OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The ongoing bird flu outbreak has cost the government roughly $661 million and added to consumers' pain at the grocery store after more than 58 million birds were&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-business-bird-flu-flu-animals-189a7c08d848047f00b3f7b5bec39e67">slaughtered</a>&nbsp;to limit the spread of the virus.

In addition to the cost of the government response and rising prices for eggs, chicken and turkey, farmers who raise those animals have easily lost more than $1 billion, said an agricultural economist, though no one has calculated the total cost to the industry yet.

The bad news is that with the outbreak entering its second year and the spring migratory season looming, there is no end in sight. And there is little&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-health-environment-and-nature-iowa-agriculture-9245d97453568576bd0b564f9c52c343">farmers</a>&nbsp;can do beyond&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/science-health-business-iowa-agriculture-f5a5c6fbf1d6b551413fb249086fdbec">the steps they have already taken</a>&nbsp;to try to keep the virus out.

Unlike past years,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-flu-prices-animals-1ec0f5a8e5485300fe117f87f8470f06">the virus that causes</a>&nbsp;highly pathogenic avian influenza found a way to survive through the heat of last summer, leading to a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-minnesota-animals-flu-animal-2f02b2d35e82feb05273d9a72e898170">rise in cases</a>&nbsp;reported in the fall.

The outbreak is already more widespread than the last major bird flu outbreak in 2015, but it hasn't proven as costly yet partly because the government and industry applied lessons learned eight years ago.

“The past year has been devastating for the turkey industry as we experience, unequivocally, the worst HPAI (highly pathogenic avian influenza) outbreak in the industry’s history,” National Turkey Federation spokeswoman Shelby Newman said.

In the current outbreak, 58.4 million birds have been slaughtered on more than 300 commercial farms in 47 states. That is because any time the virus is detected, the entire flock on that farm — which can number in the millions — must be killed to limit the spread of the disease. Only Hawaii, Louisiana and West Virginia have yet to report a case of bird flu. Iowa — the nation's biggest egg producer —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-business-iowa-bird-flu-4c49e56a8c84c425c308e97617e31066">leads the nation</a>&nbsp;with nearly 16 million birds slaughtered.

In 2015, about 50 million chickens and turkeys were slaughtered on more than 200 farms in 15 states.

That previous outbreak remains the most expensive animal health disaster in U.S. history. The federal government spent nearly $1 billion to deal with infected birds, clean up barns and compensate farmers. It cost the industry roughly $3 billion as farmers incurred additional costs and lost money when they didn’t have any birds on their farms.

This bills continue to pile up this year as cases spread, and that includes the cost to consumers.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/bird-flu-business-213d845ae92814bf3189eec9c1ccf902">Egg prices shot up</a>&nbsp;to $4.82 a dozen in January from $1.93 a year earlier, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://ag.purdue.edu/cfdas/resource-library/average-food-prices/">latest government figures</a>. That spike prompted calls for a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/inflation-commodity-markets-jack-reed-business-1b32cb587f20a8d44eaf707f72635e70">price-gouging investigation</a>&nbsp;although the industry maintains that the combination of bird flu and significantly higher feed, fuel and labor costs is what’s driving prices so high.

The price for a pound of chicken breast was $4.32 in January. That’s down slightly from last fall when the price peaked at $4.75, but it is up significantly from the year before when chicken breasts were selling for $3.73 per pound.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics doesn’t track retail turkey prices the same way as part of its inflation data, but the Agriculture Department says the wholesale price of turkey went from $1.29 per pound last January just before the bird flu outbreak began to $1.72 per pound last month.

The number of birds slaughtered peaked last spring at almost 21 million in March, leaving farmers leery of what they must face in the months ahead. University of Georgia virus researcher David Stallknecht said there is some hope that this spring might not be quite as bad because turkeys and chickens may have developed some immunity to the virus.

The key problem with bird flu is that the highly contagious virus is spread easily by&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-business-minnesota-environment-0ec6d3f11b09ddd023d7d5d50ab7f8c1">wild birds</a>&nbsp;through their droppings and nasal discharges. Despite the best efforts of farmers, it is hard to keep the virus out.

Farmers have gone to great lengths by requiring workers to shower and change clothes before entering barns, sanitizing trucks that enter a farm and investing in separate sets of tools for every barn. Some farms have even upgraded barn ventilation and installed laser systems to discourage wild birds from congregating.

“We recommend all producers redouble their efforts to protect their birds through good biosecurity practices,” said Lyndsay Cole, a spokeswoman for the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service that's leading the government's response.

Farmers began following those steps after the 2015 outbreak, and this outbreak has only reinforced the need to tighten biosecurity.

“America’s egg farmers continue to double-down on biosecurity protocols to protect our flocks and maintain a stable egg supply. We are grateful that there has been little to no farm-to-farm spread in this current outbreak,” said Oscar Garrison, senior vice president of food safety and regulatory affairs at the United Egg Producers trade group.

Poultry and egg producers, partnering with the government, are parsing this outbreak for new lessons in keeping birds healthy.

“That’s really the key – early detection. It’s kind of like a forest fire - the earlier you detect it, the easier it is to contain and eradicate,” National Chicken Council spokesman Tom Super said.

Officials say bird flu doesn’t represent a significant threat to human health. Human cases are extremely rare and none of the infected birds are allowed into the nation’s food supply. And properly cooking poultry to 165 degrees Fahrenheit will kill any viruses.

There has only been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-health-environment-colorado-b98906e0a1899bb1f92da30a7b1dbe28">one human case</a>&nbsp;of bird flu confirmed during this outbreak and that was a man who had been helping slaughter and remove infected birds from a Colorado farm. He recovered from the illness after a few days.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/10/1666346539753.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The ongoing bird flu outbreak has cost the government roughly $661 million and added to consumers' pain at the grocery store after more than 58 million birds were&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-business-bird-flu-flu-animals-189a7c08d848047f00b3f7b5bec39e67">slaughtered</a>&nbsp;to limit the spread of the virus.In addition to the cost of the government response and rising prices for eggs, chicken and turkey, farmers who raise those animals have easily lost more than $1 billion, said an agricultural economist, though no one has calculated the total cost to the industry yet.The bad news is that with the outbreak entering its second year and the spring migratory season looming, there is no end in sight. And there is little&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-health-environment-and-nature-iowa-agriculture-9245d97453568576bd0b564f9c52c343">farmers</a>&nbsp;can do beyond&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/science-health-business-iowa-agriculture-f5a5c6fbf1d6b551413fb249086fdbec">the steps they have already taken</a>&nbsp;to try to keep the virus out.Unlike past years,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-flu-prices-animals-1ec0f5a8e5485300fe117f87f8470f06">the virus that causes</a>&nbsp;highly pathogenic avian influenza found a way to survive through the heat of last summer, leading to a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-minnesota-animals-flu-animal-2f02b2d35e82feb05273d9a72e898170">rise in cases</a>&nbsp;reported in the fall.The outbreak is already more widespread than the last major bird flu outbreak in 2015, but it hasn't proven as costly yet partly because the government and industry applied lessons learned eight years ago.“The past year has been devastating for the turkey industry as we experience, unequivocally, the worst HPAI (highly pathogenic avian influenza) outbreak in the industry’s history,” National Turkey Federation spokeswoman Shelby Newman said.In the current outbreak, 58.4 million birds have been slaughtered on more than 300 commercial farms in 47 states. That is because any time the virus is detected, the entire flock on that farm — which can number in the millions — must be killed to limit the spread of the disease. Only Hawaii, Louisiana and West Virginia have yet to report a case of bird flu. Iowa — the nation's biggest egg producer —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-business-iowa-bird-flu-4c49e56a8c84c425c308e97617e31066">leads the nation</a>&nbsp;with nearly 16 million birds slaughtered.In 2015, about 50 million chickens and turkeys were slaughtered on more than 200 farms in 15 states.That previous outbreak remains the most expensive animal health disaster in U.S. history. The federal government spent nearly $1 billion to deal with infected birds, clean up barns and compensate farmers. It cost the industry roughly $3 billion as farmers incurred additional costs and lost money when they didn’t have any birds on their farms.This bills continue to pile up this year as cases spread, and that includes the cost to consumers.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/bird-flu-business-213d845ae92814bf3189eec9c1ccf902">Egg prices shot up</a>&nbsp;to $4.82 a dozen in January from $1.93 a year earlier, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://ag.purdue.edu/cfdas/resource-library/average-food-prices/">latest government figures</a>. That spike prompted calls for a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/inflation-commodity-markets-jack-reed-business-1b32cb587f20a8d44eaf707f72635e70">price-gouging investigation</a>&nbsp;although the industry maintains that the combination of bird flu and significantly higher feed, fuel and labor costs is what’s driving prices so high.The price for a pound of chicken breast was $4.32 in January. That’s down slightly from last fall when the price peaked at $4.75, but it is up significantly from the year before when chicken breasts were selling for $3.73 per pound.The Bureau of Labor Statistics doesn’t track retail turkey prices the same way as part of its inflation data, but the Agriculture Department says the wholesale price of turkey went from $1.29 per pound last January just before the bird flu outbreak began to $1.72 per pound last month.The number of birds slaughtered peaked last spring at almost 21 million in March, leaving farmers leery of what they must face in the months ahead. University of Georgia virus researcher David Stallknecht said there is some hope that this spring might not be quite as bad because turkeys and chickens may have developed some immunity to the virus.The key problem with bird flu is that the highly contagious virus is spread easily by&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/health-business-minnesota-environment-0ec6d3f11b09ddd023d7d5d50ab7f8c1">wild birds</a>&nbsp;through their droppings and nasal discharges. Despite the best efforts of farmers, it is hard to keep the virus out.Farmers have gone to great lengths by requiring workers to shower and change clothes before entering barns, sanitizing trucks that enter a farm and investing in separate sets of tools for every barn. Some farms have even upgraded barn ventilation and installed laser systems to discourage wild birds from congregating.“We recommend all producers redouble their efforts to protect their birds through good biosecurity practices,” said Lyndsay Cole, a spokeswoman for the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service that's leading the government's response.Farmers began following those steps after the 2015 outbreak, and this outbreak has only reinforced the need to tighten biosecurity.“America’s egg farmers continue to double-down on biosecurity protocols to protect our flocks and maintain a stable egg supply. We are grateful that there has been little to no farm-to-farm spread in this current outbreak,” said Oscar Garrison, senior vice president of food safety and regulatory affairs at the United Egg Producers trade group.Poultry and egg producers, partnering with the government, are parsing this outbreak for new lessons in keeping birds healthy.“That’s really the key – early detection. It’s kind of like a forest fire - the earlier you detect it, the easier it is to contain and eradicate,” National Chicken Council spokesman Tom Super said.Officials say bird flu doesn’t represent a significant threat to human health. Human cases are extremely rare and none of the infected birds are allowed into the nation’s food supply. And properly cooking poultry to 165 degrees Fahrenheit will kill any viruses.There has only been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-health-environment-colorado-b98906e0a1899bb1f92da30a7b1dbe28">one human case</a>&nbsp;of bird flu confirmed during this outbreak and that was a man who had been helping slaughter and remove infected birds from a Colorado farm. He recovered from the illness after a few days.

