Category: Featured
HHS COVID hospital utilization site shows available capacity
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) new hospital utilization website shows utilization and available capacity for all…
Executive order keeping schools closed flies in face of actual science
Despite compelling evidence that the spread of COVID-19 in schools is unlikely, and that closing school — and keeping them…
Kelly administration rejects COVID open records requests
Kansas Governor Laura Kelly wants to delay opening schools and is hinting at closing the economy this fall over the…
Study: schools and colleges can safely open during COVID
A new study from The Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity (FREOPP) says America’s schools and colleges can safely reopen…
Kansas school shutdown extension likely hurts students
Despite recommendations from pediatric experts and others saying schools be opened, Democrat Kansas Governor Laura Kelly announced Wednesday she would…
Bari Weiss’ unconscionable treatment at NYT no surprise
Bari Weiss is a self-described “left-leaning centrist,” who the Washington Post says, “portrays herself as a liberal uncomfortable with the excesses of…
Wichita Eagle climate change reporter fails objectivity test
In December of last year, the Sentinel raised concerns about the objectivity of a new climate change reporting position for…
7 Kansas counties have more government jobs than private jobs
The Kansas Department of Labor just released data showing seven counties had more government jobs than private-sector workers in the…
COVID case hype pushes fear despite good news in the data
There’s considerable good news in this week’s COVID-19 update but you wouldn’t know it from media and many government officials,…
Kansas has 9th highest state and local sales tax rate
According to the Tax Foundation 2020 mid-year sales tax ranking, Kansas has the ninth-highest combined state and local sales tax…
Gov. Kelly on no-bid contracts: do as I say, not as I do
Despite roundly criticizing the use of no-bid contracts in previous administrations, Kansas Governor Laura Kelly finally admits she hired an…
Mask mandates not driven by data
Government proponents of mask mandates say they’re driven by data, but the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) says cloth…
Johnson County affirms mask mandate, enforcement unlikely
The Johnson County Board of Commissioners arguably made a political decision to affirm Governor Kelly’s statewide mask mandate, even though…
Whistleblower alleges serious fraud, abuse at state agency
A whistleblower complaint by a former Kansas Division of Emergency Management (KDEM) employee alleges serious misconduct by the division management.…
COVID mortality rate hits new low, Kelly imposes mask mandate
The COVID mortality rate in Kansas fell to a record-low 1.9% statewide, and the rate outside of state-identified clusters also…
Gov. Kelly’s budget plan creates $1.5 billion deficit in 2022
Kansas Governor Laura Kelly announced budget changes last week that she said would close a $653 million deficit in the…
Media crucified Brownback, but glosses over Kelly’s budget tricks
When Republican Governor Sam Brownback used budget tricks to avoiding spending cuts, media pounded him on the front page and…
Michigan decision rejects county’s ‘Dark Store’ appraisal theory
For years, Johnson County, and others, have — illegally, according to courts — been attempting to use a different method…
107,000 fewer private jobs since February, state loses 200
Editor’s note: this story was revised on June 23 to reflect Oklahoma as being a locked-down state; we regret the…
Kansas stalls while Texas acts on Supreme Court Janus decision
While Kansas still hasn’t reacted to the 2018 U.S. Supreme Court Janus decision, Texas is making it clear that public…
KPI calls on Kelly to use COVID stimulus funding for property tax relief
Kansas Policy Institute today asked Governor Laura Kelly to follow the lead of Idaho Governor Brad Little, who is leveraging…
Cities, counties use your money to fight property tax relief
City and county officials often justify tax increases as being necessary to provide services demanded by residents. But if they…
Overland Park proposes 6% property tax increase
The City of Overland Park is proposing a 6.2% property tax hike next year, according to their proposed 2021 budget. …
Kelly admin won’t respond to pervasive problems at long-term care facilities
(editor’s note: the story has been updated to include a quote from KDADS that was provided after publication) The problems…