BY&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/mchilson/">MORGAN CHILSON</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TOPEKA — Seventy percent of Kansas school districts are repaying amounts from hundreds to millions of dollars after a Medicaid calculation error by a state contractor, a Kansas official testified this week.&nbsp;

Secretary Janet Stanek from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment told the Legislative Budget Committee on Tuesday that 153 of the 286 school districts had to repay funds from fiscal year 2016 to 2023.

Kansas&nbsp;<a href="https://kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/committees/ctte_leg_budget_1/documents/testimony/20250826_03.pdf" target="_blank">school districts owe $11.2 million</a>&nbsp;to Medicaid, with most owing less than $50,000 each, Stanek said. Wichita Public Schools owes the most at $11.3 million and 19 districts owe less than $1,000.&nbsp;

The $11.2 million was 4.4% of the Medicaid payments made during that time period, Stanek said.

Districts bill Medicaid in two ways, one for claims reimbursement In which providers bill for services like physical or speech therapy, and the other for administrative claims, which cover the cost of providing services at schools, she said.

It was the second method that was incorrectly calculated by Public Consulting Group, a KDHE contractor, Stanek said.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Gary Menke, chief financial officer for Topeka Public Schools, said the administrative claims calculation is complicated. It involves payments for support services the district provides to students to make sure they receive Medicaid services.

“It takes an army of people to get a student that needs those services pulled away from instruction, ready if they have to move to another building or facility for services, then you’ve got to get them back from those services,” he said. “Those are the dollars they are talking about.”

Topeka Public Schools owed just more than $424,000, which Menke said the district elected to repay in four installments to be deducted from a quarterly Medicaid reimbursement the district receives.&nbsp;

While the repayment isn’t a hardship for the school district because Menke said he’s wary of budgeting Medicaid funds until final amounts are set, that $400,000 still would have covered multiple special education teacher salaries, which average about $61,000 annually.

Wichita Public Schools owed over $3 million, and the district’s Medicaid coordinator Deanna Beard told the committee that she would like to see more transparency in the process and&nbsp;<a href="https://kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/committees/ctte_leg_budget_1/documents/testimony/20250826_04.pdf" target="_blank">Medicaid funding expanded for schools</a>.&nbsp;

“Currently, districts are excluded from key components of the calculation, such as the numerator used to verify Medicaid-eligible students who received services,” she said. “This lack of information from KDHE prevented us from validating data and any ability to identify errors early.”

In an emailed statement, a representative for the Wichita district said it elected to repay the amount in four installments.&nbsp;

“Unforeseen financial needs such as this are an example of why WPS maintains unrestricted reserves,” the statement said. “These reserves will have to backfill the shortfall the audit finding repayment has created for the 2025-26 budget year.”

Stanek, who said she was offering no excuses, explained that previous administrations had cut staff and the program was “under-resourced.” In addition, schools had quite a lot of turnover at the same time the contractor PCG had turnover.&nbsp;

Rep. Kristey Williams, R-Augusta, asked whether anything in the contract allowed Kansas to hold PCG responsible for the error.&nbsp;

Stanek said nothing in the contract allows that but the state&nbsp; isworking with PCG and have asked for a corrective action plan.&nbsp;

“But I can tell you, PCG has stepped up, and we are holding them more accountable,” Stanek said. “We are going to look at adding positions to manage – even though you have a consultant or a contractor, as you know, somebody’s got to manage them too – and I would say it was loose, and that’s on us.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756500055592.png" alt=" Kansas Department of Health and environment secretary Janet Stanek testified Tuesday that corrective actions are being taken to address a Medicaid calculation mistake made by a contractor. (Screenshot/Kansas Legisltive Budget Committee)" />
 <figcaption> Kansas Department of Health and environment secretary Janet Stanek testified Tuesday that corrective actions are being taken to address a Medicaid calculation mistake made by a contractor. (Screenshot/Kansas Legisltive Budget Committee)</figcaption>
 </figure>BY&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/mchilson/">MORGAN CHILSON</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — Seventy percent of Kansas school districts are repaying amounts from hundreds to millions of dollars after a Medicaid calculation error by a state contractor, a Kansas official testified this week.&nbsp;Secretary Janet Stanek from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment told the Legislative Budget Committee on Tuesday that 153 of the 286 school districts had to repay funds from fiscal year 2016 to 2023.Kansas&nbsp;<a href="https://kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/committees/ctte_leg_budget_1/documents/testimony/20250826_03.pdf" target="_blank">school districts owe $11.2 million</a>&nbsp;to Medicaid, with most owing less than $50,000 each, Stanek said. Wichita Public Schools owes the most at $11.3 million and 19 districts owe less than $1,000.&nbsp;The $11.2 million was 4.4% of the Medicaid payments made during that time period, Stanek said.Districts bill Medicaid in two ways, one for claims reimbursement In which providers bill for services like physical or speech therapy, and the other for administrative claims, which cover the cost of providing services at schools, she said.It was the second method that was incorrectly calculated by Public Consulting Group, a KDHE contractor, Stanek said.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Gary Menke, chief financial officer for Topeka Public Schools, said the administrative claims calculation is complicated. It involves payments for support services the district provides to students to make sure they receive Medicaid services.“It takes an army of people to get a student that needs those services pulled away from instruction, ready if they have to move to another building or facility for services, then you’ve got to get them back from those services,” he said. “Those are the dollars they are talking about.”Topeka Public Schools owed just more than $424,000, which Menke said the district elected to repay in four installments to be deducted from a quarterly Medicaid reimbursement the district receives.&nbsp;While the repayment isn’t a hardship for the school district because Menke said he’s wary of budgeting Medicaid funds until final amounts are set, that $400,000 still would have covered multiple special education teacher salaries, which average about $61,000 annually.Wichita Public Schools owed over $3 million, and the district’s Medicaid coordinator Deanna Beard told the committee that she would like to see more transparency in the process and&nbsp;<a href="https://kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/committees/ctte_leg_budget_1/documents/testimony/20250826_04.pdf" target="_blank">Medicaid funding expanded for schools</a>.&nbsp;“Currently, districts are excluded from key components of the calculation, such as the numerator used to verify Medicaid-eligible students who received services,” she said. “This lack of information from KDHE prevented us from validating data and any ability to identify errors early.”In an emailed statement, a representative for the Wichita district said it elected to repay the amount in four installments.&nbsp;“Unforeseen financial needs such as this are an example of why WPS maintains unrestricted reserves,” the statement said. “These reserves will have to backfill the shortfall the audit finding repayment has created for the 2025-26 budget year.”Stanek, who said she was offering no excuses, explained that previous administrations had cut staff and the program was “under-resourced.” In addition, schools had quite a lot of turnover at the same time the contractor PCG had turnover.&nbsp;“It was a perfect storm,” she said.Rep. Kristey Williams, R-Augusta, asked whether anything in the contract allowed Kansas to hold PCG responsible for the error.&nbsp;Stanek said nothing in the contract allows that but the state&nbsp; isworking with PCG and have asked for a corrective action plan.&nbsp;“But I can tell you, PCG has stepped up, and we are holding them more accountable,” Stanek said. “We are going to look at adding positions to manage – even though you have a consultant or a contractor, as you know, somebody’s got to manage them too – and I would say it was loose, and that’s on us.”

Kansas school districts repay Medicaid dollars after contractor error

‘Danny’s Law’ went into effect Thursday and guarantees immunity from prosecution to 911 callers in the event of a hazing

By:<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/paigehayes/">Paige Hayes</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/briansmoot/">Brian Smoot</a>

The parents of Danny Santulli, a former University of Missouri student who was the victim of a fraternity hazing incident his freshman year, came back to Columbia as the Mizzou school year begins and Danny’s Law goes into effect.

Mizzou’s Interfraternity Council held an event for fraternity representatives that included a screening of the first episode of “House of Horrors: Secrets of Greek Life.” The A&amp;E documentary details several hazing incidents and focuses on Santulli’s story in the first episode.

In October 2021, at a “Pledge Father Reveal” event at the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity, Santulli was forced to drink excessive amounts of alcohol with his fellow pledges. His fraternity brothers, worried about legal repercussions, left him on a couch overnight without calling 911. He is now unable to see, walk or speak.

SB 167, known as “Danny’s Law,” guarantees immunity from prosecution to 911 callers in the event of a hazing. The state law went into effect Thursday.

“The event was very moving. There were a lot of non-dry eyes in the building on the Mizzou campus,” said Tom Santulli, Danny’s father.

Each IFC organization had four representatives at the screening. IFC President Wyatt Carlson said the representatives plan to recap the event with all of their members. Additionally, all members of Mizzou’s Greek Life are required to complete a three-part hazing-prevention training at the beginning of each year, Carlson said.

Both of Santulli’s parents were present at the event. The family shared their story with the fraternity members and answered questions from the group.

Some students expressed their wish that Danny’s Law had been adopted years ago, Tom Santulli said.

“It was very powerful,” Carlson said. “They are big supporters of the Mizzou community and did a wonderful job.”

Danny’s Law was passed in the Missouri Senate on Feb. 20 and signed into law by Gov. Mike Kehoe on July 9.