Bird flu costs pile up as outbreak enters second year

DOUGLAS COUNTY —Law enforcement were able to safely arrest a Kansas man after witnesses say he went to his former place of employment and brandished a weapon.

Just before 1p.m. Feb. 17,&nbsp; police were called to a business in the 1100 block of Horizon Drive in Lawrence, according to police spokesperson Laura McCabae.&nbsp; 

The suspect, employees say, was recently terminated and came in making threatening remarks, showed them he had a gun, and left after seeing that the woman he believed was responsible for his termination wasn’t there.

Officers with the Lawrence Police Department and dispatchers attempted to make phone contact with the suspect, but the line disconnected or went to voicemail.&nbsp; Officers learned where the man was and attempted to arrest him in the hallway of the apartment complex.&nbsp; The man physically resisted arrest and attempted to retreat back inside the apartment.

To deter further escalation, or injury to the officers or innocent occupants, one officer deployed his taser and the team was able to detain him and make a safe arrest.&nbsp; Officers were able to recover the weapon suspected in the incident.&nbsp; The man was taken to the hospital to be checked out then booked into the Douglas County Jail. Police have not released his name or place of employment.

DOUGLAS COUNTY —Law enforcement were able to safely arrest a Kansas man after witnesses say he went to his former place of employment and brandished a weapon.Just before 1p.m. Feb. 17,&nbsp; police were called to a business in the 1100 block of Horizon Drive in Lawrence, according to police spokesperson Laura McCabae.&nbsp; The suspect, employees say, was recently terminated and came in making threatening remarks, showed them he had a gun, and left after seeing that the woman he believed was responsible for his termination wasn’t there.Officers with the Lawrence Police Department and dispatchers attempted to make phone contact with the suspect, but the line disconnected or went to voicemail.&nbsp; Officers learned where the man was and attempted to arrest him in the hallway of the apartment complex.&nbsp; The man physically resisted arrest and attempted to retreat back inside the apartment.To deter further escalation, or injury to the officers or innocent occupants, one officer deployed his taser and the team was able to detain him and make a safe arrest.&nbsp; Officers were able to recover the weapon suspected in the incident.&nbsp; The man was taken to the hospital to be checked out then booked into the Douglas County Jail. Police have not released his name or place of employment.

Kan. man arrested after alleged threat at former place of employment

By SHERMAN SMITH <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2023/02/20/kansas-senate-president-roll-back-food-tax-relief-so-state-can-afford-flat-tax-plan/">Kansas Reflector</a>

TOPEKA — Senate President Ty Masterson’s “broader picture” for tax 
policy changes came into focus Monday with a plan that involves rolling 
back tax relief on food so the state can afford to cut income taxes for 
the highest wage earners.

The Senate tax committee passed a flat tax plan that would lower the 
income tax rate for all wage brackets to 4.75% at an estimated cost of 
about $566 million in the next calendar year. The impact on state 
revenue would be lessened by applying the sales tax on food to just 
“healthy” items.

Masterson appeared before the committee to promote the two pieces of legislation.

“Is this meant to only help those less fortunate? I think the answer 
is no,” Masterson said. “They’re to be helped, but it’s to help all 
Kansans, not just those less fortunate, because the structure’s there. 
The best thing for them is a job. We can’t keep on the train of buying 
economic development. You have to put a tax structure in place where 
those jobs remain. And so that helps everybody.”

He praised Gov. Laura Kelly for effectively using her “axe the tax” 
line during last year’s gubernatorial campaign, where she touted passage
 of legislation to gradually eliminate the 6.5% state sales tax on food.
 But he urged lawmakers to consider the “broader picture.”

Masterson’s proposal would repeal the gradual elimination of state 
sales tax on food, which would reduce annual revenues by about $450 
million when fully implemented on Jan. 1, 2025. Instead, <a target="_blank" href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/sb248/">Senate Bill 248</a>
 would exempt select food items from both state and local sales tax, 
reducing state revenues by about $284 million in the next fiscal year.

The goal, Masterson said, is not to incentivize healthy food choices. The plan is to afford tax cuts elsewhere, he said.

“You can do things in an overall package, like take tax off Social 
Security, and if you’re truly interested in helping those in their 
golden years, you want to look at stuff like that,” Masterson said. “The
 other thing we need to do is look at the structure that we’re under. 
The states that are doing the best are the zero income tax states. And 
this is not even an attempt to get there. The second tier are those with
 the single rate flat tax. So the structure is actually the most 
important thing to get to. And this would allow you to get to a 
structure with a lower rate.”

Opponents of the “healthy foods” legislation include grocers and 
family advocates who say the change would be confusing, difficult to 
implement, and reduce revenue for local governments. They also raised 
concerns about which items qualify as “healthy.”

The list of healthy items is based on foods that qualify for the 
federal Women, Infants and Children nutrition program. The legislation 
specifies fruits and vegetables; meat, poultry and fish; eggs, milk, 
cheese and yogurt; infant formula; whole wheat or whole grain bread; 
corn or flour tortillas; pasta; brown rice, bulgur, oatmeal and whole 
grain barley; breakfast cereals; beans and nuts; and peanut butter.

Jami Reever, executive director of Kansas Appleseed, said one in four
 Kansas kids lives in a household that cannot afford to eat nutritious 
meals.

Additionally, Reever said, one in six Kansans lives in a food desert,
 which means they don’t have access to a grocery store. Those who get 
their food from a convenience store, for example, might have to choose 
white rice over brown rice because that is what is available.

“Families have to make really tough choices every single day about 
what they feed their families,” Reever said. “I think it’s better that 
kids go to bed with a full tummy than with no food at all. And I’m 
worried that by just adding on to the food bill, they’ll have to make 
some really impossible choices.”

Sen. Caryn Tyson, a Parker Republican who chairs the tax committee, 
took issue with mailers sent by Kansas Appleseed that urged support for 
eliminating the sales tax on food. Tyson’s complaint: The sales tax 
reduction passed last year applied to “groceries,” not “food.”

Tyson: “Your fliers were absolutely misleading, then, because you said remove it on food.”

Reever:&nbsp;“We called it the food sales tax.”

Reever: “I thank you for pointing that out.”

The committee concluded the hearing on the sales tax bill in the 
morning, then met again over the lunch hour to consider other proposals.
 They included <a target="_blank" href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/sb169/">Senate Bill 169</a>, an alternative to the Kansas Chamber’s proposed flat tax plan.

Under current law, the income tax rate is 3.1% for income under 
$15,000, 5.25% for income between $15,000 and $30,000, and 5.7% for 
income above $30,000. The dollar amounts are doubled for couples filing 
jointly.

SB 169 would eliminate the income tax for those earning less than $5,225 annually and apply a 4.75% rate to all others.

Critics of the flat tax compare it to former Gov. Sam Brownback’s 
“tax experiment” because it involves a dramatic sudden reduction in 
state revenue and disproportionately favors the highest wage earners.

“For the life of me, I don’t understand why the committee is going 
down this path,” said Sen. Tom Holland, D-Baldwin City. “We tried 
something very similar with the Brownback tax experiment. My concern is 
not only is it a more aggressive tax, once again, it’s really 
effectively reducing the tax rate for the wealthiest Kansans. The second
 thing is that we simply can’t afford this.”

Sen. Virgil Peck, R-Havana, said he wanted to “make sure it’s on the 
record” that the flat tax is different from legislation passed in 2012, 
which cut the rate for top earners and eliminated the income tax for 
businesses.

Peck said he supported the 2012 plan and believes it would have worked if the Legislature had controlled spending.

“That’s ancient history — or at least history, not ancient,” Peck 
said. “And so I just thought that I would mention that this is not the 
Brownback tax plan. This is the Legislature’s attempt to do some things 
to make our state more competitive for our workers, for bringing 
business and citizens to our state.”

