Weekend Movie

Brian and I saw the movie "Source Code" on Saturday evening. The girls went to see Water for Elephants. Source Code is about a decorated soldier Captain Colter Stevens who wakes up in the body of an unknown man, he discovers he's part of a mission to find the bomber of a Chicago commuter train. In an assignment unlike any he's ever ...known, he learns he's part of a government experiment called the "Source Code," a program that enables him to cross over into another man's identity in the last eight minutes of his life. With a second, much larger target threatening to kill millions in downtown Chicago, Colter re-lives the incident over and over again, gathering clues each time, until he can solve the mystery of who is behind the bombs and prevent the next attack. Good movie.

Happy Birthday Debbie

Happy Birthday to my number one girl and best friend. She turns 50 years young today! Yes, she is older than me. Love you Debbie!

Easter

We had a great Easter weekend in NE Kansas. We drove up Thursday night to Kansas City. On Friday I went fishing with Brian and Mike at Pomona Lake. We caught 8 catfish. We ate at the famous Green Acres on Friday evening then went to Garnett for the night. Saturday we attended the Easter Parade in Garnett before leaving for Kansas City. We spent Saturday shopping and watching movies. Sunday we attended Easter Worship at the Overland Park Church of Christ. They had about 850 at the early service we attended. After worship we ate and enjoyed spending good family time together. It was a terrific weekend!

Easter Bunnies

The bunnies are back this Easter!

Fishing at Pomona Lake

We had a great time fishing at Pomona Lake on Friday. We caught several catfish.

Sunday

A great day of worship at Rocketdyne and 18 holes of golf at Neosho. It was windy but at least it was warm.

School Finance News

Kan. forecasters cut revenue projections $32M

By John Hanna

Created Apr 15 2011 - 6:36pm

Kansas officials Friday predicted solid economic growth through June 2012, even as they cut the state’s revenue projections for the same period by $32 million and possibly complicated the Legislature’s budget debate.

Fiscal forecasters said the new numbers represent good news because some growth in tax collections will partially offset losses in revenues caused by changes in the federal tax code. Had it not been for the federal changes, the state forecasters said, they would have increased revenue projections.

The changes in the projections are relatively small. The state still expects to take in almost $5.8 billion in general revenues during the current fiscal year and a little more than that during the fiscal year that begins July 1.

“We are pretty optimistic that we’re on the right track right now, and I see good things for the future of Kansas in revenues,” said state budget director Steve Anderson, one of the forecasters. “We see a growing economy.”

University economists, legislative researchers, Kansas Department of Revenue officials, and Anderson and other members of Gov. Sam Brownback’s budget staff made the forecast public after a two-hour closed meeting. Lawmakers use the semiannual forecasts in budgeting.

The forecasters reduced their earlier prediction for the current fiscal year by $10 million, or 0.2 of a percent.

For the fiscal year beginning July 1, they revised the projection downward by $22 million, or 0.4 of a percent.

Legislators return April 27 from their annual spring break to wrap up their business for the year. The House and Senate must negotiate a final version of a proposed $14 billion budget after having approved separate proposals for the next fiscal year, relying also on federal funds and other sources to help finance state operations.

The final version of the budget is likely to cut the state’s overall spending by between 5 percent and 6 percent, largely reflecting the disappearance of federal economic stimulus funds. It also likely will come close to Brownback’s proposal to cut base aid to Kansas’ public schools by $232 per student, or 5.8 percent.

With the new revenue projections, the House’s version of the budget would leave about $48 million in reserves at the end of the next fiscal year. But the Senate’s version would result in a $23 million deficit, something prohibited under the Kansas Constitution.

Senate Majority Leader Jay Emler, a Lindsborg Republican, said his chamber now faces accepting more of the House’s budget ideas than it has during negotiations.

“We can’t be in the red,” he said. “I’m not sure exactly what else will be cut, but something else will have to be cut.”