“We’re honored that they have his name as part of something really big in the state of Missouri,” Tom Santulli said, noting he hopes this makes an immediate impact.

This story originally appeared in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.columbiamissourian.com/news/local/santulli-family-visits-mizzou-as-dannys-law-goes-into-effect/article_c6835ac2-8b40-4439-8766-bebc3f3069df.html#tncms-source=topstory" target="_blank">Columbia Missourian</a>. It can be republished in print or online.&nbsp;

<h2>‘Danny’s Law’ went into effect Thursday and guarantees immunity from prosecution to 911 callers in the event of a hazing</h2>By:<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/paigehayes/">Paige Hayes</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/briansmoot/">Brian Smoot</a>The parents of Danny Santulli, a former University of Missouri student who was the victim of a fraternity hazing incident his freshman year, came back to Columbia as the Mizzou school year begins and Danny’s Law goes into effect.Mizzou’s Interfraternity Council held an event for fraternity representatives that included a screening of the first episode of “House of Horrors: Secrets of Greek Life.” The A&amp;E documentary details several hazing incidents and focuses on Santulli’s story in the first episode.In October 2021, at a “Pledge Father Reveal” event at the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity, Santulli was forced to drink excessive amounts of alcohol with his fellow pledges. His fraternity brothers, worried about legal repercussions, left him on a couch overnight without calling 911. He is now unable to see, walk or speak.SB 167, known as “Danny’s Law,” guarantees immunity from prosecution to 911 callers in the event of a hazing. The state law went into effect Thursday.“The event was very moving. There were a lot of non-dry eyes in the building on the Mizzou campus,” said Tom Santulli, Danny’s father.Each IFC organization had four representatives at the screening. IFC President Wyatt Carlson said the representatives plan to recap the event with all of their members. Additionally, all members of Mizzou’s Greek Life are required to complete a three-part hazing-prevention training at the beginning of each year, Carlson said.Both of Santulli’s parents were present at the event. The family shared their story with the fraternity members and answered questions from the group.Some students expressed their wish that Danny’s Law had been adopted years ago, Tom Santulli said.“It was very powerful,” Carlson said. “They are big supporters of the Mizzou community and did a wonderful job.”Danny’s Law was passed in the Missouri Senate on Feb. 20 and signed into law by Gov. Mike Kehoe on July 9.“We’re honored that they have his name as part of something really big in the state of Missouri,” Tom Santulli said, noting he hopes this makes an immediate impact.This story originally appeared in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.columbiamissourian.com/news/local/santulli-family-visits-mizzou-as-dannys-law-goes-into-effect/article_c6835ac2-8b40-4439-8766-bebc3f3069df.html#tncms-source=topstory" target="_blank">Columbia Missourian</a>. It can be republished in print or online.&nbsp;

Family of student who inspired new anti-hazing law visits University of Missouri

KANSAS CITY—A bicyclist injured in a hit-and-run in Kansas City on Monday has died.

According to KCPD officer Phil DiMartino, a blue Raleigh bicycle was&nbsp; southbound on Brooklyn in Kansas City, Missouri just before 12:30a.m. Just north of 29th Street, a southbound vehicle struck the bicyclist.

The bicyclist, who was not wearing a helmet, was ejected off the bicycle. The unknown vehicle left the scene of the collision without stopping. The bicyclist was transported to a local hospital with critical injuries.&nbsp;

On Friday, police reported the bicyclist had died of his injuries just before 5:30p.m. Thursday, according to KCPD Officer Alayna Gonzalez.

This is fatality #48 compared #62 at this time last year.

KANSAS CITY—A bicyclist injured in a hit-and-run in Kansas City on Monday has died.According to KCPD officer Phil DiMartino, a blue Raleigh bicycle was&nbsp; southbound on Brooklyn in Kansas City, Missouri just before 12:30a.m. Just north of 29th Street, a southbound vehicle struck the bicyclist.The bicyclist, who was not wearing a helmet, was ejected off the bicycle. The unknown vehicle left the scene of the collision without stopping. The bicyclist was transported to a local hospital with critical injuries.&nbsp;On Friday, police reported the bicyclist had died of his injuries just before 5:30p.m. Thursday, according to KCPD Officer Alayna Gonzalez.This is fatality #48 compared #62 at this time last year.

Bicyclist injured after hit-and-run in Kansas City has died

The special legislative session will also include a proposal to change the initiative petition process in a way that would mean as few as 23% of voters could defeat a statewide ballot measure

By:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/jason-hancock/">Jason Hancock</a> <a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-senate-committee-advances-bill-to-ban-texting-while-driving/">Missouri Independent</a>

Missouri lawmakers will return to the Capitol next week to gerrymander the state’s congressional map in the hopes of creating a new Republican seat.&nbsp;

They will also debate putting a constitutional amendment on the 2026 ballot that would make it harder for voters to change the constitution through the initiative petition process.&nbsp;

Both proposals were included in the special legislative session agenda crafted by Gov. Mike Kehoe and announced on Friday. The move has been expected for weeks, with Missouri Republicans f<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/08/21/missouri-gop-leader-says-lawmakers-will-start-with-a-congressional-map-drawn-in-d-c/">acing pressure from President Donald Trump&nbsp;</a>to redraw U.S. House districts so the GOP can win more seats in next year’s midterm elections.

&nbsp;“This is about clarity for voters and ownership of our future, and I hope the legislature will work together to pass our Missouri First Map and critically needed IP reform,” Kehoe said in a statement Friday afternoon.

Missouri has eight congressional districts, and Democrats hold two. The new map would split Kansas City, which is currently entirely in the 5th District and represented by 11-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, into three districts where Republicans would have an electoral edge.&nbsp;

The intended result is a map where the GOP holds 90% of the state’s seats in the U.S. House.

“President Trump’s unprecedented directive to redraw our maps in the middle of the decade and without an updated census is not an act of democracy — it is an unconstitutional attack against it,” Cleaver said shortly after the proposed new map was revealed. “This attempt to gerrymander Missouri will not simply change district lines, it will silence voices. It will deny representation.”

Senate Minority Leader Doug Beck, a Democrat from St. Louis County, said the president’s motivation for the gerrymandering push is fear of voters seeing files related to the investigation of Jeffrey Epstein.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“If Democrats retake the House, they will release the Epstein Files, and this scares the hell out of President Trump,” Beck said. “That’s why the President has ordered Missouri to rubber stamp a rigged map drawn in Washington D.C. because he knows Missouri Republicans would rather protect pedophiles than say ‘no’ to Donald Trump.”

As for changes to the initiative petition process, Republicans are pushing a plan that would require a statewide majority and a majority vote in five of the state’s eight congressional districts in order to approve a constitutional amendment.&nbsp;

Currently, a simple majority is all that is required.

Under that “concurrent majority” standard, analysis by The Independent last year found that&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/02/05/as-few-as-1-in-5-voters-could-defeat-initiative-petitions-under-missouri-senate-proposal/">as few as 23% of voters</a>&nbsp;could defeat a statewide ballot measure.

The gerrymandering and initiative petition push will begin in the Missouri House next week, with the expectation that bills will be sent to the Missouri Senate for it to consider them during the legislature’s annual veto session on Sept. 10.&nbsp;

Republicans hold supermajorities in both chambers. The bills are unlikely to face any stumbling blocks in the House, but Senate Democrats are expected to use the filibuster and other procedural maneuvers to gum up legislative business as much as possible.&nbsp;

In order to overcome the gridlock, Senate Republicans may once again have to break a filibuster and force a vote by turning to a rule that was previously rarely-used but got deployed twice during the regular legislative session in May.&nbsp;

Doing so would create even more bad blood in a legislative chamber already teetering on the edge of full on partisan collapse and could upend the 2026 session before it even gets started.&nbsp;

There are also questions about whether redistricting now would violate Missouri’s constitution.&nbsp;

The Missouri Constitution calls for the legislature to draw new congressional districts every 10 years after new census numbers are certified to the governor.&nbsp;

That happened in 2022, which attorneys Chuck Hatfield and Alix Cossette argue means new districts cannot be drawn until the next census is complete.&nbsp;

“The plain language of the Missouri Constitution and the Missouri Supreme Court’s precedent make clear that mid-cycle congressional redistricting is prohibited,” Hatfield and Cossette, two longtime Democratic attorneys, wrote in a memo laying out issues with the GOP plan. “Any attempt to do so will draw a substantial legal challenge which will likely succeed and invalidate any map adopted by the General Assembly.”