The committee passed the flat tax bill on a party line vote, sending it to the full Senate for consideration.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/2/1676932634208.png" alt="Senate President Ty Masterson appears Jan. 20, 2023, before the Senate tax committee to urge lawmakers to support plans to limit tax relief on food to “healthy” items in order to afford a lower income tax rate. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Senate President Ty Masterson appears Jan. 20, 2023, before the Senate tax committee to urge lawmakers to support plans to limit tax relief on food to “healthy” items in order to afford a lower income tax rate. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>By SHERMAN SMITH <a href="https://kansasreflector.com/2023/02/20/kansas-senate-president-roll-back-food-tax-relief-so-state-can-afford-flat-tax-plan/">Kansas Reflector</a>TOPEKA — Senate President Ty Masterson’s “broader picture” for tax 
policy changes came into focus Monday with a plan that involves rolling 
back tax relief on food so the state can afford to cut income taxes for 
the highest wage earners.The Senate tax committee passed a flat tax plan that would lower the 
income tax rate for all wage brackets to 4.75% at an estimated cost of 
about $566 million in the next calendar year. The impact on state 
revenue would be lessened by applying the sales tax on food to just 
“healthy” items.Masterson appeared before the committee to promote the two pieces of legislation.“Is this meant to only help those less fortunate? I think the answer 
is no,” Masterson said. “They’re to be helped, but it’s to help all 
Kansans, not just those less fortunate, because the structure’s there. 
The best thing for them is a job. We can’t keep on the train of buying 
economic development. You have to put a tax structure in place where 
those jobs remain. And so that helps everybody.”He praised Gov. Laura Kelly for effectively using her “axe the tax” 
line during last year’s gubernatorial campaign, where she touted passage
 of legislation to gradually eliminate the 6.5% state sales tax on food.
 But he urged lawmakers to consider the “broader picture.”Masterson’s proposal would repeal the gradual elimination of state 
sales tax on food, which would reduce annual revenues by about $450 
million when fully implemented on Jan. 1, 2025. Instead, <a target="_blank" href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/sb248/">Senate Bill 248</a>
 would exempt select food items from both state and local sales tax, 
reducing state revenues by about $284 million in the next fiscal year.The goal, Masterson said, is not to incentivize healthy food choices. The plan is to afford tax cuts elsewhere, he said.“You can do things in an overall package, like take tax off Social 
Security, and if you’re truly interested in helping those in their 
golden years, you want to look at stuff like that,” Masterson said. “The
 other thing we need to do is look at the structure that we’re under. 
The states that are doing the best are the zero income tax states. And 
this is not even an attempt to get there. The second tier are those with
 the single rate flat tax. So the structure is actually the most 
important thing to get to. And this would allow you to get to a 
structure with a lower rate.”Opponents of the “healthy foods” legislation include grocers and 
family advocates who say the change would be confusing, difficult to 
implement, and reduce revenue for local governments. They also raised 
concerns about which items qualify as “healthy.”The list of healthy items is based on foods that qualify for the 
federal Women, Infants and Children nutrition program. The legislation 
specifies fruits and vegetables; meat, poultry and fish; eggs, milk, 
cheese and yogurt; infant formula; whole wheat or whole grain bread; 
corn or flour tortillas; pasta; brown rice, bulgur, oatmeal and whole 
grain barley; breakfast cereals; beans and nuts; and peanut butter.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/2/1676932717720.png" alt="Jami Reever, executive director of Kansas Appleseed, says struggling families need more relief from high grocery bills, not less. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)" />
 <figcaption>Jami Reever, executive director of Kansas Appleseed, says struggling families need more relief from high grocery bills, not less. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)</figcaption>
 </figure>Jami Reever, executive director of Kansas Appleseed, said one in four
 Kansas kids lives in a household that cannot afford to eat nutritious 
meals.Additionally, Reever said, one in six Kansans lives in a food desert,
 which means they don’t have access to a grocery store. Those who get 
their food from a convenience store, for example, might have to choose 
white rice over brown rice because that is what is available.“Families have to make really tough choices every single day about 
what they feed their families,” Reever said. “I think it’s better that 
kids go to bed with a full tummy than with no food at all. And I’m 
worried that by just adding on to the food bill, they’ll have to make 
some really impossible choices.”Sen. Caryn Tyson, a Parker Republican who chairs the tax committee, 
took issue with mailers sent by Kansas Appleseed that urged support for 
eliminating the sales tax on food. Tyson’s complaint: The sales tax 
reduction passed last year applied to “groceries,” not “food.”Tyson: “Your fliers were absolutely misleading, then, because you said remove it on food.”Reever:&nbsp;“We called it the food sales tax.”Tyson: “Yeah, which is misleading.”Reever: “I thank you for pointing that out.”The committee concluded the hearing on the sales tax bill in the 
morning, then met again over the lunch hour to consider other proposals.
 They included <a target="_blank" href="http://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/sb169/">Senate Bill 169</a>, an alternative to the Kansas Chamber’s proposed flat tax plan.Under current law, the income tax rate is 3.1% for income under 
$15,000, 5.25% for income between $15,000 and $30,000, and 5.7% for 
income above $30,000. The dollar amounts are doubled for couples filing 
jointly.SB 169 would eliminate the income tax for those earning less than $5,225 annually and apply a 4.75% rate to all others.Critics of the flat tax compare it to former Gov. Sam Brownback’s 
“tax experiment” because it involves a dramatic sudden reduction in 
state revenue and disproportionately favors the highest wage earners.“For the life of me, I don’t understand why the committee is going 
down this path,” said Sen. Tom Holland, D-Baldwin City. “We tried 
something very similar with the Brownback tax experiment. My concern is 
not only is it a more aggressive tax, once again, it’s really 
effectively reducing the tax rate for the wealthiest Kansans. The second
 thing is that we simply can’t afford this.”Sen. Virgil Peck, R-Havana, said he wanted to “make sure it’s on the 
record” that the flat tax is different from legislation passed in 2012, 
which cut the rate for top earners and eliminated the income tax for 
businesses.Peck said he supported the 2012 plan and believes it would have worked if the Legislature had controlled spending.“That’s ancient history — or at least history, not ancient,” Peck 
said. “And so I just thought that I would mention that this is not the 
Brownback tax plan. This is the Legislature’s attempt to do some things 
to make our state more competitive for our workers, for bringing 
business and citizens to our state.”The committee passed the flat tax bill on a party line vote, sending it to the full Senate for consideration.

Kan. Senate president: Roll back food relief so state can afford flat tax

SEDGWICK COUNTY —The Sedgwick County Sheriff's office is investigating a fatal Kansas police officer-involved shooting.

Just before 10 a.m. Monday a police officer in Goddard attempted to make a traffic stop for an alleged traffic violation, according to a media release.

The driver refused to stop. The officer followed the driver south of Goddard at reasonable speeds and eventually discontinued the pursuit but followed the vehicle.

At one point, the driver gestured and showed a handgun from inside his vehicle. The driver stopped at 183rd West and 63rd South, got out of the vehicle and approached the officer.

The officer gave numerous commands for the man to drop the gun, but the man refused.&nbsp;&nbsp;The officer fired his service revolver at the man who was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Goddard Police officer has been placed on administrative leave.

Sedgwick County Sheriff Jeff Easter and&nbsp;Goddard Police Chief Lance Beagley are expected to release more information on the case Tuesday, according to Sheriff's Lt. Nathan Gibbs.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/2/1676979844559.png" alt="First responders at the scene of the officer-involved shooting" />
 <figcaption>First responders at the scene of the officer-involved shooting</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —The Sedgwick County Sheriff's office is investigating a fatal Kansas police officer-involved shooting.Just before 10 a.m. Monday a police officer in Goddard attempted to make a traffic stop for an alleged traffic violation, according to a media release.The driver refused to stop. The officer followed the driver south of Goddard at reasonable speeds and eventually discontinued the pursuit but followed the vehicle.At one point, the driver gestured and showed a handgun from inside his vehicle. The driver stopped at 183rd West and 63rd South, got out of the vehicle and approached the officer.The officer gave numerous commands for the man to drop the gun, but the man refused.&nbsp;&nbsp;The officer fired his service revolver at the man who was pronounced dead at the scene.The Goddard Police officer has been placed on administrative leave.Sedgwick County Sheriff Jeff Easter and&nbsp;Goddard Police Chief Lance Beagley are expected to release more information on the case Tuesday, according to Sheriff's Lt. Nathan Gibbs.&nbsp;

Man dies in Kansas officer-involved shooting

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — President Joe Biden’s motorcade slipped out of the White House around 3:30 a.m. Sunday. No big, flashy Air Force One for this trip -– the president vanished into the darkness on an Air Force C-32, a modified Boeing 757 normally used for domestic trips to smaller airports.

The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-zelenskyy-biden-f00af220669457d5ba07127c7e57a27b?utm_source=homepage&amp;utm_medium=TopNews&amp;utm_campaign=position_01">next time he turned up</a>&nbsp;— 20 hours later — it was in downtown Kyiv, Ukraine.

Biden’s surprise 23-hour visit to Ukraine on Monday was the first time in modern history that a U.S. leader visited a warzone outside the aegis of the U.S. military — a feat the White House said carried some risk even though Moscow was given a heads-up.

Over the next five hours, the president made multiple stops around town — ferried about in a white SUV rather than the presidential limousine — without any announcement to the Ukrainian public that he was there. But all that activity attracted enough attention that word of his presence leaked out well before he could get back to Poland, which was the original plan. Aides at the White House were surprised the secret held as long as it did.

But Russia knew what the Ukrainian public did not. U.S. officials had given Moscow notice of Biden’s trip.

The president had been itching since last year to join the parade of other Western officials who have visited Kyiv to pledge support standing shoulder to shoulder with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the capital.

