The Douglas County Commission on Friday finalized a plan for nearly $25 million of coronavirus relief funding and will soon submit it to the state for review. The commission met during a special meeting to put the final touches on its allotment of federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act money, also known as CARES. The $24.9 million funding plan accounts for the first round of federal aid, ...
A Lawrence high school student is taking action in hopes of outlawing a legal defense strategy he believes is discriminatory against gay and transgender people. Hays Hummel, who will be a junior at Free State High School this fall, recently started a petition to raise awareness about a legal strategy known as the “gay and trans panic” defense. It is a criminal defense strategy that claims a defendant of a ...
The Lawrence school district has backed away from a plan to furlough some classified staff during the upcoming school year's initial period of remote learning. But the district could again consider the option later. The Lawrence school board on Monday was scheduled to consider giving the district’s administration the authority to furlough classified staff — a category that includes custodians, office staff ...
The Douglas County Commission approved two separate 2021 budget plans on Wednesday, both of which aim to keep tax rates flat, but additional spending changes could be coming to the county’s budget in the future. After holding public hearings, the commissioners unanimously approved the 2021 Douglas County budget and the 2021 Consolidated Fire District No. 1 budget. The county’s 2021 budget includes a flat ...
The Douglas County Commission on Wednesday revised its nearly $25 million coronavirus relief funding plan to include more aid for local businesses. During a work session on the county's funding plan for its allotment of federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act money, county staff suggested cuts to several areas of the originally proposed plan in order to increase the funding for economic ...
The Douglas County Commission could authorize three separate spending plans during its meeting on Wednesday. The County Commission will continue discussions on how to spend $24.9 million of federal coronavirus relief funding and consider approval of the county's 2021 budget, which contains a flat mill levy. It will also consider a 2021 budget for a newly created fire district that will cover a majority of the ...