There are also questions about whether relying on population data could also lead to a court throwing out any new map.&nbsp;

Kehoe acknowledged the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/government-politics/article_34cd0710-36ea-4d6b-bff4-2e62c876e286.html" target="_blank">questions about the legality of the plan&nbsp;</a>while speaking to reporters Friday morning.&nbsp;

“I’ve heard opinions on both sides of that conversation,” he said. “It will get settled in due time.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756504994284.png" alt=" Proposed congressional maps released Friday by the governor’s office." />
 <figcaption> Proposed congressional maps released Friday by the governor’s office.</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>The special legislative session will also include a proposal to change the initiative petition process in a way that would mean as few as 23% of voters could defeat a statewide ballot measure</h2>By:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/jason-hancock/">Jason Hancock</a> <a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-senate-committee-advances-bill-to-ban-texting-while-driving/">Missouri Independent</a>Missouri lawmakers will return to the Capitol next week to gerrymander the state’s congressional map in the hopes of creating a new Republican seat.&nbsp;They will also debate putting a constitutional amendment on the 2026 ballot that would make it harder for voters to change the constitution through the initiative petition process.&nbsp;Both proposals were included in the special legislative session agenda crafted by Gov. Mike Kehoe and announced on Friday. The move has been expected for weeks, with Missouri Republicans f<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/08/21/missouri-gop-leader-says-lawmakers-will-start-with-a-congressional-map-drawn-in-d-c/">acing pressure from President Donald Trump&nbsp;</a>to redraw U.S. House districts so the GOP can win more seats in next year’s midterm elections.&nbsp;“This is about clarity for voters and ownership of our future, and I hope the legislature will work together to pass our Missouri First Map and critically needed IP reform,” Kehoe said in a statement Friday afternoon.Missouri has eight congressional districts, and Democrats hold two. The new map would split Kansas City, which is currently entirely in the 5th District and represented by 11-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, into three districts where Republicans would have an electoral edge.&nbsp;The intended result is a map where the GOP holds 90% of the state’s seats in the U.S. House.“President Trump’s unprecedented directive to redraw our maps in the middle of the decade and without an updated census is not an act of democracy — it is an unconstitutional attack against it,” Cleaver said shortly after the proposed new map was revealed. “This attempt to gerrymander Missouri will not simply change district lines, it will silence voices. It will deny representation.”Senate Minority Leader Doug Beck, a Democrat from St. Louis County, said the president’s motivation for the gerrymandering push is fear of voters seeing files related to the investigation of Jeffrey Epstein.&nbsp;&nbsp;“If Democrats retake the House, they will release the Epstein Files, and this scares the hell out of President Trump,” Beck said. “That’s why the President has ordered Missouri to rubber stamp a rigged map drawn in Washington D.C. because he knows Missouri Republicans would rather protect pedophiles than say ‘no’ to Donald Trump.”As for changes to the initiative petition process, Republicans are pushing a plan that would require a statewide majority and a majority vote in five of the state’s eight congressional districts in order to approve a constitutional amendment.&nbsp;Currently, a simple majority is all that is required.Under that “concurrent majority” standard, analysis by The Independent last year found that&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/02/05/as-few-as-1-in-5-voters-could-defeat-initiative-petitions-under-missouri-senate-proposal/">as few as 23% of voters</a>&nbsp;could defeat a statewide ballot measure.The gerrymandering and initiative petition push will begin in the Missouri House next week, with the expectation that bills will be sent to the Missouri Senate for it to consider them during the legislature’s annual veto session on Sept. 10.&nbsp;Republicans hold supermajorities in both chambers. The bills are unlikely to face any stumbling blocks in the House, but Senate Democrats are expected to use the filibuster and other procedural maneuvers to gum up legislative business as much as possible.&nbsp;In order to overcome the gridlock, Senate Republicans may once again have to break a filibuster and force a vote by turning to a rule that was previously rarely-used but got deployed twice during the regular legislative session in May.&nbsp;Doing so would create even more bad blood in a legislative chamber already teetering on the edge of full on partisan collapse and could upend the 2026 session before it even gets started.&nbsp;There are also questions about whether redistricting now would violate Missouri’s constitution.&nbsp;The Missouri Constitution calls for the legislature to draw new congressional districts every 10 years after new census numbers are certified to the governor.&nbsp;That happened in 2022, which attorneys Chuck Hatfield and Alix Cossette argue means new districts cannot be drawn until the next census is complete.&nbsp;“The plain language of the Missouri Constitution and the Missouri Supreme Court’s precedent make clear that mid-cycle congressional redistricting is prohibited,” Hatfield and Cossette, two longtime Democratic attorneys, wrote in a memo laying out issues with the GOP plan. “Any attempt to do so will draw a substantial legal challenge which will likely succeed and invalidate any map adopted by the General Assembly.”There are also questions about whether relying on population data could also lead to a court throwing out any new map.&nbsp;Kehoe acknowledged the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/government-politics/article_34cd0710-36ea-4d6b-bff4-2e62c876e286.html" target="_blank">questions about the legality of the plan&nbsp;</a>while speaking to reporters Friday morning.&nbsp;“I’ve heard opinions on both sides of that conversation,” he said. “It will get settled in due time.”

Missouri governor calls lawmakers back to Capitol to gerrymander congressional map

KANSAS CITY —The Medical examiner has officially identified the victims of a small plane crash near Kansas City on Wednesday as 76-year-old Mark W. Spelts and 75-year-old Victoria "Vickie" A. Spelts of Chico, California.

Mark Spelts’ business also announced that he and Vickie passed away in a plane crash in Clay County, Missouri.

The couple had come from an airport in Washington, Missouri, and intended to land at the Midwest National Air Center.&nbsp;

Just before noon Wednesday, dispatchers in Clay County, Missouri received a call about heavy smoke coming from a field near NE 140th Street and Rhodus Road, according to the sheriff's office. Callers believed it may have been from a plane crash. When deputies arrived, they located a Cessna C340 fully engulfed in flames in a soybean field. There were two occupants inside, and they were confirmed deceased.

&nbsp;Sheriff's Office investigators notified the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board, which have taken over the investigation into what caused the crash.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756384904759.png" alt="Photo Clay County Sheriff" />
 <figcaption>Photo Clay County Sheriff</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —The Medical examiner has officially identified the victims of a small plane crash near Kansas City on Wednesday as 76-year-old Mark W. Spelts and 75-year-old Victoria "Vickie" A. Spelts of Chico, California.Mark Spelts’ business also announced that he and Vickie passed away in a plane crash in Clay County, Missouri.The couple had come from an airport in Washington, Missouri, and intended to land at the Midwest National Air Center.&nbsp;Just before noon Wednesday, dispatchers in Clay County, Missouri received a call about heavy smoke coming from a field near NE 140th Street and Rhodus Road, according to the sheriff's office. Callers believed it may have been from a plane crash. When deputies arrived, they located a Cessna C340 fully engulfed in flames in a soybean field. There were two occupants inside, and they were confirmed deceased.&nbsp;Sheriff's Office investigators notified the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board, which have taken over the investigation into what caused the crash.

Medical examiner IDs couple who died in plane crash near Kansas City

The Powerball® jackpot just hit an estimated $1 billion for Saturday night’s drawing. After reviewing national ticket sales, game leaders increased the Powerball jackpot estimate Friday morning from $950 million to $1 billion, according to the Multi-State Lottery Association. Saturday’s jackpot has an estimated cash value of $453.1 million.

This is the sixth Powerball jackpot to reach the billion-dollar mark in the game’s 33-year history.

“We’re bringing extra excitement to Labor Day Weekend with a Powerball jackpot that’s climbed to a billion dollars!” said Matt Strawn, Powerball Product Group Chair and Iowa Lottery CEO. “For just $2, every ticket is a chance to win big, while also giving back to public programs and services that benefit communities wherever Powerball is played.”

Saturday’s Powerball drawing will be broadcast live at 10:59 p.m. ET from the Florida Lottery draw studio in Tallahassee, Fla. The Powerball drawing will also be live streamed on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.powerball.com/watch-drawing">Powerball.com</a>.

If a player wins Saturday’s jackpot, they will have the choice between an annuitized prize estimated at $1 billion or a lump sum payment estimated at $453.1 million. Both prize options are before taxes. If the winner selects the annuity option, they will receive one immediate payment followed by 29 annual payments that increase by 5-percent each year.

Saturday’s drawing will be the 39th drawing since the Powerball jackpot was last won in California on May 31, 2025. The summer jackpot streak has already created 62 winning tickets worth $1 million or more, and 608 winning tickets worth $50,000 or more.

Powerball® tickets are $2 per play. Tickets are sold in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. More than half of all proceeds from the sale of a Powerball ticket remain in the jurisdiction where the ticket was sold. Since its first drawing in 1992, the Powerball game has helped generate more than $36 billion for good causes supported by U.S. lotteries.

Powerball drawings are broadcast live every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday at 10:59 p.m. ET from the Florida Lottery draw studio in Tallahassee, Fla. Powerball drawings are also live streamed on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.powerball.com/watch-drawing">Powerball.com</a>.

The overall odds of winning a prize are 1 in 24.9. The odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million.