Biden’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-kyiv-russia-government-andrzej-duda-poland-1a3fae5e20c14d2e6b4f7628f1ae4262">planned trip to Warsaw, Poland</a>, and the Presidents’ Day holiday provided an obvious opening to tack on a stop in Kyiv. A small group of senior officials at the White House and across U.S. national security agencies set about working in secret for months to make it happen, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Monday. Biden only gave the final sign-off Friday.

Sullivan said the trip “required a security, operational, and logistical effort from professionals across the U.S. government to take what was an inherently risky undertaking and make it a manageable risk.”

Once Biden was secreted aboard the Air Force jet, the call sign “SAM060,” for Special Air Mission, was used for the plane instead of the usual “Air Force One.” It was parked in the dark with the window-shades down, and took off from Joint Base Andrews at 4:15 a.m. Eastern time.

Biden makes surprise visit to KyivBiden makes surprise visit to Kyiv0 seconds of 1 minute, 16 secondsVolume 90%

After a refueling stop in Germany, where the president was kept aboard the aircraft, Biden’s plane switched off its transponder for the roughly hour-long flight to Rzeszow, Poland, the airport that has served as the gateway for billions of dollars in Western arms and VIP visitors into Ukraine. From there, he boarded a train for the roughly 10-hour overnight trip to Kyiv.

He arrived in the capital at 8 a.m. Monday, was greeted by Ambassador Bridget Brink and entered his motorcade for the drive to Mariinsky Palace. Even while he was on the ground in Ukraine, flights transporting military equipment and other goods were continuing unabated to Rzeszow from Western cities.

Meanwhile, in Kyiv, many main streets and central blocks were cordoned off without explanation. People started sharing videos of long motorcades of cars speeding along streets where access was restricted — the first clues that Biden had arrived.

Biden traveled with a far smaller than usual retinue: Sullivan, deputy chief of staff Jen O’Malley Dillon and the director of Oval Office operations, Annie Tomasini. They were joined by his Secret Service detail, the military aide carrying the so-called “nuclear football,” a small medical team and the official White House photographer.

Only two journalists were on board instead of the usual complement of 13. Their electronic devices were powered off and turned over to the White House for the duration of the trip into Ukraine. A small number of journalists based in Ukraine were summoned to a downtown hotel on Monday morning to join them, not informed that Biden was visiting until shortly before his arrival.

Even with Western surface-to-air missile systems bolstering Ukraine’s defenses, it was rare for a U.S. leader to travel to a conflict zone where the U.S. or its allies did not have control over the airspace.

The U.S. military does not have a presence in Ukraine other than a small detachment of Marines guarding the embassy in Kyiv, making Biden’s visit more complicated than visits by prior U.S. leaders to war zones.

“We did notify the Russians that President Biden will be traveling to Kyiv,” Sullivan told reporters. “We did so some hours before his departure for deconfliction purposes.” He declined to specify the exact message or to whom it was delivered but said the heads-up was to avoid any miscalculation that could bring the two nuclear-armed nations into direct conflict.

While Biden was in Kyiv, U.S. surveillance planes, including E-3 Sentry airborne radar and an electronic RC-135W Rivet Joint aircraft, were keeping watch over Kyiv from Polish airspace.

The sealing off of Kyiv roads that are usually humming with traffic brought an eerie calm to the center of the capital. It was so quiet that crows could be heard cawing as Biden and Zelenskyy walked from their motorcade to the gold-domed St. Michael’s Cathedral under skies as blue as the outer walls of the cathedral itself.

“Let’s walk in and take a look,” Biden said, wearing his trademark aviator sunglasses against the glare. The presidents disappeared inside as heavily armed soldiers stood guard outside.

Cathedral bells chirped at the stroke of 11:30 a.m. followed shortly by air raid alarms, at 11:34 a.m., just before the men reemerged. The sirens were first a distant howl rising over the city, followed seconds later by alarms from mobile phone apps wailing from people’s pockets.

Those alarms are voiced by “Star Wars” actor Mark Hamill, and his Luke Skywalker voice urged people to take cover, warning: “Don’t be careless. Your overconfidence is your weakness.”

The two leaders walked at a measured pace with no outward signs of concern through the cathedral’s arched front gate onto the square in front, where the rusting hulks of destroyed Russian tanks and other armored vehicles have been stationed as grim reminders of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine">the war</a>.

When the square isn’t blocked off, as it was during the leaders’ visit, people come to look at the vehicles, many taking selfies.

Biden appeared to pay the hulks no mind as he and Zelenskyy followed behind honor guards carrying two wreaths to the wall of remembrance honoring Ukrainian soldiers killed since 2014, the year Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula and Russian-backed fighting erupted in eastern Ukraine.

It was only then that the first images of Biden in the capital popped up on Ukrainian social media and the secret visit became global news.

“He is like an example of a president who is not afraid to show up in Ukraine and to support us,” said Kyiv resident Myroslava Renova, 23, after Biden’s visit became known.

Biden headed to the U.S. Embassy for a brief stop before departing the country by train back to Poland aboard a well-appointed, wood-paneled train car with tightly drawn curtains, a dining table and a leather sofa.

The all-clear notice, also voiced by Hamill, sounded at 1:07 p.m., as Biden’s train was pulling away from the station.

“The air alert is over,” Hamill said. “May the force be with you.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/2/1676938829757.png" alt="President Biden and Jake Sullivan (NSC) on the train from Kyiv to Poland-White House pool photo" />
 <figcaption>President Biden and Jake Sullivan (NSC) on the train from Kyiv to Poland-White House pool photo</figcaption>
 </figure>KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — President Joe Biden’s motorcade slipped out of the White House around 3:30 a.m. Sunday. No big, flashy Air Force One for this trip -– the president vanished into the darkness on an Air Force C-32, a modified Boeing 757 normally used for domestic trips to smaller airports.The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-zelenskyy-biden-f00af220669457d5ba07127c7e57a27b?utm_source=homepage&amp;utm_medium=TopNews&amp;utm_campaign=position_01">next time he turned up</a>&nbsp;— 20 hours later — it was in downtown Kyiv, Ukraine.Biden’s surprise 23-hour visit to Ukraine on Monday was the first time in modern history that a U.S. leader visited a warzone outside the aegis of the U.S. military — a feat the White House said carried some risk even though Moscow was given a heads-up.Over the next five hours, the president made multiple stops around town — ferried about in a white SUV rather than the presidential limousine — without any announcement to the Ukrainian public that he was there. But all that activity attracted enough attention that word of his presence leaked out well before he could get back to Poland, which was the original plan. Aides at the White House were surprised the secret held as long as it did.But Russia knew what the Ukrainian public did not. U.S. officials had given Moscow notice of Biden’s trip.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/2/1676938918672.png" alt="Biden on&nbsp; the train after Monday's visit with Zelenskyy in Kyiv — White House pool photo" />
 <figcaption>Biden on&nbsp; the train after Monday's visit with Zelenskyy in Kyiv — White House pool photo</figcaption>
 </figure>The president had been itching since last year to join the parade of other Western officials who have visited Kyiv to pledge support standing shoulder to shoulder with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the capital.Biden’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-kyiv-russia-government-andrzej-duda-poland-1a3fae5e20c14d2e6b4f7628f1ae4262">planned trip to Warsaw, Poland</a>, and the Presidents’ Day holiday provided an obvious opening to tack on a stop in Kyiv. A small group of senior officials at the White House and across U.S. national security agencies set about working in secret for months to make it happen, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Monday. Biden only gave the final sign-off Friday.Sullivan said the trip “required a security, operational, and logistical effort from professionals across the U.S. government to take what was an inherently risky undertaking and make it a manageable risk.”Once Biden was secreted aboard the Air Force jet, the call sign “SAM060,” for Special Air Mission, was used for the plane instead of the usual “Air Force One.” It was parked in the dark with the window-shades down, and took off from Joint Base Andrews at 4:15 a.m. Eastern time.Biden makes surprise visit to KyivBiden makes surprise visit to Kyiv0 seconds of 1 minute, 16 secondsVolume 90% After a refueling stop in Germany, where the president was kept aboard the aircraft, Biden’s plane switched off its transponder for the roughly hour-long flight to Rzeszow, Poland, the airport that has served as the gateway for billions of dollars in Western arms and VIP visitors into Ukraine. From there, he boarded a train for the roughly 10-hour overnight trip to Kyiv.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/2/1676893663408.png" alt="White House photo" />
 <figcaption>White House photo</figcaption>
 </figure>He arrived in the capital at 8 a.m. Monday, was greeted by Ambassador Bridget Brink and entered his motorcade for the drive to Mariinsky Palace. Even while he was on the ground in Ukraine, flights transporting military equipment and other goods were continuing unabated to Rzeszow from Western cities.Meanwhile, in Kyiv, many main streets and central blocks were cordoned off without explanation. People started sharing videos of long motorcades of cars speeding along streets where access was restricted — the first clues that Biden had arrived.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/2/1676898277789.png" alt="White House photo" />
 <figcaption>White House photo</figcaption>
 </figure>Biden traveled with a far smaller than usual retinue: Sullivan, deputy chief of staff Jen O’Malley Dillon and the director of Oval Office operations, Annie Tomasini. They were joined by his Secret Service detail, the military aide carrying the so-called “nuclear football,” a small medical team and the official White House photographer.Only two journalists were on board instead of the usual complement of 13. Their electronic devices were powered off and turned over to the White House for the duration of the trip into Ukraine. A small number of journalists based in Ukraine were summoned to a downtown hotel on Monday morning to join them, not informed that Biden was visiting until shortly before his arrival.Even with Western surface-to-air missile systems bolstering Ukraine’s defenses, it was rare for a U.S. leader to travel to a conflict zone where the U.S. or its allies did not have control over the airspace.The U.S. military does not have a presence in Ukraine other than a small detachment of Marines guarding the embassy in Kyiv, making Biden’s visit more complicated than visits by prior U.S. leaders to war zones.“We did notify the Russians that President Biden will be traveling to Kyiv,” Sullivan told reporters. “We did so some hours before his departure for deconfliction purposes.” He declined to specify the exact message or to whom it was delivered but said the heads-up was to avoid any miscalculation that could bring the two nuclear-armed nations into direct conflict.While Biden was in Kyiv, U.S. surveillance planes, including E-3 Sentry airborne radar and an electronic RC-135W Rivet Joint aircraft, were keeping watch over Kyiv from Polish airspace.The sealing off of Kyiv roads that are usually humming with traffic brought an eerie calm to the center of the capital. It was so quiet that crows could be heard cawing as Biden and Zelenskyy walked from their motorcade to the gold-domed St. Michael’s Cathedral under skies as blue as the outer walls of the cathedral itself.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/2/1676899116771.png" alt="White House photo" />
 <figcaption>White House photo</figcaption>
 </figure>“Let’s walk in and take a look,” Biden said, wearing his trademark aviator sunglasses against the glare. The presidents disappeared inside as heavily armed soldiers stood guard outside.Cathedral bells chirped at the stroke of 11:30 a.m. followed shortly by air raid alarms, at 11:34 a.m., just before the men reemerged. The sirens were first a distant howl rising over the city, followed seconds later by alarms from mobile phone apps wailing from people’s pockets.Those alarms are voiced by “Star Wars” actor Mark Hamill, and his Luke Skywalker voice urged people to take cover, warning: “Don’t be careless. Your overconfidence is your weakness.”<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/2/1676918110537.png" alt="White House photo" />
 <figcaption>White House photo</figcaption>
 </figure>The two leaders walked at a measured pace with no outward signs of concern through the cathedral’s arched front gate onto the square in front, where the rusting hulks of destroyed Russian tanks and other armored vehicles have been stationed as grim reminders of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine">the war</a>.When the square isn’t blocked off, as it was during the leaders’ visit, people come to look at the vehicles, many taking selfies.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/2/1676925054906.png" alt="White House photo" />
 <figcaption>White House photo</figcaption>
 </figure>Biden appeared to pay the hulks no mind as he and Zelenskyy followed behind honor guards carrying two wreaths to the wall of remembrance honoring Ukrainian soldiers killed since 2014, the year Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula and Russian-backed fighting erupted in eastern Ukraine.It was only then that the first images of Biden in the capital popped up on Ukrainian social media and the secret visit became global news.“He is like an example of a president who is not afraid to show up in Ukraine and to support us,” said Kyiv resident Myroslava Renova, 23, after Biden’s visit became known.Biden headed to the U.S. Embassy for a brief stop before departing the country by train back to Poland aboard a well-appointed, wood-paneled train car with tightly drawn curtains, a dining table and a leather sofa.The all-clear notice, also voiced by Hamill, sounded at 1:07 p.m., as Biden’s train was pulling away from the station.“The air alert is over,” Hamill said. “May the force be with you.”___

