Kansas fiscal year tax collections exceed previous year by $195.73 million

TOPEKA—Fiscal year tax collections have exceeded previous year’s totals by $195.73 million according to data from the latest revenue report released Wednesday.

Fiscal year 2019 tax collections so far total $3.39 billion, exceeding current estimates by $13.06 million.

December tax collections were down $24.24 million, or 3.41 percent below last December. December’s tax collections exceeded expectations for the month by $10.59 million.

Individual income tax collections in December totaled $291.52 million which is $43.85 million or 13.07 percent below the same time last year. Corporation income tax collections in December totaled $69.61 million which is $22.61 million above current expectations and $29.47 million above the same time last year. December sales tax collections fell short of last December’s collections by $1.97 million.

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KDHE Looks Back at Accomplishments in 2018, Looks Forward to 2019

Areas include Public Health, Environment and Health Care Finance

TOPEKA – The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) is looking forward to 2019 and looking back at some of its accomplishments in 2018.

“We made great strides in a number of areas,” said Secretary Jeff Andersen. “KDHE’s Divisions of Public Health, Environment and Health Care Finance all had great achievements of which the citizens of Kansas can be proud. We look forward to continuing that work in the coming year.”

Some of the achievements at KDHE included:

Public Health

• Launching the Maternal Mortality Review which includes a review committee focused on implementing a comprehensive review of maternal and pregnancy-associated mortality.
• Helping to organize and lead the Governor’s Substance Use Disorder Task Force chaired by KDHE Chief Medical Officer Dr. Greg Lakin, presenting a series of proposals to the Governor to combat the opioid epidemic in 2019 and beyond.
• Introducing the “Count the Kicks” stillbirth prevention initiative with over 326 expectant Kansas mothers having downloaded and used the free CTK app.
• The KDHE Office of Vital Statistics making birth certificates available online with the PayIt app and opening its new office in Topeka with increased space for customers and a new registration system on the way in early 2019.

Environment

• Coordinating its Dry Cleaner Remediation Program, connecting 209 homes to city water in the Haysville area and coordinating with the City of Haysville to complete the design and installation of 8.7 miles of new city water main.
• Initiating its Private Well Water campaign, including an instructional video for homeowners to properly take a water sample for nitrates and total coliform, a webpage, a public service announcement, flyer and social media infographics.
• Assisting in the aftermath of natural disasters including the tornadoes in Eureka and flooding in many counties across the state.
• Monitoring our rivers, streams, lakes and ponds for harmful algal blooms.

Health Care Finance

• Approval of the state’s 1115 waiver extension application granting the state of Kansas the authority to operate KanCare, the state’s managed care program.
• Awarding a new MCO contract to Aetna and holding statewide KanCare education meetings to explain the changes that will occur in 2019.
• Effective Jan. 1, 2019, handling training and quality at the KanCare Clearinghouse for Medicaid eligibility. Effective, July 1, 2019, the state will take over responsibilities for the processing of elderly and disabled applications.

“These are only a few of our accomplishments during 2018,” said Secretary Andersen. “In 2019 we look forward to building on these and all of the areas KDHE addresses to follow our mission to protect and improve the health and environment of all Kansans.”

Recently the Kansas Water Authority (KWA) met in Wichita for their December meeting. The KWA received updates on water priorities in the state but two main topics were the focus: 2019 Surplus Water Report and the Annual Report to the Governor and Legislature.

The KWA received updates on vital water projects and issues in the state including current interstate compacts, the Kansas Water Reservoir Protection Initiative, Harmful Algal Blooms as well as the Water Technology Farms.

The KWA approved the 2019 Surplus Water Report, and agreed to allow the Kansas Water Office to enter into Feasibility Cost Sharing Agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the Kansas River Reservoirs Flood and Sediment Study.

The KWA approved the 2019 Annual Report to the Governor and Legislature and they also heard a presentation regarding non-public household water wells. The host was American AgCredit and the lunch was sponsored by KITS and 96 Agri Sales.

The KWA is responsible for advising the Governor, Legislature and Director of the Kansas Water Office on water policy issues.

They also ensure that water policies and programs address the needs of all Kansans as well as serve as advisors of the Kansas Water Vision and Kansas Water Plan.

The KWA was established in 1981 and consists of 13 voting members who are appointed by the Governor or Legislative leadership. State agency directors serve as ex-officio members.

The next meeting will be in Topeka, Kansas in January. The KWA meetings are throughout the year and for additional information and other upcoming meetings, visit www.kwo.ks.gov.