The Powerball® jackpot just hit an estimated $1 billion for Saturday night’s drawing. After reviewing national ticket sales, game leaders increased the Powerball jackpot estimate Friday morning from $950 million to $1 billion, according to the Multi-State Lottery Association. Saturday’s jackpot has an estimated cash value of $453.1 million.This is the sixth Powerball jackpot to reach the billion-dollar mark in the game’s 33-year history.“We’re bringing extra excitement to Labor Day Weekend with a Powerball jackpot that’s climbed to a billion dollars!” said Matt Strawn, Powerball Product Group Chair and Iowa Lottery CEO. “For just $2, every ticket is a chance to win big, while also giving back to public programs and services that benefit communities wherever Powerball is played.”Saturday’s Powerball drawing will be broadcast live at 10:59 p.m. ET from the Florida Lottery draw studio in Tallahassee, Fla. The Powerball drawing will also be live streamed on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.powerball.com/watch-drawing">Powerball.com</a>.If a player wins Saturday’s jackpot, they will have the choice between an annuitized prize estimated at $1 billion or a lump sum payment estimated at $453.1 million. Both prize options are before taxes. If the winner selects the annuity option, they will receive one immediate payment followed by 29 annual payments that increase by 5-percent each year.Saturday’s drawing will be the 39th drawing since the Powerball jackpot was last won in California on May 31, 2025. The summer jackpot streak has already created 62 winning tickets worth $1 million or more, and 608 winning tickets worth $50,000 or more.Powerball® tickets are $2 per play. Tickets are sold in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. More than half of all proceeds from the sale of a Powerball ticket remain in the jurisdiction where the ticket was sold. Since its first drawing in 1992, the Powerball game has helped generate more than $36 billion for good causes supported by U.S. lotteries.Powerball drawings are broadcast live every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday at 10:59 p.m. ET from the Florida Lottery draw studio in Tallahassee, Fla. Powerball drawings are also live streamed on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.powerball.com/watch-drawing">Powerball.com</a>.The overall odds of winning a prize are 1 in 24.9. The odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million.Top Ten Powerball® Jackpots<ol>
 <li>$2.04 Billion – Nov. 7, 2022 – CA</li><li>$1.765 Billion – Oct. 11, 2023 - CA</li><li>$1.586 Billion – Jan. 13, 2016 – CA, FL, TN</li><li>$1.326 Billion – April 6, 2024 - OR</li><li>$1.08 Billion – July 19, 2023 – CA</li><li>$1.0 Billion (estimated) – Aug. 30, 2025</li><li>$842.4 Million – January 1, 2024 – MI</li><li>$768.4 Million – March 27, 2019 – WI</li><li>$758.7 Million – Aug. 23, 2017 – MA</li><li>$754.6 Million – Feb. 6, 2023 - WA</li>
 </ol>

Powerball soars to sixth largest in game's 33-year history

RILEY COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating a suspect in connection with the death of a dog and alleged abuse of another dog at a home in Ogden.

The Riley County&nbsp; Police Department received several calls over the summer about alleged negligence in the care of dogs at a home in the 3700 Block of Saddle Horn Trail, according to RCPD spokesman Josha Kinder.&nbsp; Last week police located a dog deceased outside the home.

Just before 4p.m. August 27, police executed a search warrant at the home and found&nbsp;another dog in the home malnourished.

As a result,&nbsp; police arrested 35-year-old Marquies Collins on requested charges for cruelty to animals. Collins met the requirement of a $1,000 bond and is no longer confined in the Riley County Jail.

RILEY COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating a suspect in connection with the death of a dog and alleged abuse of another dog at a home in Ogden.The Riley County&nbsp; Police Department received several calls over the summer about alleged negligence in the care of dogs at a home in the 3700 Block of Saddle Horn Trail, according to RCPD spokesman Josha Kinder.&nbsp; Last week police located a dog deceased outside the home.Just before 4p.m. August 27, police executed a search warrant at the home and found&nbsp;another dog in the home malnourished.As a result,&nbsp; police arrested 35-year-old Marquies Collins on requested charges for cruelty to animals. Collins met the requirement of a $1,000 bond and is no longer confined in the Riley County Jail.

Police: Kan. man accused of cruelty to dogs at his home

KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement continue their investigation of a mass shooting in Kansas City.&nbsp;

Detecetives have gathered a lot of video, and continue to canvas for any more that could help them get a better idea what led up to the shooting, KCPD Captain Jake Becchina reported on Wednesday.

Just after 4a.m. Sunday, emergency crews responded to a report of multiple shootings in the area of 13th and Grand, according to KC Fire Department Battalion Chief Michael Hopkins.

On arrival crews encountered 5 gunshot victims. One victim was pronounced dead at the scene. First responders located four additional victims all suffering from gunshot wounds. One adult male had critical injuries, a second adult male had serious injuries, a juvenile male had critical injuries, and an adult female had non life threatening injuries, according to KCPD Sergeant Phil DiMartino.

 KCFD crews transported four to area hospital, according to Battalion Chief Hopkins.

Just after 6:40a.m. Sunday morning, hospital personnel pronounced an additional adult male victim deceased, according to DiMartino.

This is being investigated as a homicide, according to DiMartino.

Preliminary information revealed there was an altercation between multiple individuals that led to shots being fired and the victims being struck.&nbsp; Police have not released the names of the two who died.

KANSAS CITY —Law enforcement continue their investigation of a mass shooting in Kansas City.&nbsp;<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756039118276.png" alt="Photo Sheriff Daryl Forte'" />
 <figcaption>Photo Sheriff Daryl Forte'</figcaption>
 </figure>Detecetives have gathered a lot of video, and continue to canvas for any more that could help them get a better idea what led up to the shooting, KCPD Captain Jake Becchina reported on Wednesday.Just after 4a.m. Sunday, emergency crews responded to a report of multiple shootings in the area of 13th and Grand, according to KC Fire Department Battalion Chief Michael Hopkins.On arrival crews encountered 5 gunshot victims. One victim was pronounced dead at the scene. First responders located four additional victims all suffering from gunshot wounds. One adult male had critical injuries, a second adult male had serious injuries, a juvenile male had critical injuries, and an adult female had non life threatening injuries, according to KCPD Sergeant Phil DiMartino. KCFD crews transported four to area hospital, according to Battalion Chief Hopkins.Just after 6:40a.m. Sunday morning, hospital personnel pronounced an additional adult male victim deceased, according to DiMartino.This is being investigated as a homicide, according to DiMartino.Preliminary information revealed there was an altercation between multiple individuals that led to shots being fired and the victims being struck.&nbsp; Police have not released the names of the two who died.

Investigation of mass shooting near KC Power Light District continues

SHAWNEE COUNTY — Law enforcement are investigating an alleged school threat and have made an arrest.

On Thursday, a deputy-school resource officer with the Shawnee County sheriff’s office received information about a threat to a school. During the course of the investigation, it was determined that a student had made threatening comments regarding bringing a firearm to the school,&nbsp; according to Deputy Abigail Christian. 

The 15-year-old was arrested and booked into the Shawnee Co. Juvenile Detention Center on a requested charge of criminal threat.&nbsp; The sheriff's office did not release the name of the school involved.

SHAWNEE COUNTY — Law enforcement are investigating an alleged school threat and have made an arrest.On Thursday, a deputy-school resource officer with the Shawnee County sheriff’s office received information about a threat to a school. During the course of the investigation, it was determined that a student had made threatening comments regarding bringing a firearm to the school,&nbsp; according to Deputy Abigail Christian. The 15-year-old was arrested and booked into the Shawnee Co. Juvenile Detention Center on a requested charge of criminal threat.&nbsp; The sheriff's office did not release the name of the school involved.

15-year-old arrested for alleged gun threat at Kansas school

KANSAS CITY —The Kansas City, Missouri Fire Department&nbsp;responded to building collapse in the 4800 block of Independence Avenue just before 12:30 p.m. Thursday, according to Battalion Chief Michael Hopkins.

On arrival companies reported a partial collapse of a bowstring truss roof. The collapse fell into the interior of the structure causing several walls to lean out and become compromised. 

KCFD established a collapse zone and requested dangerous buildings to the scene. The building is an occupied structure that is used for a storage location for a wholesale business, according to Hopkins. The owner of the building and the buildings renter were on scene and working with Dangerous Buildings and City Planning to develop a plan for securing the structure. There were no injuries reported at this incident.

Independence Avenue was closed in both directions from Chelsea to Brighton.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756413987947.png" alt="Photo Kansas City Fire Dept." />
 <figcaption>Photo Kansas City Fire Dept.</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY —The Kansas City, Missouri Fire Department&nbsp;responded to building collapse in the 4800 block of Independence Avenue just before 12:30 p.m. Thursday, according to Battalion Chief Michael Hopkins.On arrival companies reported a partial collapse of a bowstring truss roof. The collapse fell into the interior of the structure causing several walls to lean out and become compromised. <figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756414261411.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>KCFD established a collapse zone and requested dangerous buildings to the scene. The building is an occupied structure that is used for a storage location for a wholesale business, according to Hopkins. The owner of the building and the buildings renter were on scene and working with Dangerous Buildings and City Planning to develop a plan for securing the structure. There were no injuries reported at this incident.Independence Avenue was closed in both directions from Chelsea to Brighton.

Partial roof collapse at storage building in Kansas City

SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating a suspect on drug allegations.

Just before 7:30 August 25, a sheriff's deputy conducted a traffic stop on a white 2020 Dodge Charger with an expired license plate near NW Grant Street and NW Jackson Street, according to Deputy Abigail Christian.