Months of planning, secrecy led to Biden’s historic trip to Ukraine

SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating an accidental shooting that injured a 33-year-old man.

Just before 10 a.m. Monday, police were dispatched to a shooting call at a motel in the 8400 block of West Kellogg Drive in Wichita, according to Officer Juan Rebolledo.

First responders found the man with a gunshot wound to his upper body. EMS transported him to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.&nbsp;

The investigation revealed the 33-year-old victim was with an acquaintance of his when the handgun the acquaintance had in his waistband was accidentally dropped and a round was fired, striking him in his abdominal area. 

The victim's acquaintance left the scene of the incident before the officers arrived.&nbsp;The victim was treated for his injury and released.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/2/1676940049662.png" alt="Police at the scene of the shooting investigation -photo courtesy KWCH" />
 <figcaption>Police at the scene of the shooting investigation -photo courtesy KWCH</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities are investigating an accidental shooting that injured a 33-year-old man.Just before 10 a.m. Monday, police were dispatched to a shooting call at a motel in the 8400 block of West Kellogg Drive in Wichita, according to Officer Juan Rebolledo.First responders found the man with a gunshot wound to his upper body. EMS transported him to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.&nbsp;The investigation revealed the 33-year-old victim was with an acquaintance of his when the handgun the acquaintance had in his waistband was accidentally dropped and a round was fired, striking him in his abdominal area. The victim's acquaintance left the scene of the incident before the officers arrived.&nbsp;The victim was treated for his injury and released.

Police: Man accidentally dropped gun, shot man and ran

SEDGWICK COUNTY —A 4-year-old Kansas girl died from injuries in an accident that occurred just before 5:30p.m. Sunday

&nbsp;Britne Costello 32, Douglas, was driving a vehicle westbound on MacArthur at about 20000 west with her two children, according to Sheriff's Lt. Nathan Gibbs.

 Costello's was passing another vehicle. She overcorrected and her vehicle left the road, rolled and caught fire.

Through the heroic actions of a Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Deputy and several citizens all three occupants were extricated from the burning vehicle. 

EMS transported Costello and the two year old boy to a local hospital in serious condition. The four year old girl was transported in critical condition. She later died at the hospital, according to Gibbs.&nbsp; The

SEDGWICK COUNTY —A 4-year-old Kansas girl died from injuries in an accident that occurred just before 5:30p.m. Sunday&nbsp;Britne Costello 32, Douglas, was driving a vehicle westbound on MacArthur at about 20000 west with her two children, according to Sheriff's Lt. Nathan Gibbs. Costello's was passing another vehicle. She overcorrected and her vehicle left the road, rolled and caught fire.Through the heroic actions of a Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Deputy and several citizens all three occupants were extricated from the burning vehicle. EMS transported Costello and the two year old boy to a local hospital in serious condition. The four year old girl was transported in critical condition. She later died at the hospital, according to Gibbs.&nbsp; The

4-year-old Kan. girl dies from injuries in rollover crash, fire

JOHNSON COUNTY —A Kansas man has been sentenced to consecutive life sentences for first degree murder and attempted capital murder. Matthew Bibee, Jr., 22, Overland Park, will be eligible for parole after serving 50-years, according to the Johnson County District Attorney's office.

In October, a jury found Bibee guilty in the death of 17-year-old Rowan Padgett, who was murdered in the 12300 block of South Mullen Court as part in a failed $8 Xanax deal.

In Jan. of 2020, Jordan Denny, of Olathe was sentenced&nbsp; for drug charges in connection with the case. She originally was charged with felony murder in the March 2019 death of Padgett.

The affidavit said Matthew Lee Bibee Jr. arranged to buy the anxiety medication through Denny, who was then 16. She told authorities her supplier fell through and that she asked Padgett to leave with Bibee because her father had called police.

Padgett was killed after getting into the car with Bibee, who was wounded two days later in an exchange of gunfire with police.

Another teen was sentenced to more than four years in a juvenile corrections facility for helping to set up the deal.

In March of 2019, Bibee was also involved in shooting at a police officer in Olathe. The officer, who was investigating a carjecking, was not hurt..

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/2/1676656170093.png" alt="Bibee" />
 <figcaption>Bibee</figcaption>
 </figure>JOHNSON COUNTY —A Kansas man has been sentenced to consecutive life sentences for first degree murder and attempted capital murder. Matthew Bibee, Jr., 22, Overland Park, will be eligible for parole after serving 50-years, according to the Johnson County District Attorney's office.In October, a jury found Bibee guilty in the death of 17-year-old Rowan Padgett, who was murdered in the 12300 block of South Mullen Court as part in a failed $8 Xanax deal.In Jan. of 2020, Jordan Denny, of Olathe was sentenced&nbsp; for drug charges in connection with the case. She originally was charged with felony murder in the March 2019 death of Padgett.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/1/1578656299375.png" alt="Rowan Padgett photo <a href="https://www.penwellgabelkc.com/Obituary/170460/Rowan-Padgett/Olathe-KS">courtesy Penwell Gable&nbsp;</a>" />
 <figcaption>Rowan Padgett photo <a href="https://www.penwellgabelkc.com/Obituary/170460/Rowan-Padgett/Olathe-KS">courtesy Penwell Gable&nbsp;</a></figcaption>
 </figure>The affidavit said Matthew Lee Bibee Jr. arranged to buy the anxiety medication through Denny, who was then 16. She told authorities her supplier fell through and that she asked Padgett to leave with Bibee because her father had called police.Padgett was killed after getting into the car with Bibee, who was wounded two days later in an exchange of gunfire with police.Another teen was sentenced to more than four years in a juvenile corrections facility for helping to set up the deal.In March of 2019, Bibee was also involved in shooting at a police officer in Olathe. The officer, who was investigating a carjecking, was not hurt..

Kan. man sentenced in connection with $8 Xanax deal killing

SHAWNEE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a violent knife attack.

Just before 4 p.m., Sunday, police responded to a report of a stabbing in the 600 block of N Kansas Avenue in Topeka, according to Police Lt. Edward Stanley.

First responders located a man who was transported to a local hospital with non life-threatening injuries.

As a result of the investigation, police took 24-year-old Davis A. Lee of Topeka into custody. He is being held on a requested charge of Aggravated Battery.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/2/1676911930803.png" alt="Lee photo Shawnee Co." />
 <figcaption>Lee photo Shawnee Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SHAWNEE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a violent knife attack.Just before 4 p.m., Sunday, police responded to a report of a stabbing in the 600 block of N Kansas Avenue in Topeka, according to Police Lt. Edward Stanley.First responders located a man who was transported to a local hospital with non life-threatening injuries.As a result of the investigation, police took 24-year-old Davis A. Lee of Topeka into custody. He is being held on a requested charge of Aggravated Battery.

