ELLY GRIMM

Governor Kelly establishes task force to update state fire code

Updates to the state’s fire code have been needed for a long time, and earlier this week, some action was taken at the state level to help with just that.

Monday, Gov. Laura Kelly announced the signing of Executive Order 26-04, which establishes the Governor’s Uniform Fire Code Task Force. The task force is charged with updating Kansas’ fire code to align with modern, nationally recognized safety standards that provide advanced safety measures, according to a release from the State of Kansas.

ELLY GRIMM

   • Leader & Times

The race to represent Kansas in the U.S. Senate is officially filled, and Kevin Latz is one of the candidates looking to help possibly make a change.

Latz, who currently works as a pediatric surgeon, said he is not entirely new to the political world.

“I'm a native Texan. I moved to Kansas in 1990 and I have an undergraduate degree that sent me to Washington, DC, for about a year and a half, where I worked on the House Ag Committee and for my congressman, and candidly, I didn't see anything really getting done,” Latz said. “I thought, surely there's something better I can do to help folks, so I went to one of those schools that give you a broad range of undergraduate experience. I took the MCAT, went to med school, and then came to Kansas to do an orthopedic surgery residency. I came in 1990 and then left for some fellowship training. I did an orthopedic surgery fellow residency with the University of Kansas and then did fellowships in Toronto and Boston, but then came back here to live and raise a family. I’d thought about running in fall of 2024, but I met with Jeanna Repass, and she encouraged me to kind of cool my heels and really think about it. So I thought about it and thought about it and just didn't hear anybody really offering solutions, mostly complaining and not really an solutions. Perhaps because I'm an orthopedic surgeon by training and by nature I eventually thought ‘Enough's enough,’ so I entered the race earlier this to offer solutions for what I thought were significant problems for Kansas kids and families.”

Special to the Leader & Times

WICHITA — The Morton County Republican Party met last week to select a new candidate to fill the vacant sheriff seat.

Tom Thrall was selected in a vote by precinct committee members. His appointment is still pending approval by Gov. Laura Kelly.

If approved, Thrall will replace former Sheriff Thad Earls. Earls was removed from office in a recall election earlier this month.

Kansas Department of Transportation

The Kansas Department of Transportation has started a resurfacing project along U.S. Highway 283 in Hodgeman and Ness counties.

The project will resurface U.S. 283 from the Kansas Highway 156 junction in Jetmore north 25 miles to the south city limits of Ness City.

U.S. 283 will be reduced to one lane through the project area in sections. Motorists should be aware of delays as flaggers and a pilot car direct one-lane traffic through the work zone. The lane reduction will be marked by signs and cones. U.S. 283 will be open to normal traffic when construction is not taking place.