During the investigation, a K-9 Unit assisted and illegal narcotics were located.&nbsp; Deputies arrested 27-year-old Rachael R. Ratzloff of Topeka on requested charges of Possession of an opiate, opium, narcotic or certain stimulant, Use/possess with intent to use drug paraphernalia, Vehicles; operate a vehicle without registration or with an expired tag and Operate a motor vehicle without a valid license

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756154206554.png" alt="Ratzloff-photo Shawnee County" />
 <figcaption>Ratzloff-photo Shawnee County</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating a suspect on drug allegations.Just before 7:30 August 25, a sheriff's deputy conducted a traffic stop on a white 2020 Dodge Charger with an expired license plate near NW Grant Street and NW Jackson Street, according to Deputy Abigail Christian.During the investigation, a K-9 Unit assisted and illegal narcotics were located.&nbsp; Deputies arrested 27-year-old Rachael R. Ratzloff of Topeka on requested charges of Possession of an opiate, opium, narcotic or certain stimulant, Use/possess with intent to use drug paraphernalia, Vehicles; operate a vehicle without registration or with an expired tag and Operate a motor vehicle without a valid license

Kansas woman without driver's license caught transporting drugs

OVERLAND PARK — Former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman pushed for deepening relationships and maintaining international growth opportunities for Kansas farmers at a meeting of state political and agricultural leaders Wednesday.&nbsp;

Glickman and U.S. Democratic Rep. Sharice Davids spoke about the effects of tariffs and federal policies on Kansas farmers during a U.S. Global Leadership Coalition luncheon. The event was closed to journalists, but Glickman shared thoughts on the current political climate afterward.&nbsp;

“My theory is pretty much don’t burn bridges, build bridges,” he said. “I got along very well with (Pat) Roberts, (Bob) Dole, (Nancy) Kassebaum. We didn’t try to kill each other.”

Glickman, a Democrat, said Dole, a longtime Republican senator, helped him get the position as secretary of agriculture, which he held from 1995 to 2001 during the Clinton administration.&nbsp;

Politicians need to be able to reach across the aisle and have open discussions and agreements, Glickman said.&nbsp;

“I hope we can create an environment where there’s trust in the system of government generally, because it’s not just agriculture, it’s everything,” he said. “And then we have some predictability in foreign policy, federal farm policy.”

He would also like to see Republicans stand up to the president, something he said he had to do when he served under Clinton.&nbsp;

“I’d like to see the Republicans show more courage and moxie in challenging the president – on the federal side, not so much on the Kansas side – when they think he’s wrong,” Glickman said. “It’s difficult to challenge a president if you’re in their party. When I would say to Clinton, ‘I think you’re wrong,’ I would do it very deliberately but still, I would do it at times, and I don’t see very much happening like that.”

National reports that legislators fear retaliation if they speak up aren’t good, Glickman said.&nbsp;

“I don’t think it’s healthy for democracy. You know, you’ve got to be able to speak out responsibly,” he said.

Building relationships extends beyond domestic politics, and Glickman is concerned international relationships may be impaired because of the way tariffs are being negotiated. He’s not against tariffs in general, he said, but he’s concerned about future trade effects.

“I’ve never been a purist on tariffs and trade,” he said. “I mean, there are some countries that abuse their relationships with us, and that’s why you have tariff agreements and trade agreements, to build those things in there so one country can’t take advantage of another by being too self protective.”&nbsp;

But Glickman said the way trade barriers are being implemented concerns him. Historically, international policies involved collaboration between Congress and the private sector to determine the best way to proceed, he said.

“Because when you put your finger on one set of problems, if you’re not careful, you’re going to create another set of problems,” Glickman said. “Agriculture has often been the whipping boy for those other sets of problems, because of how much we rely on access to global markets. So I guess my real answer is, can we do this carefully, or do we have to do it with a sledgehammer?”

Right now, the country is relying too much on the sledgehammer, Glickman said.

Growth opportunities in agriculture lie in the international market, he said.&nbsp;

“The president said something when he announced the original set of tariffs – ‘American farmers are going to love this, because they can finally take advantage of domestic markets,’ and I’m thinking to myself, no, that’s not where the growth is,” Glickman said. “There’s not really much growth in domestic markets. There might be a little here, a little there. All the growth is global, and so maybe he doesn’t understand it.”

Nick Levendofsky, executive director of the Kansas Farmers Union, attended the luncheon and agreed with Glickman.&nbsp;

“As Secretary Glickman mentioned, we are becoming less and less of a reliable trading partner to the world,” he said. “Anymore, we are a global market, and you know, you can be upset with another country because maybe they don’t do as much trade with you and all that, but I’ve always believed that the carrot versus the stick does a lot more good.”

Levendofsky said the potential of growing markets such as India are important to Kansas farmers.&nbsp;

“If China is shutting the door on us, we’ve got to find an opening somewhere,” he said. “And that, to me, right now speaks to India.”

Along with international trade, Glickman is watching the future of the Farm Bill. The reconciliation bill passed by Congress in July addressed some policies usually found in the Farm Bill, but it didn’t include all the elements that need to be addressed, he said.&nbsp;

A Farm Bill has not passed this year, and Glickman said expert assessments that this may be the beginning of creating a different process for agricultural legislation is “astute.”

“We’ve had in the last 40 or 50 years, these five-year farm bills,” he said. “But then lately, we’ve been having these extensions every year and with no real fundamental change.”

Recent legislation added $40 to $50 billion of new or enhanced programs over the next 10 years, and also addressed commodity programs, crop insurance and risk management, Glickman said.&nbsp;

He hopes this won’t be the new normal because there were many subjcts not addressed, such as research and nutrition programs.&nbsp;

In his role as a senior fellow at the Bipartisan Policy Center and the Council on American Politics at George Washington University, Glickman said he keeps in contact with concerns of farmers and trade groups.

The real worry right now is instability, he said.

“The big story in agriculture is lack of stability, lack of planning, lack of predictability,” Glickman said. “Agriculture is complicated, and then the volatile weather complicates it further. Changes in the weather, plant and animal disease, making sure our research budgets are adequately funded – that’s all part of a new Farm Bill.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756402390112.png" alt=" Former U.S. Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman talked about international trade and diplomacy along with other concerns of Kansas farmers at a Wednesday U.S. Global Leadership Coalition meeting in Overland Park. (Morgan Chilson/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption> Former U.S. Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman talked about international trade and diplomacy along with other concerns of Kansas farmers at a Wednesday U.S. Global Leadership Coalition meeting in Overland Park. (Morgan Chilson/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>BY&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/mchilson/">MORGAN CHILSON</a> <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/">Kansas Reflector</a>OVERLAND PARK — Former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman pushed for deepening relationships and maintaining international growth opportunities for Kansas farmers at a meeting of state political and agricultural leaders Wednesday.&nbsp;Glickman and U.S. Democratic Rep. Sharice Davids spoke about the effects of tariffs and federal policies on Kansas farmers during a U.S. Global Leadership Coalition luncheon. The event was closed to journalists, but Glickman shared thoughts on the current political climate afterward.&nbsp;“My theory is pretty much don’t burn bridges, build bridges,” he said. “I got along very well with (Pat) Roberts, (Bob) Dole, (Nancy) Kassebaum. We didn’t try to kill each other.”Glickman, a Democrat, said Dole, a longtime Republican senator, helped him get the position as secretary of agriculture, which he held from 1995 to 2001 during the Clinton administration.&nbsp;Politicians need to be able to reach across the aisle and have open discussions and agreements, Glickman said.&nbsp;“I hope we can create an environment where there’s trust in the system of government generally, because it’s not just agriculture, it’s everything,” he said. “And then we have some predictability in foreign policy, federal farm policy.”He would also like to see Republicans stand up to the president, something he said he had to do when he served under Clinton.&nbsp;“I’d like to see the Republicans show more courage and moxie in challenging the president – on the federal side, not so much on the Kansas side – when they think he’s wrong,” Glickman said. “It’s difficult to challenge a president if you’re in their party. When I would say to Clinton, ‘I think you’re wrong,’ I would do it very deliberately but still, I would do it at times, and I don’t see very much happening like that.”National reports that legislators fear retaliation if they speak up aren’t good, Glickman said.&nbsp;“I don’t think it’s healthy for democracy. You know, you’ve got to be able to speak out responsibly,” he said.<h2>International trade</h2>Building relationships extends beyond domestic politics, and Glickman is concerned international relationships may be impaired because of the way tariffs are being negotiated. He’s not against tariffs in general, he said, but he’s concerned about future trade effects.“I’ve never been a purist on tariffs and trade,” he said. “I mean, there are some countries that abuse their relationships with us, and that’s why you have tariff agreements and trade agreements, to build those things in there so one country can’t take advantage of another by being too self protective.”&nbsp;But Glickman said the way trade barriers are being implemented concerns him. Historically, international policies involved collaboration between Congress and the private sector to determine the best way to proceed, he said.“Because when you put your finger on one set of problems, if you’re not careful, you’re going to create another set of problems,” Glickman said. “Agriculture has often been the whipping boy for those other sets of problems, because of how much we rely on access to global markets. So I guess my real answer is, can we do this carefully, or do we have to do it with a sledgehammer?”Right now, the country is relying too much on the sledgehammer, Glickman said.Growth opportunities in agriculture lie in the international market, he said.&nbsp;“The president said something when he announced the original set of tariffs – ‘American farmers are going to love this, because they can finally take advantage of domestic markets,’ and I’m thinking to myself, no, that’s not where the growth is,” Glickman said. “There’s not really much growth in domestic markets. There might be a little here, a little there. All the growth is global, and so maybe he doesn’t understand it.”Nick Levendofsky, executive director of the Kansas Farmers Union, attended the luncheon and agreed with Glickman.&nbsp;“As Secretary Glickman mentioned, we are becoming less and less of a reliable trading partner to the world,” he said. “Anymore, we are a global market, and you know, you can be upset with another country because maybe they don’t do as much trade with you and all that, but I’ve always believed that the carrot versus the stick does a lot more good.”Levendofsky said the potential of growing markets such as India are important to Kansas farmers.&nbsp;“If China is shutting the door on us, we’ve got to find an opening somewhere,” he said. “And that, to me, right now speaks to India.”<h2>Farm Bill</h2>Along with international trade, Glickman is watching the future of the Farm Bill. The reconciliation bill passed by Congress in July addressed some policies usually found in the Farm Bill, but it didn’t include all the elements that need to be addressed, he said.&nbsp;A Farm Bill has not passed this year, and Glickman said expert assessments that this may be the beginning of creating a different process for agricultural legislation is “astute.”“We’ve had in the last 40 or 50 years, these five-year farm bills,” he said. “But then lately, we’ve been having these extensions every year and with no real fundamental change.”Recent legislation added $40 to $50 billion of new or enhanced programs over the next 10 years, and also addressed commodity programs, crop insurance and risk management, Glickman said.&nbsp;He hopes this won’t be the new normal because there were many subjcts not addressed, such as research and nutrition programs.&nbsp;In his role as a senior fellow at the Bipartisan Policy Center and the Council on American Politics at George Washington University, Glickman said he keeps in contact with concerns of farmers and trade groups.The real worry right now is instability, he said.“The big story in agriculture is lack of stability, lack of planning, lack of predictability,” Glickman said. “Agriculture is complicated, and then the volatile weather complicates it further. Changes in the weather, plant and animal disease, making sure our research budgets are adequately funded – that’s all part of a new Farm Bill.”