Kansas man jailed for alleged knife attack

COFFEY COUNTY, Kan. –&nbsp;Governor Laura Kelly on Monday announced that EMP Shield, an industry leader in protecting electronic devices from destructive magnetic pulses, plans to invest $1.9 billion in a computer chip manufacturing facility in Burlington. The facility will create more than 1,200 jobs averaging $66,000 annually.&nbsp;

EMP Shield will build its facility on 300 acres in a secure campus located at Silicon Prairie Industrial Park. The company will be joined by six out-of-state suppliers, resulting in an additional 1,000 jobs created in Coffey County.&nbsp;

“Bringing economic prosperity to every corner of the state – particularly rural Kansas – has been a priority since my very first day in office,”&nbsp;Governor Laura Kelly said. “We achieve that with this project, creating thousands of high-paying jobs that don’t require a four-year degree and proving that every Kansas community is ripe for investment and growth.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

EMP Shield plans to have four production lines operating in approximately 235,000 square feet of facilities in the new industrial park that will produce thousands of chips per week. Its suppliers will manufacture necessary components and prepare the final products for delivery.&nbsp;

“This high-tech advanced manufacturing project will provide lucrative career opportunities for hard-working Kansans,”&nbsp;Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of Commerce David Toland said. “Our economic development strategy is designed to keep nurturing the roots of our young talent so they can remain here in Kansas.”&nbsp;

EMP Shield will leverage state support to apply for CHIPS Act funding to see its plans to fruition.&nbsp;

The project came together shortly after the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) Act was signed into law last August. The bipartisan legislation called for every aspect of computer chip production to be brought back to the United States – specifically into rural areas of the Midwest. Additional stipulations include private-public partnerships as well as the involvement of higher education institutions.&nbsp;

“Coffey County appears to really hit the sweet spot for everything requested for CHIPS Act funding,”&nbsp;EMP Shield Founder and Lead Engineer Tim Carty said. “Everything is falling into place, and the state’s strong support hopefully gets us one step closer to a favorable federal response.”&nbsp;

EMP Shield is working with area partners such as Coffey County; Flint Hills Technical College; Allen County Community College; Pittsburg State University; the University of Kansas; Heartland Black Chamber of Commerce; Wichita Hispanic Chamber of Commerce; and Unified School Districts 243, 244 and 245.&nbsp;

“There are workforce development programs already in place that will enable high school graduates and those with two-year degrees to train up and get very high-paying jobs,”&nbsp;Carty said.&nbsp;“This will allow those who grow up here to stay in Kansas, enjoy our quality of life, and not have to go to San Francisco.”&nbsp;

Bus routes to transport workers from metropolitan areas will be established, and there will be purposeful diversity, equity, and inclusion outreach.&nbsp;

“This next-generation technology project will help our community grow and make our country safer. That’s a win for everyone,”&nbsp;Carty said.&nbsp;

COFFEY COUNTY, Kan. –&nbsp;Governor Laura Kelly on Monday announced that EMP Shield, an industry leader in protecting electronic devices from destructive magnetic pulses, plans to invest $1.9 billion in a computer chip manufacturing facility in Burlington. The facility will create more than 1,200 jobs averaging $66,000 annually.&nbsp;<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">BIG NEWS: I just announced that <a href="https://twitter.com/Emp_Shield?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@EMP_Shield</a> plans to invest $1.9B in a computer chip production facility in Burlington that creates 1,200 good-paying jobs. <a href="https://t.co/MlJH9LELAW">pic.twitter.com/MlJH9LELAW</a>&mdash; Governor Laura Kelly (@GovLauraKelly) <a href="https://twitter.com/GovLauraKelly/status/1627762131058987008?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 20, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>EMP Shield will build its facility on 300 acres in a secure campus located at Silicon Prairie Industrial Park. The company will be joined by six out-of-state suppliers, resulting in an additional 1,000 jobs created in Coffey County.&nbsp;“Bringing economic prosperity to every corner of the state – particularly rural Kansas – has been a priority since my very first day in office,”&nbsp;Governor Laura Kelly said. “We achieve that with this project, creating thousands of high-paying jobs that don’t require a four-year degree and proving that every Kansas community is ripe for investment and growth.”&nbsp;&nbsp;EMP Shield plans to have four production lines operating in approximately 235,000 square feet of facilities in the new industrial park that will produce thousands of chips per week. Its suppliers will manufacture necessary components and prepare the final products for delivery.&nbsp;“This high-tech advanced manufacturing project will provide lucrative career opportunities for hard-working Kansans,”&nbsp;Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of Commerce David Toland said. “Our economic development strategy is designed to keep nurturing the roots of our young talent so they can remain here in Kansas.”&nbsp;EMP Shield will leverage state support to apply for CHIPS Act funding to see its plans to fruition.&nbsp;The project came together shortly after the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) Act was signed into law last August. The bipartisan legislation called for every aspect of computer chip production to be brought back to the United States – specifically into rural areas of the Midwest. Additional stipulations include private-public partnerships as well as the involvement of higher education institutions.&nbsp;“Coffey County appears to really hit the sweet spot for everything requested for CHIPS Act funding,”&nbsp;EMP Shield Founder and Lead Engineer Tim Carty said. “Everything is falling into place, and the state’s strong support hopefully gets us one step closer to a favorable federal response.”&nbsp;EMP Shield is working with area partners such as Coffey County; Flint Hills Technical College; Allen County Community College; Pittsburg State University; the University of Kansas; Heartland Black Chamber of Commerce; Wichita Hispanic Chamber of Commerce; and Unified School Districts 243, 244 and 245.&nbsp;“There are workforce development programs already in place that will enable high school graduates and those with two-year degrees to train up and get very high-paying jobs,”&nbsp;Carty said.&nbsp;“This will allow those who grow up here to stay in Kansas, enjoy our quality of life, and not have to go to San Francisco.”&nbsp;Bus routes to transport workers from metropolitan areas will be established, and there will be purposeful diversity, equity, and inclusion outreach.&nbsp;“This next-generation technology project will help our community grow and make our country safer. That’s a win for everyone,”&nbsp;Carty said.&nbsp;

$1.9B computer chip manufacturing plant to be built in Kansas  

WYANDOTTE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating a fatal shooting in Kansas City, Kansas have identified the victim as 19-year-old Ricardo Apodaca.

Just before 8:30p.m. Thursday, officers were dispatched to a shooting in the 2300 block of N 11th Street, according to a media release. When officers arrived, they discovered Apodaca dead an apparent gunshot wound. 

Police have not released suspect information.

 Anyone with information on this case is urged to call the Crime Stoppers TIPS hotline at 816-474-TIPS (8477). All tips remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward

WYANDOTTE COUNTY —Law enforcement authorities investigating a fatal shooting in Kansas City, Kansas have identified the victim as 19-year-old Ricardo Apodaca.Just before 8:30p.m. Thursday, officers were dispatched to a shooting in the 2300 block of N 11th Street, according to a media release. When officers arrived, they discovered Apodaca dead an apparent gunshot wound. Police have not released suspect information. Anyone with information on this case is urged to call the Crime Stoppers TIPS hotline at 816-474-TIPS (8477). All tips remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward

Police ID 19-year-old victim in deadly Kansas shooting

BEIJING (AP) — Nearly&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-war-one-year-anniversary-timeline-a1304c6fb319bf1c0e93635f6f6a2633">one year after Russia invaded Ukraine</a>, new questions are rising over China’s potential willingness to offer military aid to Moscow in the increasingly drawn-out conflict.

In an interview that aired Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-putin-politics-antony-blinken-xi-jinping-4501b49359d73b6efbac87b2af54f189">Antony Blinken said American intelligence suggests China is considering providing arms</a>&nbsp;and ammunition to Russia, an involvement in the Kremlin’s war effort that he said would be a “serious problem.”

China has refused to criticize Russia for its actions or even to call it an invasion in deference to Moscow. At the same time, it insists that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations must be upheld.

The question now is whether China is willing to convert that rhetorical backing into material support.

On Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin accused the United States of “fanning flames and stoking confrontations” by providing Ukraine with defensive weapons, and said Beijing would “never accept (U.S.) finger-pointing and even coercion and pressure on China-Russia relations."

Here's a look at where China stands on the conflict.

DOES CHINA BACK RUSSIA IN ITS WAR ON UKRAINE?

China has tried to walk a fine — and often contradictory — line on the Russian invasion.

China says Russia was provoked into taking action by NATO's eastward expansion. Just weeks before the Feb. 24, 2022, invasion,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-sports-business-china-russia-b92f4d266b4d8d2e7711ab930c6e9fd1">Chinese President Xi Jinping hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing</a>&nbsp;for the opening of the Winter Olympics, at which time the sides issued a joint statement pledging their commitment to a “no limits" friendship. China has since ignored Western criticism and reaffirmed that pledge.

But China has yet to confirm the visit Putin has said he expects from Xi this spring.

China is “trying to have it both ways," Blinken said Sunday on NBC. "Publicly, they present themselves as a country striving for peace in Ukraine, but privately, as I said, we’ve seen already over these past months the provision of non-lethal assistance that does go directly to aiding and abetting Russia’s war effort.”

HAS CHINA PROVIDED MATERIAL SUPPORT TO RUSSIA?

So far, China's support for Russia has been rhetorical and political, with Beijing helping prevent efforts to condemn Moscow at the United Nations.