Senate Ways and Means Committee Chairwoman Carolyn McGinn, a Sedgwick Republican, said she is still hoping to protect core services, adding, “There are some positive signs that our economy is improving, and that’s certainly a good thing.”

House Speaker Mike O’Neal, a Hutchinson Republican, said the new projections show the state needs to build up healthy reserves, which he said is a priority for the GOP majority in his chamber.

“With the current economic uncertainty and significant policy changes being made in Washington, it is critical to pass a fiscally responsible budget,” he said.

State Democratic Party chairwoman Joan Wagnon, a former revenue secretary, said the new numbers show that Republican legislators who have advocated additional business tax cuts need to stop pushing the idea.

Alan Conroy, director of the Kansas Legislative Research Department, said changes in federal tax laws approved by Congress in December include breaks for businesses for such expenses as the purchase of new machinery. He said they will cost Kansas about $77 million total through mid-2012 because its tax code is tied to the federal one.

Conroy said the forecasters still worry about the state’s unemployment rate, which was relatively high at 6.8 percent in February.

He said they also are concerned that high gasoline prices will dampen other consumer spending, costing the state sales tax revenues. The state doesn’t impose its sales tax on motor fuel.

Yet, he said, the forecasters also expect Kansans’ personal incomes to grow about 4 percent during 2011 and about 5 percent next year.

“Clearly, I think, the Kansas economy is starting to come out of the Great Recession,” Conroy said. “I think we’re pointed in the right directions.”

And Anderson said the changes in the federal tax code ultimately are positive because they reward businesses for investments and are likely to create economic growth.

“I’m reasonably optimistic that we’re on course for a great recovery,” he said.

Best Pizza

I have told all my friends several times that the best pizza in all the world is not from New York City, but from Gusano's in Joplin, Missouri. Best deep dish anywhere. The Carnivore is the greatest. All meat. They have five locations in Arkansas as well.

Saturday Golf

Saturday golf with my dad in Broken Arrow.

It was a beautiful day for

my first round of the year.

Watch Out!

How do you know when it is time to "hang up the car keys"

I say when your dog has this look on his face!

WSU

How about the Wichita State Shockers! They are in the championship of the NIT Tournament in New York City

Unreal

Guess what I woke up to this morning?

Donuts

Most of my friends and relatives know that I am a donut connoisseur. I enjoy my chocolate long johns and pine cones. When I hit the road on trips and vacations I always locate the donut shops. I have read up on donuts and feel pretty knowledgeable about the operations of the major donut chains.

When I moved to Columbus, I was so excited to have a Daylight Donut shop. I really believe its one of the best I have ate at and always serve great donuts.

One of the worse is Krispy Kreme. Very expensive, all air, and no taste. The only positive thing that they do is give each person a free glaze donut when they come in.

Happy Birthday Craig

Happy Birthday to my little boy. 22 years old today. Love you Craig!

Spring Break Week in Columbus

Sick and Spring Break just doesn't make sense!

Governor Cuts $56 Million

Gov. imposes $56M state cut

Gov. Sam Brownback moved Friday to plug a $56.5 million budget hole and rebalance state finances after giving up on House and Senate negotiators working to resolve a political stalemate.

Brownback’s action, which takes mostly from public schools, would get the state’s budget to zero for the fiscal year, assuming revenue collections through June meet expectations. State law gives the governor the authority to impose budget cuts, but only to get to zero, not create a cushion.

The Department of Education said the cuts reduce the state aid by $75 per student — from $4,012 to $3,937.

The Legislature so far failed to adopt a rescission bill the governor recommended in early January. After two months of House and Senate wrangling, Brownback simply threw up his hands and imposed his will.

However, the Senate's Democratic leader said legislators still must vote to affirm the piece of Brownback's plan shifting $49 million to mandatory payments for child welfare cases and disability services.

"He hasn't balanced the budget," said Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley, D-Topeka. "It still requires legislative action."

Hensley also said he was seeking clarification from legislative staff to determine whether the governor was properly following finer points of the state's budget allotment law.