Kansas WIC Program Would Remain Open During Potential Federal Government Shutdown

350 Kansas stores would continue to process WIC transactions

TOPEKA – The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) is letting citizens know that if the Federal Government shuts down on Friday, Dec. 21, the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program would continue to operate. This would include providing nutritional food benefits, nutrition education, breastfeeding support and referral services. WIC is the USDA funded nutrition program for low-income pregnant women, infants and children from birth to age 5.

“All eligible participants would continue to receive WIC benefits and new applicants would be certified and receive benefits,” said Rachel Sisson, MS, Director of the KDHE Bureau of Family Health. “There are 350 stores in Kansas authorized to provide WIC foods to clients. During a shutdown, all stores would continue to process WIC transactions and would continue to be paid for food purchased by WIC participants.”

The WIC program is administered by KDHE through contracts with county health departments. There are 120 county WIC clinics in Kansas where eligible participants may apply for services.

Information about the Kansas WIC program is located on the web at www.kansaswic.org.

KANSAS SENATOR RICHARD HILDERBRAND FILES SCR 1601

TO PREVENT THE TRANSFERS FROM THE STATE HIGHWAY FUND

GALENA- Senator Richard Hilderbrand (R-Galena) pre-files SCR 1601to prevent transfers and limit expenditures from the state highway fund to only those items related to transportation set forth in the amendment.

“The state of Kansas has swept $3.35 billion from the state highway fund over the last several years. This last fiscal year the state swept over $290 million. This has left a devastating effect on not only the safety but the long-term economic impact of our great state.

The state of Kansas currently has 25 T-Works projects delayed because of a lack of funding. The total cost to fund those 25 projects would be $553 million. In just two years after this bill becomes law, all 25 of those T-Works projects could be funded.

We must stop robbing from Peter to pay Paul, and bring fiscal accountability back to Kansas!

I will continue to work hard in Topeka to continue infrastructure investments in Southeast Kansas, to encourage growth and allow us to remain competitive throughout the state and entire nation.”

Division of Vehicles announces extended holiday hours

TOPEKA—Driver’s license offices statewide will offer extended hours the week of Christmas and New Years for added customer convenience, the Division of Vehicles announced Tuesday.

The hours for the two week holiday schedule beginning December 24 are:

December 24 — CLOSED Monday

December 25 — CLOSED Tuesday

December 26 — 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday

December 27 — 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday

December 28 – 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday

December 31 — 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday

January 1 — CLOSED Tuesday

January 2 — 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday

January 3 – 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday

January 4 — 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday

Many customers can skip the office entirely and renew their license using the iKan app, available for iOS, Android, and at https://ikan.ks.gov/.

Customer seeking Real ID should come in to the office with the required documents that can be found on a checklist at ksrevenue.org/realid.

Normal business hours will resume on Monday, January 7, which for most offices statewide is 8 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Monday through Friday. To find hours for specific locations, visit https://www.ksrevenue.org/dovstations.html

KDADS, Valeo Behavioral Health Care to Kick Off Operation Red File Partnership Dec. 20

TOPEKA — The Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services (KDADS) has partnered with Valeo Behavioral Health Care to distribute Operation Red File folders to participants in the mental health center’s psycho-social program. Operation Red File is designed to help seniors and individuals with disabilities keep their critical health information accessible if needed in an emergency.

“We look forward to sharing with all those in Valeo’s program how important it is to keep copies of key medical records at hand in case of an emergency. Operation Red File makes those records instantly recognizable to first responders,” said KDADS Medicare Grants Director Irina Strakhova. “This is life-saving information that provides an extra level of protection for vulnerable Kansans when it is most critical.”

Strakhova, along with other members of the KDADS staff, will introduce Operation Red File at an event scheduled for December 20 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Valeo Behavioral Health Care, 2401 SW 6^th Avenue in Topeka.

Participants in Operation Red File receive a large, red, magnetic folder that they can place on their refrigerator for instant access, where first responders will know to look for it. Participants are encouraged to put copies of their medical information and other critical documents in the folder, such as a clear, current photograph of the participant; a medical form with all current medical information; a medication list that can be updated as needed; and medical coverage information.

First responders and emergency staff can use this information to:

• Instantly access medical history and medication records in an emergency
• Avoid delays caused by trying to get information from a confused patient
• Ensure that the family/responsible party will be notified quickly
• Have a photograph available in the case of a Silver Alert

Operation Red File, a medical information initiative that is part of the agency’s Senior Medicare Patrol program, inaugurated in Shawnee County in 2016 and has continued to grow statewide. More kick-off events are scheduled in the coming months.

