nominations are due by Wednesday, April 14th.

Awards to be presented include Large Business of the Year, Small Business of the Year, New Business of the Year, Agri-Business of the Year, Business Person of the Year, Community Spirit Award, and Young Professional of the Year. Additional awards to be presented include the Keystone award, selected by the Chamber Board of Directors, the Mayor’s Citizenship Award selected by the Mayor and City of Fort Scott, and the Community Champion Award selected by the Healthy Bourbon County Action Team.

The Annual Dinner event will start with a social hour and silent auction at 5:30pm, followed by dinner, awards, and live auction at 6:30pm. Reservations are $35 for individuals, and table pricing is available. Those wanting to attend may contact the Chamber at 620-223-3566 or email [email protected]. by Friday, April 23rd. Dinner will be catered by Luther’s BBQ with a choice of smoked prime rib or rosemary lemon roasted chicken breast.

The Chamber would like to recognize the Title Sponsor of the event, Apex Clean Energy, making it possible to present Devin Henderson as the guest speaker. Devin will bring out the magic in each of us with a program titled “Something Greater is Always Possible”. More information about Devin may be found on devinhenderson.com or YouTube.

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St. Mary’s Kindergarten Roundup April 21

St. Mary’s Catholic School Kindergarten Roundup will be held Wednesday, April 21 by appointment from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM.

To enter kindergarten, a child must be 5 years of age on or before August 31.
If you would like for your child to attend kindergarten at St. Mary’s next year, please contact the school office at 620-223-6060 to schedule an appointment to be screened on April 21.
On the day of the screening, please bring your child’s social security card, birth certificate, immunization record/physical form, and if Catholic their baptism certificate.
A Kansas Certification of Immunization and/or a Kansas Child Health assessment must be filled out and submitted to the school before admission in the fall of 2021.
Due to Covid restrictions, we cannot allow parents to wait inside the building this year.
  Upon arrival at your appointment time, a school staff member will come outside and escort your child into the building.  Parents will be asked to wait in their car until the screening is completed.  At that point, a staff member will bring the child back out to the car and discuss the results of the screening.
St. Mary’s Catholic School is fully accredited by the state of Kansas and welcomes students of all faiths.

FS City Monthly Public Meeting Begins April 27

The City of Fort Scott presents Fort Scott Forward.

The City of Fort Scott presents Fort Scott Forward. Everyone is invited to join us for a monthly check-in. The monthly meeting will be held on the fourth Tuesday of each month at 7:45AM at the River Room Event Center, 1 W. Oak St. Dave Lipe, proprietor of Sharky’s Pub & Grub, Luther’s BBQ, and the River Room Event Center has donated the use of the space for this event. Coffee and pastries will be provided.

The first Fort Scott Forward event will be held on Tuesday, April 27th at 7:45 AM. The topics to be covered at this meeting will be street improvement objectives, and a budget priorities survey.

County Property Tax Sale Update

Patty Love
Patty Love, Bourbon County Treasurer, responded to a request for an update on the future property tax sale.
Bourbon County Counselor Justin Meeks mailed out the delinquent property tax letter late last year, she said.
“The tax sale preparation report I sent him had about 425 properties on it,” Love said. ” We have had about 50 properties paid.”
So far, over $308,000 has come back into the county from taxes that were delinquent, she said.
 “The original report had $1,432,285.43 outstanding taxes, 2016 and prior,” Love said.  “We have collected $308,216.92 of these since November 1, 2020.”
There is still an opportunity for those with back taxes due, to keep their property off the tax sale.
“2016 and prior taxes can be paid to keep the property off of the tax sale, up until the date they are filed in court,” she said.  “Once they have been filed in court, all delinquent taxes plus a court fee must be paid to keep it from selling.  The taxpayer has up until 10:00 a.m. the day of the tax sale to redeem the property.”
The tax sale date is unknown currently.
“The date of the tax sale won’t be set until cases are filed in court,” she said.  “At that time we will release a list of all properties on the tax sale.”
“Security 1st Title has completed title work on about 90 of the cases to date,” Love said.   “They are working them in, along with being very busy at this time.”

 

Kansas: Three New Laws

Governor Laura Kelly Signs Three Bills into Law

TOPEKA – Governor Laura Kelly has signed the following three bills into law:

Senate Bill 118

Senate Bill 118 would establish a procedure by which a city or county may assume the powers, responsibilities, and duties of a special district within the city’s corporate boundary or the county’s boundaries.

Senate Bill 64

Senate Bill 64, as amended, would amend the Kansas Private and Out-of-State Postsecondary Education Institution Act (Act) to clarify the State Board of Regents’ (Board) authority over private and out-of-state institutions.

House Bill 2063

HB 2063, as amended, would revise the benefits for members of the Kansas Police and Firemen’s Retirement System (KP&F) who are Tier II members, meaning those
employees hired since July 1, 1989, who are disabled and ultimately die due to a “service-connected” condition, as that term is defined by law. The bill would apply to deaths that occurred on and after January 1, 2017, and would designate these amendments to law as the Michael Wells Memorial Act.

Projects, Volunteers, Donations Requested: Downtown Spring Clean Friday, April 16th

Organized by the Downtown Divison of the
Chamber Board!
Engaging opportunities within our community!
Project Ideas, Volunteers
& Donations Requested
Downtown Spring Clean
Friday, April 16th, 3-6pm
See information below.
Project Ideas & Sign-ups
to volunteer requested by April 7th!
The Downtown Division of the Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce has planned a Downtown Spring Clean event on Friday, April 16th from 3 to 6pm. The committee is seeking project ideas and volunteers for the event to spruce up the Downtown Historic District.
The committee is asking for people to submit project ideas, or sign up to volunteer, preferably by this Wednesday, April 7th so projects and materials needed can be organized. All participants will receive a free t-shirt, courtesy of MyOneStop, and businesses/organizations who send a group of volunteers and/or provide a donation for materials, will be listed on the back of the t-shirt. Donations may be made to the Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce and dropped off at 231 E. Wall St.
Those with project ideas or interest in volunteering may contact Bailey Lyons, Downtown Division Chair, at 620-224-7795 or email [email protected].
FORT SCOTT DOWNTOWN
SPRING CLEAN EVENT
Date: FRIDAY, APRIL 16TH, 2021
Available Times: 3 PM – 6 PM

Bourbon County Local News