Brownback had given legislative negotiators until the end of business Friday to strike a budget agreement. The two sides were millions of dollars apart and offered little hope of a last-minute breakthrough.

"We've got to move now to be able to get to zero," Brownback said.

The Kansas Constitution forbids an end-of-the-year deficit.

House negotiators insisted they were ready to continue talks as the deadline loomed, but Senate members involved in the showdown suggested Brownback's decision to use the allotment process ended debate on that bill.

"I appreciate the governor's willingness to make allotments to balance revenues and expenditures," said House Speaker Mike O'Neal, R-Hutchinson. "The House remains committed to establishing a healthy ending balance after funding necessary programs."

The House version of the budget would have left about $35 million on the state's year-end ledger, while the Senate proposal would have dropped that closer to $20 million.

Sen. Laura Kelly, a Topeka Democrat on the Senate budget committee, said House conferees didn't negotiate in good faith.

She said the governor's preference for allotments could pull Kansas out of compliance with federal regulations regarding state aid to special education.

"If we fail to fund these mandates, Kansas will forfeit more than $100 million in federal funds that could be used in future budget years. Those funds won’t ever be replaced," Kelly said.

House and Senate conferees locked horns over spending on K-12 education.

The Senate wanted to increase expenditures for special education to prevent the state from losing millions of dollars in federal aid to education. The House sought guarantees the Legislature would go beyond education cuts recommended by Brownback.

Senate Vice President John Vratil, a Leawood Republican, said relationship among the three House and three Senate negotiators had soured.

"A lack of trust makes it very difficult to continue the negotiations," Vratil said.

House Appropriations Committee Chairman Marc Rhoades, R-Newton, said he didn't believe the Senate fairly considered the House's position and quit before the job was done.

"Despite the Senate's failure to meet today," he said, "the House is anxious to continue working through the conference committee process to achieve the governor's goal of a $35 million ending balance."

Brownback asked the Legislature to send to his desk by the end of January a bill fixing the current year's budget.

The financial dispute in the Capitol continued more than five weeks later despite a Republican governor and overwhelming GOP majorities in the House and Senate.

Hensley said Brownback, a Republican, shared blame for failing to convince GOP leadership to reach a compromise.

"It's unprecedented that any governor be forced to make allotments in the middle of a session due to the inaction of members of his own party," Hensley said. "The Grand Old Party is floundering."

Brownback said more than 110,000 Kansans were looking for employment and the attention of politicians in Topeka must be on expanding the state's economy so people could return to work.

"We do that and we’ll have additional funding for everyone’s budget priorities," he said.

Brownback urged House and Senate members to put a collective shoulder to the grindstone and begin serious work crafting a new fiscal year 2012 budget that continued to shrink state expenditures.

"I look forward to working with the Kansas Legislature to building a fiscal year 2012 budget that gets our state back on the road of fiscal responsibility and stability," the governor said.

Brownback made the pivotal budget decision on the same day he signed his first bill into law. The measure allows businesses with more than 250 vehicles to register as fleets with the state rather than individually in each county.

"This is a common-sense bill that reduces government regulation," he said.

Congratulations Lady Indians!

Congratulations to all our good friends in Osage City. The Lady Indians are heading to Hutchinson and the Class 3A State Basketball Tournament. Good luck Lady Indians!

Undercliff

Debbie and I have been attending church the past couple of weeks at the Rocketdyne Church of Christ in Neosho. We have met many people, several from the SE Kansas area. The congregation has about 400 members. They are a great group of people.

After worship yesterday we enjoyed lunch at a unique restaurant called Undercliff south of Joplin. Great food!

Titans Runner-up

The Titans lost to Parsons in the Class 4A Sub-State Championship game last night. They finished 12-11 on the season. One of the best seasons since 1995. Great job Titans!

Titans Play in Sub-State Basketball Championship

The big game is tonight in Parsons, as the Titans play the Parsons boy's in the Class 4A Sub-State Championship. Game time is 7:30 p.m. GO TITANS!