Former ag secretary Glickman worries about ‘sledgehammer’ trade policies affecting Kansas farmers

WASHINGTON — In April Health secretary&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/robert-f-kennedy-jr">Robert F. Kennedy Jr.</a>&nbsp;warned that children in the U.S. are being diagnosed with autism at an “alarming rate,” promising to conduct exhaustive studies to identify any environmental factors that may cause the developmental disorder.

During President Trump's Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Kennedy revealed his researchers have identified what could be responsible for Autism.&nbsp;

Autism experts applaud efforts to further understand the condition, but say the number of reported cases began to balloon as the definition of the condition expanded to include mild cases.

“We will have an announcement as promised in September,” Kennedy said. “We’re finding interventions, certain interventions now that are clearly almost certainly causing autism.”

WASHINGTON — In April Health secretary&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/robert-f-kennedy-jr">Robert F. Kennedy Jr.</a>&nbsp;warned that children in the U.S. are being diagnosed with autism at an “alarming rate,” promising to conduct exhaustive studies to identify any environmental factors that may cause the developmental disorder.During President Trump's Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Kennedy revealed his researchers have identified what could be responsible for Autism.&nbsp;<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">RFK Jr. just REVEALED he has found the causes of autism. This is the moment MAHA moms have been waiting for. “We’re finding certain interventions that are almost certainly causing autism.” “We will have announcements, as promised, in September.” “In 1970, the biggest… <a href="https://t.co/KQidXc8fOY">pic.twitter.com/KQidXc8fOY</a>&mdash; Holden Culotta (@Holden_Culotta) <a href="https://twitter.com/Holden_Culotta/status/1960398300693074198?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 26, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Autism experts applaud efforts to further understand the condition, but say the number of reported cases began to balloon as the definition of the condition expanded to include mild cases.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">.<a href="https://twitter.com/SecKennedy?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecKennedy</a>: &quot;I know what a healthy child is supposed to look like. I’m looking at kids as I walk through the airports today...and I see these kids that are just overburdened with mitochondrial challenges...and I know that’s not how our children are supposed to look.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/b8A2OEphav">pic.twitter.com/b8A2OEphav</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1960802249053233248?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 27, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>“We will have an announcement as promised in September,” Kennedy said. “We’re finding interventions, certain interventions now that are clearly almost certainly causing autism.”

🎥The latest promise from RFK Jr. on autism research

A Cole County judge will decide whether to revise, throw out or keep a constitutional amendment proposed by the Missouri General Assembly that would ban abortion

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/annaspoerre/">ANNA SPOERRE</a> <a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2023/02/20/state-senator-throws-first-punches-of-2024-missouri-governors-campaign/">Missouri Independent</a>

A Cole County judge heard arguments Wednesday over whether a proposed ban on abortion set to go to voters next year should be thrown out or revised over a provision targeting gender-affirming care for minors.&nbsp;

The ACLU of Missouri believes the proposal, which was drafted by state lawmakers, violates the state constitution because it includes multiple subjects. The group also contends the summary that would appear on the ballot is misleading.

If the courts decide to keep the measure on the ballot, plaintiffs are asking that the ballot summary be revised to explicitly state that the measure would ban abortion.

If approved by a simple majority of voters, the abortion ban amendment would repeal a citizen-led reproductive rights amendment that passed last November legalizing&nbsp; abortion in Missouri up until the point of fetal viability and enshrining other reproductive rights in the constitution, including in-vitro fertilization and contraceptives.

The new amendment would reinstate an abortion ban, allowing limited exceptions for medical emergencies, fatal fetal anomolies and for survivors of rape and incest in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.

The current language written by the Missouri General Assembly makes no mention of the ban it would enact.&nbsp;

Instead, Missourians would be asked if they want to amend the Missouri constitution to:&nbsp;

Missouri statute states “petitions for laws shall contain not more than one subject which shall be expressed clearly in the title.”&nbsp;

Chuck Hatfield, an attorney with Stinson LLP&nbsp;representing the plaintiff on Wednesday argued that the inclusion of the gender-affirming health care ban was “ballot candy” meant to win over more voters but is a separate issue from reproductive health care.&nbsp;

Recent polling by St. Louis University/YouGov shows that while the<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/08/29/poll-shows-missouri-voters-back-trump-hawley-abortion-rights-and-minimum-wage-hike/">&nbsp;majority of polled Missouri voters support access to abortion</a>, the majority also&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2023/08/25/poll-finds-missouri-voters-support-for-bans-on-transgender-health-care/">oppose access to gender-affirming health care for minors.&nbsp;</a>

“You can’t say to the people, ‘Here’s a proposal whether the Chiefs should stay in Kansas City and to ban crypto,’” Hatfield said.

Missouri Solicitor General Louis Capozzi, defending the proposed amendment, told Cole County Circuit Judge Daniel Green on Wednesday that gender-affirming procedures can cause the loss of fertility. Therefore, he believes reproductive health care “applies to all people who are thinking about whether to have children.”

Capozzi said the latest proposed amendment “ensures that Missouri children are able to make the choice whether to reproduce when they are adults,” adding that if someone is “unable to reproduce, they can’t access reproductive health care.”

Last year,&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/09/06/judge-decides-abortion-amendment-3-missouri-ballot/">anti-abortion leaders were unsuccessful in convincing the courts&nbsp;</a>to throw the abortion rights amendment off the ballot by claiming it violated the single subject rule. At the time, an attorney for the Thomas Moore Society argued unsuccessfully that the subject of that amendment,&nbsp;“a person’s fundamental right to reproductive freedom,” encompassed “infinite subjects.”

Hatfield on Wednesday accused the legislature and Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins of misrepresenting what the amendment would do through both the language voters will see on the ballot and the ballot language posted&nbsp;at every polling station around the state next to sample ballots.&nbsp;

Hoskins’&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sos.mo.gov/petitions/2026BallotMeasures" target="_blank">ballot language</a>&nbsp;currently reads: “A ‘no’ vote will not amend the Missouri Constitution to allow abortion in cases of medical emergency, fetal anomaly, rape, or incest, or to protect children from gender transition.”

Under the current law, abortion is legal up until the point of fetal viability in Missouri and gender-affirming health care for minors is banned.&nbsp;

“It’s ridiculous; it’s wrong,” Hatfield said of the ballot language. “The current constitution guarantees those rights and to imply otherwise is wrong, it’s highly argumentative.”

Capozzi argued the legislature was working with a word limit and that it was more important to state what the amendment would do. Summary statements, he said, need not detail specific exceptions.