If you or a loved one is interested in Operation Red File, contact Strakhova at 800-432-3535 for more information.

KDHE Publishes 2017 Annual Summary of Vital Statistics

The report may suggest Kansas is facing demographic changes.

TOPEKA –  The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) has posted the Kansas Annual Summary of Vital Statistics, 2017 online at http://www.kdheks.gov/phi/as/2017/Annual_Summary_2017.pdf. The annual report may suggest Kansas is facing demographic changes.

“The Annual Summary of Vital Statistics summarizes key demographic and health information gathered from vital event records registered in 2017,” said Lou Saadi, State Registrar and Director Bureau of Epidemiology and Public Health Informatics. “Since the data collected represents the entire population of the State, it serves as an excellent source for policy makers, program managers and the public to assess and study the health of Kansans.”

The report documents:

• slowing population growth and an aging population
• continuing declines in the number and rate of births
• total fertility rates below the replacement rate
• decreases in the rate of natural increase,
• decreases in marriage rates
• decreases in teen pregnancy

Other trends being noted for 2017 included:

• homicides in the state increased by 21 percent
• suicides increased by 6.3 percent
• unintentional injuries increased by 7.2 percent

Kansas’s total population as of July 1, 2017 was estimated at 2,913,123, an increase of 5,834 (0.2%) from the estimate of Kansas’s total population as of July 1, 2016 (2,907,289) released in 2017. The median age of Kansans in 2017 was 36.6 years, a 4.0 percent increase from the median age of 35.2 in 1998. The median ages for men and women were 35.4 and 37.9, respectively.

There were 36,464 live births to Kansas resident mothers in 2017. The most recent year with fewer live births was 1976, when there were 35,278 live births. The birth rate in 2017 was 12.5 births per 1,000 population, the lowest rate since Kansas began statewide recording of vital events in 1912.

The 2017 birth rate of 12.5 births per 1,000 population is the lowest birth rate on record. The rate is part of a birth rate decrease that began in 2008.

One element of the decline in childbearing in recent years is due to factors generally considered desirable: teen pregnancy rates have declined from 32.4 pregnancies per 1,000 young women in the 10-19 age-group in 1998 to 12.7 per 1,000 in 2017.

In 2017, the state’s rate of natural increase was 3.3 persons per 1,000 population, a decrease of 19.5 percent from 4.1 per 1,000 population in 2016, and the lowest rate of natural increase in the past twenty years. The rate of natural increase is the birth rate minus the death rate.  A negative value for rate of natural increase would mean the insufficient births are occurring to replace the number of people dying in the state. Over the past 20 years (1998-2017), the rate of natural increase has fluctuated between a maximum of 6.3 persons per 1,000 population (2007) and a minimum of 3.3 persons per 1,000 population (2017).

The Kansas total fertility rate (TFR) in 2017 was 2,053 births per 1,000 women of childbearing age. The Kansas TFR has been below the replacement rate of 2,100 for each of the last five years. Total fertility rate is the number of children who would be born per 1,000 women if women were to pass through the childbearing years bearing children according to the current distribution of age-specific fertility rates.

Deaths in Kansas, 26,725, represented a 2.3% increase from the 26,129 deaths in 2016. Increases in 2017 over 2016 were noted for selected causes:

• Suicide, 512 in 2016 to 544 in 2017, up 6.3 percent;
• Homicide, 148 in 2016 to 179 in 2017, up 21.0 percent;
• Unintentional Injury, 1,468 in 2016 to 1,573 in 2017, up 7.2 percent.

Heart disease with 5,636 deaths was the leading cause of death in 2017, followed by cancer, chronic lower respiratory diseases, unintentional injuries, and stroke.

In 2017, 17,274 marriages occurred in Kansas, a decrease of 3.8 percent from the 2016 total of 17,948 marriages. The Kansas marriage rate in 2017 was 5.9 marriages per 1,000 population. This rate was 4.8 percent lower than the 6.2 marriages per 1,000 population recorded in 2016, and was the lowest rate recorded for the state of Kansas in the last twenty years (1998–2017). For the entire period, Kansas marriage rates have been lower than U.S. marriage rates.

The annual summary does not attempt to determine causes for these trends, as it is a summary of events recorded by the KDHE Office of Vital Statistics. Factors impacting the state’s demography can not be discerned from vital event records.

Kansas Information for Communities in a query tool the public can use to look at specific birth and death outcomes and prepare statistics.  The web location is http://kic.kdheks.gov/