Blinken, at a security conference in Munich, Germany, said the U.S. has long been concerned that China would provide weapons to Russia and that “we have information that gives us concern that they are considering providing lethal support to Russia in the war against Ukraine.” That came a day after Blinken held talks with Wang Yi, the Chinese Communist Party’s most senior foreign policy official, in a meeting that offered little sign of a reduction in tensions or progress on the Ukraine issue.

“It was important for me to share very clearly with Wang Yi that this would be a serious problem,” Blinken said, referring to potential military support for Russia.

The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, also expressed her concern about any effort by the Chinese to arm Russia, saying “that would be a red line.”

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/china-beijing-98262d8c8f054f80455114cea4ded115">Russian and Chinese forces have held joint military drills</a>&nbsp;since Russia invaded Ukraine a year ago, most recently sending ships to take part in exercises with the South African navy in a key shipping lane off the South African coast.

“It is the U.S. who kept providing weapons to the battlefield, not China," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Monday. “The principle that China follows on the Ukraine issue can be simply put as promoting peace talks.”

After the meeting between Wang Yi and Blinken, China's Foreign Ministry issued a statement that it has always played a constructive role in the Ukraine conflict by adhering to principles, encouraging peace and promoting talks.

The ministry said the China-Russia partnership “is established on the basis of non-alignment, non-confrontation, and non-targeting of third parties,” and that the U.S. was adding “fuel to the fire to take advantage of the opportunity to make profits.”

Beijing says it has continued a normal trade relationship with Russia, including purchases of oil and gas, as have other countries such as India. That trade is seen as throwing an economic lifeline to Moscow, but there have been no documented cases of China providing direct aid to the Russian military along the lines of the inexpensive&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-iran-politics-us-department-of-the-treasury-military-technology-44d79e61be9ae00e52fb14dfc8cbf21c">military drones that Iran sells to Moscow</a>.

There would be “real consequences … were China to provide lethal assistance to Russia” or help Moscow evade sanctions in a “systematic way,” Blinken said Monday in the Turkey capital, Ankara. He did not specify what measures Washington would take in response to Chinese military support for Russia, but said other countries would join the U.S. with similar actions.

Efforts to put a floor under ties that have deteriorated to their lowest level in decades have so far been unsuccessful. The U.S. has sought to limit Chinese access to the latest microprocessors and manufacturing equipment, and has continued to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-united-states-government-south-china-sea-beijing-084fbd1d64120859467b7f9157c4a797">challenge Chinese territorial claims in the South China Sea</a>.

For China, the most sensitive issue is U.S. support for Taiwan, the self-governing island democracy that Beijing considers its own territory to be conquered by military force if deemed necessary. Taiwan is a major customer for U.S. defensive arms and has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-taiwan-politics-government-united-states-f1dd90976ff4a2a9537ee30205e7277d">hosted a growing number of prominent American elected officials</a>, enraging Beijing.

Meanwhile, U.S. Congress members have called for the banning of TikTok and other Chinese-owned social media platforms, as well as increased sanctions on Chinese firms backed by the Communist Party, which wields ultimate control over the Chinese economy and suppresses independent media and political opposition voices.

MUNICH (AP) — The top diplomats from the United States and China met on Saturday in the first high-level contact between their countries since the U.S.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-united-states-government-china-antony-blinken-51e49202f2a0a50541cde059934c4cfb">shot down an alleged Chinese spy balloon</a>&nbsp;two weeks ago, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken sending the message that Beijing's surveillance program had been “exposed to the world.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

Blinken and Wang Yi, the Chinese Communist Party’s most senior foreign policy official, held the hourlong talks in Munich, where they were attending an international security conference, according to the U.S. State Department. They discussed the spy balloon and the war in Ukraine.

“I made very clear to him that China sending its surveillance balloon over the United States in violation of our sovereignty, in violation of international law, was unacceptable and must never happen again," Blinken said Saturday in an interview for CBS' “Face the Nation.”

His spokesman, Ned Price, said in a statement that Blinken also told the Chinese official that his nation's “high-altitude surveillance balloon program — which has intruded into the airspace of over 40 countries across five continents — has been exposed to the world.”

Blinken had&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/g-20-summit-politics-united-states-government-china-antony-blinken-0a0469109e8776f1676d7b813e46854f">canceled a trip to Beijing</a>&nbsp;earlier this month due to the balloon incident, which has become a major issue of contention between the two countries. A meeting at the conference in Germany had been widely anticipated.

Blinken also told Wang that the U.S. does not seek conflict with China, repeating a standard talking point that the Biden administration has provided since it has come into office.

“The United States will compete and will unapologetically stand up for our values and interests, but that we do not want conflict with the PRC and are not looking for a new Cold War," Price said. Blinken "underscored the importance of maintaining diplomatic dialogue and open lines of communication at all times.”

In addition to the balloon incident, Price said Blinken had reiterated&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/putin-kyiv-politics-ukraine-government-russia-43a55a56f9cd1f50dd1d280fcb1ffa65">a warning to China</a>&nbsp;on providing assistance to Russia to help with its war against Ukraine, including assisting Moscow with evading sanctions the West has imposed on Russia.

“I warned China against providing materiel support to Russia,” Blinken said in a tweet. "I also emphasized the importance of keeping open lines of communication.”

Earlier Saturday, Wang had renewed Beijing's criticism of the United States for shooting down the balloon, arguing that the move did not point to U.S. strength.

Beijing insists the white orb shot down off the Carolina coast on Feb. 4 was just an&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-united-states-government-antony-blinken-china-b1b03193b7abeb7bbeca169bbc7c2c53">errant civilian airship</a>&nbsp;used mainly for meteorological research that went off course due to winds and had only limited “self-steering” capabilities.

Wang, the director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, repeated that insistence in a speech at the conference and accused the U.S. of violating international legal norms in destroying the object with a missile fired from an U.S. fighter jet.

“The actions don’t show that the U.S. is big and strong, but describe the exact opposite,” Wang said.

Wang also accused the U.S. of denying China’s economic advances and seeking to impede its further development.

“What we hope for from the U.S. is a pragmatic and positive approach to China that allows us to work together,” Wang said.

His comments came shortly before an address to the conference by Vice President Kamala Harris, who didn't mention the balloon controversy or respond to Wang's comments. She stressed the importance of upholding the “international rules-based order.”