The proposed amendment also requires any lawsuits related to reproductive health care to be filed in Cole County and gives the Attorney General’s Office the right to intervene in these cases. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit said there is not a legitimate connection to reproductive health care, as “health care is not generally provided in court rooms.”

Hatfield suggested Green “tell the General Assembly to give it another shot in compliance with the constitution.”&nbsp;

Green did not immediately rule on the challenge to the abortion ban amendment. A day earlier, he also heard arguments in a case challenging a new law set to go into effect Thursday that&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/04/25/lawsuit-challenges-the-constitutionality-of-missouri-attorney-generals-new-powers/">changes the deadlines and procedures for challenging and revising ballot language.</a>&nbsp;Green’s determination in that case could affect how he’s allowed to proceed in regarding the ballot language.&nbsp;

Despite the current law, abortion access remains tenuous in Missouri.&nbsp;

Three Planned Parenthood clinics — in Kansas City, Columbia and St. Louis —&nbsp;have resumed procedural abortions on a limited schedule that was briefly interrupted over the summer when the courts overturned and then reinstated a temporary injunction allowing some abortions to resume ahead of a trial slated for January.

But Planned Parenthood and the Missouri Attorney General’s Office are slated to meet in court a handful of times before then.

At a hearing set for Sept. 10 in Kansas City, Planned Parenthood plans to argue in favor of undoing a number of laws they say are currently preventing its clinics from prescribing medication abortion in Missouri.&nbsp;

That same day, down the street, the Western District Court of Appeals is slated to hear&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-ag-erred-in-asking-supreme-court-to-overturn-order-legalizing-abortion/">the Missouri Attorney General’s Office’s appeal of an injunction</a>&nbsp;that allowed procedural abortions to resume in Missouri in February.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/5/1746190042115.png" alt="An abortion procedure room pictured on Monday, March 3, 2025, at Planned Parenthood in Columbia, Missouri (Anna Spoerre/Missouri Independent)." />
 <figcaption>An abortion procedure room pictured on Monday, March 3, 2025, at Planned Parenthood in Columbia, Missouri (Anna Spoerre/Missouri Independent).</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>A Cole County judge will decide whether to revise, throw out or keep a constitutional amendment proposed by the Missouri General Assembly that would ban abortion</h2>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/annaspoerre/">ANNA SPOERRE</a> <a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2023/02/20/state-senator-throws-first-punches-of-2024-missouri-governors-campaign/">Missouri Independent</a>A Cole County judge heard arguments Wednesday over whether a proposed ban on abortion set to go to voters next year should be thrown out or revised over a provision targeting gender-affirming care for minors.&nbsp;The ACLU of Missouri believes the proposal, which was drafted by state lawmakers, violates the state constitution because it includes multiple subjects. The group also contends the summary that would appear on the ballot is misleading.If the courts decide to keep the measure on the ballot, plaintiffs are asking that the ballot summary be revised to explicitly state that the measure would ban abortion.If approved by a simple majority of voters, the abortion ban amendment would repeal a citizen-led reproductive rights amendment that passed last November legalizing&nbsp; abortion in Missouri up until the point of fetal viability and enshrining other reproductive rights in the constitution, including in-vitro fertilization and contraceptives.The new amendment would reinstate an abortion ban, allowing limited exceptions for medical emergencies, fatal fetal anomolies and for survivors of rape and incest in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.The current language written by the Missouri General Assembly makes no mention of the ban it would enact.&nbsp;Instead, Missourians would be asked if they want to amend the Missouri constitution to:&nbsp;<ul>
 <li>Guarantee access to care for medical emergencies, ectopic pregnancies, and miscarriages;</li><li>Ensure women’s safety during abortions;</li><li>Ensure parental consent for minors;</li><li>Allow abortions for medical emergencies, fetal anomalies, rape, and incest;</li><li>Require physicians to provide medically accurate information; and</li><li>Protect children from gender transition?</li>
 </ul>Missouri statute states “petitions for laws shall contain not more than one subject which shall be expressed clearly in the title.”&nbsp;Chuck Hatfield, an attorney with Stinson LLP&nbsp;representing the plaintiff on Wednesday argued that the inclusion of the gender-affirming health care ban was “ballot candy” meant to win over more voters but is a separate issue from reproductive health care.&nbsp;Recent polling by St. Louis University/YouGov shows that while the<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/08/29/poll-shows-missouri-voters-back-trump-hawley-abortion-rights-and-minimum-wage-hike/">&nbsp;majority of polled Missouri voters support access to abortion</a>, the majority also&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2023/08/25/poll-finds-missouri-voters-support-for-bans-on-transgender-health-care/">oppose access to gender-affirming health care for minors.&nbsp;</a>“You can’t say to the people, ‘Here’s a proposal whether the Chiefs should stay in Kansas City and to ban crypto,’” Hatfield said.Missouri Solicitor General Louis Capozzi, defending the proposed amendment, told Cole County Circuit Judge Daniel Green on Wednesday that gender-affirming procedures can cause the loss of fertility. Therefore, he believes reproductive health care “applies to all people who are thinking about whether to have children.”Capozzi said the latest proposed amendment “ensures that Missouri children are able to make the choice whether to reproduce when they are adults,” adding that if someone is “unable to reproduce, they can’t access reproductive health care.”Last year,&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/09/06/judge-decides-abortion-amendment-3-missouri-ballot/">anti-abortion leaders were unsuccessful in convincing the courts&nbsp;</a>to throw the abortion rights amendment off the ballot by claiming it violated the single subject rule. At the time, an attorney for the Thomas Moore Society argued unsuccessfully that the subject of that amendment,&nbsp;“a person’s fundamental right to reproductive freedom,” encompassed “infinite subjects.”Hatfield on Wednesday accused the legislature and Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins of misrepresenting what the amendment would do through both the language voters will see on the ballot and the ballot language posted&nbsp;at every polling station around the state next to sample ballots.&nbsp;Hoskins’&nbsp;<a href="https://www.sos.mo.gov/petitions/2026BallotMeasures" target="_blank">ballot language</a>&nbsp;currently reads: “A ‘no’ vote will not amend the Missouri Constitution to allow abortion in cases of medical emergency, fetal anomaly, rape, or incest, or to protect children from gender transition.”Under the current law, abortion is legal up until the point of fetal viability in Missouri and gender-affirming health care for minors is banned.&nbsp;“It’s ridiculous; it’s wrong,” Hatfield said of the ballot language. “The current constitution guarantees those rights and to imply otherwise is wrong, it’s highly argumentative.”Capozzi argued the legislature was working with a word limit and that it was more important to state what the amendment would do. Summary statements, he said, need not detail specific exceptions.The proposed amendment also requires any lawsuits related to reproductive health care to be filed in Cole County and gives the Attorney General’s Office the right to intervene in these cases. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit said there is not a legitimate connection to reproductive health care, as “health care is not generally provided in court rooms.”Hatfield suggested Green “tell the General Assembly to give it another shot in compliance with the constitution.”&nbsp;Green did not immediately rule on the challenge to the abortion ban amendment. A day earlier, he also heard arguments in a case challenging a new law set to go into effect Thursday that&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/04/25/lawsuit-challenges-the-constitutionality-of-missouri-attorney-generals-new-powers/">changes the deadlines and procedures for challenging and revising ballot language.</a>&nbsp;Green’s determination in that case could affect how he’s allowed to proceed in regarding the ballot language.&nbsp;Despite the current law, abortion access remains tenuous in Missouri.&nbsp;Three Planned Parenthood clinics — in Kansas City, Columbia and St. Louis —&nbsp;have resumed procedural abortions on a limited schedule that was briefly interrupted over the summer when the courts overturned and then reinstated a temporary injunction allowing some abortions to resume ahead of a trial slated for January.But Planned Parenthood and the Missouri Attorney General’s Office are slated to meet in court a handful of times before then.At a hearing set for Sept. 10 in Kansas City, Planned Parenthood plans to argue in favor of undoing a number of laws they say are currently preventing its clinics from prescribing medication abortion in Missouri.&nbsp;That same day, down the street, the Western District Court of Appeals is slated to hear&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-ag-erred-in-asking-supreme-court-to-overturn-order-legalizing-abortion/">the Missouri Attorney General’s Office’s appeal of an injunction</a>&nbsp;that allowed procedural abortions to resume in Missouri in February.&nbsp;

Missouri judge weighing whether new abortion ban should appear on 2026 ballot

By CRISTINA JANNEY Hays Post

Representatives of judicial districts from across the state gathered in Hays on Tuesday and Wednesday for a mental health summit.

Seventy percent of people who are incarcerated in the United States have a mental illness or substance abuse problem or both.

The Hon. Steven Leifman from Florida told the group, "We should create specialty courts for the 30% of people who don't have mental illness or substance abuse."

There are 19 times more people who have mental illnesses in jails and prisons than in civil treatment programs.

He said the people who do have mental illness and substance abuse issues should be placed in therapeutic situations.

Leifman said the United States is failing at dealing with people who have mental illness, and it is costing taxpayers millions of dollars to run a broken system.

The United States has 4% of the world's population and 25% of the incarcerated people, resulting in $1 trillion in direct and indirect costs per year.&nbsp;

Leifman had the opportunity to visit&nbsp;Trieste, Italy, where he said the community is doing it right.

They virtually have no homelessness. They have few, if any, people with serious mental illness in jails. They have few, if any, people with serious mental illness in their forensic hospitals, and they have very few people in their civil hospitals," he said.

Last year, out of 40,000 patients, they only filed 100 cases for civil commitment.

"We do that every day in Miami," he said.

By CRISTINA JANNEY Hays PostRepresentatives of judicial districts from across the state gathered in Hays on Tuesday and Wednesday for a mental health summit.Seventy percent of people who are incarcerated in the United States have a mental illness or substance abuse problem or both.The Hon. Steven Leifman from Florida told the group, "We should create specialty courts for the 30% of people who don't have mental illness or substance abuse."There are 19 times more people who have mental illnesses in jails and prisons than in civil treatment programs.He said the people who do have mental illness and substance abuse issues should be placed in therapeutic situations.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/8/1756322262554.jpeg" alt="The Hon. Steven Leifman from Florida discusses his experiences in the judicial system in Florida and Dade County at the 2025 Kansas Mental Health Summit on Tuesday at Fort Hays State University. Photo by Cristina Janney/Hays Post" />
 <figcaption>The Hon. Steven Leifman from Florida discusses his experiences in the judicial system in Florida and Dade County at the 2025 Kansas Mental Health Summit on Tuesday at Fort Hays State University. Photo by Cristina Janney/Hays Post</figcaption>
 </figure>Leifman said the United States is failing at dealing with people who have mental illness, and it is costing taxpayers millions of dollars to run a broken system.The United States has 4% of the world's population and 25% of the incarcerated people, resulting in $1 trillion in direct and indirect costs per year.&nbsp;Leifman had the opportunity to visit&nbsp;Trieste, Italy, where he said the community is doing it right.They virtually have no homelessness. They have few, if any, people with serious mental illness in jails. They have few, if any, people with serious mental illness in their forensic hospitals, and they have very few people in their civil hospitals," he said.Last year, out of 40,000 patients, they only filed 100 cases for civil commitment."We do that every day in Miami," he said."First, they don't define people by their mental illnesses," he said. "You're not the crazy guy that lives down the street. You are John Smith, who just happens to have a mental illness. Just like you might be John Smith, who just happens to have heart disease or cancer."When someone has a mental health episode, a doctor immediately goes to that person's home and begins treatment immediately. If the person can't stay at home, they find them housing and assign them three case managers, so they are covered 24 hours until they are stable. They are placed on medication and monitored, but not hospitalized.As soon as the person begins to recover, they start to try to give them their lives back.Instead of a state hospital, they have a supportive employment program that includes a radio station, a restaurant and a chic clothing manufacturing operation."You walk around the campus, and you don't know the difference between the staff and the patients," he said."They have a reason to get up every single day and participate,"&nbsp;Leifman said."It is a truly remarkable system of care that actually promotes recovery, and there's absolutely no reason why we can't scale that type of system here in the United States. Today, in the United States, we basically do the opposite," he said.People remain on the streets, sometimes psychotic, for decades."We have been so bad about it that the courts have ruled that the way we do it is basically unconstitutional, enormously unsuccessful and enormously expensive without any positive measurable outcomes," he said.He said the earlier we treat mental illness, the better the outcomes will be.He called the treatment of people with serious mental illnesses within the judicial system the greatest public policy failure."The fact that we have applied the criminal justice model to a disease as opposed to a population health model explains why we have failed so miserably,"&nbsp;Leifman said.Leifman's first experience with the mental health system was when he was 17 and working as an intern for a state senator's office.He was sent to the state mental hospital to investigate claims that a young man was being mistreated.He found the man tied in four-point restraints, screaming and moaning and about 100 pounds overweight from being injected with Thorazine.In reading his file and talking to staff, he learned the young man was not psychotic, but autistic. In the basement, he also saw naked men covered in their own feces being hosed down like they were animals in a zoo.The state senator's office was able to get the young man with autism placed in a group home. However, thewhat&nbsp;Eventually, Leifman became a judge in Miami.The city went from having one wing on one floor of the jail dedicated to people who had mental illness to&nbsp;having three dedicated floors to house people who had mental illness."When I became a judge, I had no idea that I was becoming the gatekeeper to the largest psychiatric facility in the state of Florida, the Dade County Jail," he said.Seventy to 80% of the inmates have a mental health diagnosis and are in immediate need of treatment, he said.Leifman was eventually given a special assignment to work on mental health issues within the Florida court system. He found the state was spending a third of its mental health budget, $250 million, to restore competency to 2,500 to 3,000 people, when about 160,000 people at the time of their arrest needed acute mental health care and weren't getting it.After spending so many resources on this small population, either the charges were dropped, they were given credit for time served and were released, or they received probation.They ended up back on the streets, often psychotic, with no access to treatment, and were sometimes rearrested before they made it out of the parking lot.Leifman shared the story of Tristan Murphy, who suffered from schizophrenia. He wasn't violent, but had good and bad days, depending on whether he took his medication.One day, he drove his truck into a pond near the sheriff's office. He was arrested and convicted of felony littering.He was placed on a work detail while incarcerated. His bunkmates noted he was deteriorating mentally. However, corrections officers continued to give him access to tools, including a chainsaw for his work detail. One day, he took a chainsaw to his neck, ending his life.Leifman said he was no threat to anyone other than himself. He should never have been arrested. He should have been diverted into treatment, Leifman said.The governor of Florida, a few weeks ago, signed the Tristin Murphy Act, which expands the Miami mental health diversion program statewide."We shouldn't need that kind of horror to get the attention of policymakers," he said, "because we all know that the way we handle individuals with these illnesses is wrong and doesn't really work."He said people who have mental illnesses are less dangerous than the general population and a lot less dangerous than the general population when they are on medication. They are more likely to be the victims of violent crime than the perpetrators."We also know that recovery rates for people with mental illness, in many cases, are much better than heart disease and diabetes,"&nbsp;Leifman said. "These are not terminal illnesses. They are treatable illnesses."People with schizophrenia have higher rates of heart disease and cancer because untreated schizophrenia results in a depletion of the brain chemical dopamine.&nbsp;They feel awful,&nbsp;Leifman said, so they often chain smoke because the nicotine helps cognition and helps them feel better.When these people end up in jail, not only do taxpayers have to pay for treatment of the mental illness, but also severe physical health concerns as a result of the mental illness going untreated, Leifman said."The good news is that this is a very fixable system," he said.The judicial system and mental health systems were developed when the most acutely ill were still in state hospitals. The community mental health systems were designed to handle people who have moderate mental illness,&nbsp;Leifman said.The hospitals were shut down. The U.S. adopted the war on crime and sentencing guidelines and drastically cut funds for low-income housing, and the population of the acute mentally ill was thrown into communities that were not prepared for them, he said."Instead of blaming themselves for not developing an appropriate system of care, we end up blaming this population, and we use the justice system to punish them, and that has not worked out too well," Leifman said.He said our society would never allow people to be treated in primary care as we treat people with mental illnesses.&nbsp;"If you threw people who had primary care illnesses out of hospitals in the middle of the night like we do people with mental illnesses, you'd get arrested," he said.&nbsp;Leifman said this is a national issue that needs national money, but the solutions can start at the local level."Each community needs to take a good, hard look at how they are doing things, and develop collaborative agreements to alter and restructure how we approach this population," he said.Miami put to gether a two-part approach, pre-arrest and post-arrest.This included Crisis Intervention Teams, which include specially trained law enforcement officers to respond when someone is having a mental health episode. This often has resulted in people being diverted into treatment instead of arrest&nbsp;In 10 years, two Crisis Intervention Teams responded to more than 105,000 calls and made fewer than 200 arrests.Overall arrests plummeted. Dade County closed one of its jails, saving $168 million. Police shootings almost stopped.The post-arrest program eliminated many of the time-consuming competency evaluations in favor of bringing these individuals into treatment as soon as possible.Assisted Outpatient Treatment programs were created, also known as AOT. Hays has had an AOT program since 2022.<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/8abbbbb5-b093-4c36-bc34-50be0815125d">SEE RELATED STORY: Ellis County mental health court pilot sees success in first year.</a>And peers were enlisted to help people navigate the system and encourage work toward recovery.Recidivism rates for misdemeanor cases decreased from 75% to 20% for individuals participating in these programs. The treatment model proved so effective that it was expanded to include nonviolent felony cases. Recidivism rates decreased from 75% to 6%.Continuing care was still needed for individuals with the most acute illnesses, so Dade County recently passed a bond issue to build a facility for these individuals based on the Trieste model.It offers wrap-around services, including crisis stabilization, primary care, a dental clinic, a podiatry clinic, an eye clinic, short-term residential care, tattoo removal, a day program, a supportive employment program, a computer lab, a GED program, and a courtroom that can handle both civil and criminal cases onsite."Not one person, not one party, not one institution created this mess. Not one person, party or institution will fix it. It takes all of us in this room to start looking at our systems and determine how there is a better way to run this system," Leifman said.