She said Washington is “troubled that Beijing has deepened its relationship with Moscow since the war began” in Ukraine and that “looking ahead, any steps by China to provide lethal support to Russia would only reward aggression, continue the killing and further undermine a rules-based order.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/2/1675438225859.png" alt="&nbsp;Blinken reiterated&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/putin-kyiv-politics-ukraine-government-russia-43a55a56f9cd1f50dd1d280fcb1ffa65">a warning to China</a>&nbsp;on providing assistance to Russia to help with its war against Ukraine. -State Dept. photo" />
 <figcaption>&nbsp;Blinken reiterated&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/putin-kyiv-politics-ukraine-government-russia-43a55a56f9cd1f50dd1d280fcb1ffa65">a warning to China</a>&nbsp;on providing assistance to Russia to help with its war against Ukraine. -State Dept. photo</figcaption>
 </figure>BEIJING (AP) — Nearly&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-war-one-year-anniversary-timeline-a1304c6fb319bf1c0e93635f6f6a2633">one year after Russia invaded Ukraine</a>, new questions are rising over China’s potential willingness to offer military aid to Moscow in the increasingly drawn-out conflict.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Just met with the PRC’s top diplomat, Wang Yi. I condemned the incursion of the PRC surveillance balloon and stressed it must never happen again. I warned China against providing materiel support to Russia. I also emphasized the importance of keeping open lines of communication.&mdash; Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) <a href="https://twitter.com/SecBlinken/status/1627051377112539136?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>In an interview that aired Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-putin-politics-antony-blinken-xi-jinping-4501b49359d73b6efbac87b2af54f189">Antony Blinken said American intelligence suggests China is considering providing arms</a>&nbsp;and ammunition to Russia, an involvement in the Kremlin’s war effort that he said would be a “serious problem.”China has refused to criticize Russia for its actions or even to call it an invasion in deference to Moscow. At the same time, it insists that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations must be upheld.The question now is whether China is willing to convert that rhetorical backing into material support.On Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin accused the United States of “fanning flames and stoking confrontations” by providing Ukraine with defensive weapons, and said Beijing would “never accept (U.S.) finger-pointing and even coercion and pressure on China-Russia relations."Here's a look at where China stands on the conflict.___DOES CHINA BACK RUSSIA IN ITS WAR ON UKRAINE?China has tried to walk a fine — and often contradictory — line on the Russian invasion.China says Russia was provoked into taking action by NATO's eastward expansion. Just weeks before the Feb. 24, 2022, invasion,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-sports-business-china-russia-b92f4d266b4d8d2e7711ab930c6e9fd1">Chinese President Xi Jinping hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing</a>&nbsp;for the opening of the Winter Olympics, at which time the sides issued a joint statement pledging their commitment to a “no limits" friendship. China has since ignored Western criticism and reaffirmed that pledge.But China has yet to confirm the visit Putin has said he expects from Xi this spring.China is “trying to have it both ways," Blinken said Sunday on NBC. "Publicly, they present themselves as a country striving for peace in Ukraine, but privately, as I said, we’ve seen already over these past months the provision of non-lethal assistance that does go directly to aiding and abetting Russia’s war effort.”___HAS CHINA PROVIDED MATERIAL SUPPORT TO RUSSIA?So far, China's support for Russia has been rhetorical and political, with Beijing helping prevent efforts to condemn Moscow at the United Nations.Blinken, at a security conference in Munich, Germany, said the U.S. has long been concerned that China would provide weapons to Russia and that “we have information that gives us concern that they are considering providing lethal support to Russia in the war against Ukraine.” That came a day after Blinken held talks with Wang Yi, the Chinese Communist Party’s most senior foreign policy official, in a meeting that offered little sign of a reduction in tensions or progress on the Ukraine issue.“It was important for me to share very clearly with Wang Yi that this would be a serious problem,” Blinken said, referring to potential military support for Russia.The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, also expressed her concern about any effort by the Chinese to arm Russia, saying “that would be a red line.”<a href="https://apnews.com/article/china-beijing-98262d8c8f054f80455114cea4ded115">Russian and Chinese forces have held joint military drills</a>&nbsp;since Russia invaded Ukraine a year ago, most recently sending ships to take part in exercises with the South African navy in a key shipping lane off the South African coast.___WHAT HAS CHINA SAID ON THE MATTER?“It is the U.S. who kept providing weapons to the battlefield, not China," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Monday. “The principle that China follows on the Ukraine issue can be simply put as promoting peace talks.”After the meeting between Wang Yi and Blinken, China's Foreign Ministry issued a statement that it has always played a constructive role in the Ukraine conflict by adhering to principles, encouraging peace and promoting talks.The ministry said the China-Russia partnership “is established on the basis of non-alignment, non-confrontation, and non-targeting of third parties,” and that the U.S. was adding “fuel to the fire to take advantage of the opportunity to make profits.”Beijing says it has continued a normal trade relationship with Russia, including purchases of oil and gas, as have other countries such as India. That trade is seen as throwing an economic lifeline to Moscow, but there have been no documented cases of China providing direct aid to the Russian military along the lines of the inexpensive&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-iran-politics-us-department-of-the-treasury-military-technology-44d79e61be9ae00e52fb14dfc8cbf21c">military drones that Iran sells to Moscow</a>.___WHAT COULD HAPPEN IF CHINA AIDS RUSSIA?There would be “real consequences … were China to provide lethal assistance to Russia” or help Moscow evade sanctions in a “systematic way,” Blinken said Monday in the Turkey capital, Ankara. He did not specify what measures Washington would take in response to Chinese military support for Russia, but said other countries would join the U.S. with similar actions.Efforts to put a floor under ties that have deteriorated to their lowest level in decades have so far been unsuccessful. The U.S. has sought to limit Chinese access to the latest microprocessors and manufacturing equipment, and has continued to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-united-states-government-south-china-sea-beijing-084fbd1d64120859467b7f9157c4a797">challenge Chinese territorial claims in the South China Sea</a>.For China, the most sensitive issue is U.S. support for Taiwan, the self-governing island democracy that Beijing considers its own territory to be conquered by military force if deemed necessary. Taiwan is a major customer for U.S. defensive arms and has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-taiwan-politics-government-united-states-f1dd90976ff4a2a9537ee30205e7277d">hosted a growing number of prominent American elected officials</a>, enraging Beijing.Meanwhile, U.S. Congress members have called for the banning of TikTok and other Chinese-owned social media platforms, as well as increased sanctions on Chinese firms backed by the Communist Party, which wields ultimate control over the Chinese economy and suppresses independent media and political opposition voices.---------MUNICH (AP) — The top diplomats from the United States and China met on Saturday in the first high-level contact between their countries since the U.S.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-united-states-government-china-antony-blinken-51e49202f2a0a50541cde059934c4cfb">shot down an alleged Chinese spy balloon</a>&nbsp;two weeks ago, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken sending the message that Beijing's surveillance program had been “exposed to the world.”&nbsp;&nbsp;<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Just met with the PRC’s top diplomat, Wang Yi. I condemned the incursion of the PRC surveillance balloon and stressed it must never happen again. I warned China against providing materiel support to Russia. I also emphasized the importance of keeping open lines of communication.&mdash; Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) <a href="https://twitter.com/SecBlinken/status/1627051377112539136?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Blinken and Wang Yi, the Chinese Communist Party’s most senior foreign policy official, held the hourlong talks in Munich, where they were attending an international security conference, according to the U.S. State Department. They discussed the spy balloon and the war in Ukraine.“I made very clear to him that China sending its surveillance balloon over the United States in violation of our sovereignty, in violation of international law, was unacceptable and must never happen again," Blinken said Saturday in an interview for CBS' “Face the Nation.”His spokesman, Ned Price, said in a statement that Blinken also told the Chinese official that his nation's “high-altitude surveillance balloon program — which has intruded into the airspace of over 40 countries across five continents — has been exposed to the world.”Blinken had&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/g-20-summit-politics-united-states-government-china-antony-blinken-0a0469109e8776f1676d7b813e46854f">canceled a trip to Beijing</a>&nbsp;earlier this month due to the balloon incident, which has become a major issue of contention between the two countries. A meeting at the conference in Germany had been widely anticipated.Blinken also told Wang that the U.S. does not seek conflict with China, repeating a standard talking point that the Biden administration has provided since it has come into office.“The United States will compete and will unapologetically stand up for our values and interests, but that we do not want conflict with the PRC and are not looking for a new Cold War," Price said. Blinken "underscored the importance of maintaining diplomatic dialogue and open lines of communication at all times.”In addition to the balloon incident, Price said Blinken had reiterated&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/putin-kyiv-politics-ukraine-government-russia-43a55a56f9cd1f50dd1d280fcb1ffa65">a warning to China</a>&nbsp;on providing assistance to Russia to help with its war against Ukraine, including assisting Moscow with evading sanctions the West has imposed on Russia.“I warned China against providing materiel support to Russia,” Blinken said in a tweet. "I also emphasized the importance of keeping open lines of communication.”Earlier Saturday, Wang had renewed Beijing's criticism of the United States for shooting down the balloon, arguing that the move did not point to U.S. strength.Beijing insists the white orb shot down off the Carolina coast on Feb. 4 was just an&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/politics-united-states-government-antony-blinken-china-b1b03193b7abeb7bbeca169bbc7c2c53">errant civilian airship</a>&nbsp;used mainly for meteorological research that went off course due to winds and had only limited “self-steering” capabilities.Wang, the director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, repeated that insistence in a speech at the conference and accused the U.S. of violating international legal norms in destroying the object with a missile fired from an U.S. fighter jet.“The actions don’t show that the U.S. is big and strong, but describe the exact opposite,” Wang said.Wang also accused the U.S. of denying China’s economic advances and seeking to impede its further development.“What we hope for from the U.S. is a pragmatic and positive approach to China that allows us to work together,” Wang said.His comments came shortly before an address to the conference by Vice President Kamala Harris, who didn't mention the balloon controversy or respond to Wang's comments. She stressed the importance of upholding the “international rules-based order.”She said Washington is “troubled that Beijing has deepened its relationship with Moscow since the war began” in Ukraine and that “looking ahead, any steps by China to provide lethal support to Russia would only reward aggression, continue the killing and further undermine a rules-based order.”

U.S. warns China against lethal support to Russia in Ukraine

TOPEKA - In response to a Feb. 6 letter from Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach warning Walgreens not to send abortion pills into Kansas in violation of state and federal laws, Walgreens on Monday announced it will not dispense Mifepristone in the Sunflower State, according to a statement from the attorney general's office.

<a href="https://ag.ks.gov/docs/default-source/documents/abortion-pill-letter.pdf?sfvrsn=ec26bd1a_2">Click here to read</a>&nbsp;Kobach's letter

<a href="https://ag.ks.gov/docs/default-source/documents/dg-mifepristone-letter-to-ks-ag.pdf?sfvrsn=bc6bd1a_2">Click here to read </a>Walgreen's response

“This is a significant victory for the pro-life cause and for women’s health,” Kobach said. “The dispensing of these pills without a supervising physician present would expose women to complications and potentially to coercion as well. I’m grateful Walgreens has responded quickly and reasonably and intends to fully comply with the law.”

Walgreens responded to the Kansas attorney general’s warning with a letter dated Feb. 17.

TOPEKA - In response to a Feb. 6 letter from Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach warning Walgreens not to send abortion pills into Kansas in violation of state and federal laws, Walgreens on Monday announced it will not dispense Mifepristone in the Sunflower State, according to a statement from the attorney general's office.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Walgreens announced it will not send abortion pills into Kansas in response to a letter the KS AG&#39;s office sent earlier this month. <a href="https://t.co/EFn59HICUT">https://t.co/EFn59HICUT</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ksleg?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ksleg</a>&mdash; Kansas AG&#39;s Office (@KSAGOffice) <a href="https://twitter.com/KSAGOffice/status/1627691211958980610?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 20, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><a href="https://ag.ks.gov/docs/default-source/documents/abortion-pill-letter.pdf?sfvrsn=ec26bd1a_2">Click here to read</a>&nbsp;Kobach's letter<a href="https://ag.ks.gov/docs/default-source/documents/dg-mifepristone-letter-to-ks-ag.pdf?sfvrsn=bc6bd1a_2">Click here to read </a>Walgreen's response“This is a significant victory for the pro-life cause and for women’s health,” Kobach said. “The dispensing of these pills without a supervising physician present would expose women to complications and potentially to coercion as well. I’m grateful Walgreens has responded quickly and reasonably and intends to fully comply with the law.”Walgreens responded to the Kansas attorney general’s warning with a letter dated Feb. 17.“Walgreens does not intend to dispense Mifepristone within your state and does not intend to ship Mifepristone into your state from any of our pharmacies. If this approach changes, we will be sure to notify you,” the letter from Walgreens Executive Vice President Danielle C. Gray reads.