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THE IOLA REGISTER Locally owned since 1867
www.iolaregister.com
Monday, February 9, 2015
Daycare takes a chunk of every paycheck Parents see benefits of professional care By RICK DANLEY The Iola Register
One of the more ambitious items in President Obama’s 2016 budget is his proposal to spend $200 billion over 10 years to support child care and early education, an agenda he gave full voice to during his visit to Lawrence last month. A key feature of the proposal is a tax credit worth $3,000 per child per year — triple the current maximum — meant to ease the burden on low- and moderate-income families struggling to pay for child care. “FOR ME, my daycare bill is as much as my mortgage. It absolutely is,” said Tiffany Johnson, of Iola. Asked to consider where child care ranks in the catalog of her monthly expenses, Carri Campbell responded similarly: “Jeez, my highest payment is my rent. I’m paying $500 for rent. And then I’m paying $400 for daycare. It’s even more than what my car payment is a month, which is $300.” Both Johnston and Campbell work as tellers at Emprise
President Obama has proposed a tax credit worth $3,000 per child per year as a means to ease the burden on low-and moderate-income families struggling to pay for child care. FILE PHOTO Bank, in Iola. Johnston’s children, Sydney, 2, and Austin, 15 months, attend an in-home daycare run by Karen Keithly (“the best daycare in town,” according to Johnston). Johnston’s husband is a team leader at Gates. Both husband and wife
work full-time. “Last year — we just paid taxes, so I know — I paid $8,000 in daycare, for both kids. I pay $85 for my baby and $80 for my daughter. That’s a week. I pay bi-weekly, so I pay $330 every two weeks, $660 a month. Even then, I know my daycare
is a little cheaper than a lot in town.” According to Child Care Aware, the average annual cost of in-home infant child care in Kansas is $6,667 compared with $10,787 in a child See CARE | Page A4
Second child put on hold Child care expenses have led directly to one local family’s decision to hold off on having a second child. One young mother, who asked not to be identified, spends about $90 a week for their 15-month child to attend a local day care facility. She works at Sonic Equipment, while her husband works at B&W Trailer Hitches. They earn enough to make a living, but doubling child care expenses would be cumbersome, the mother admitted. The popular day care facility at B&W, the Growing Place, was already filled to capacity when the family sought out a place for their child. They found a provider in Iola with long-time experience “Her youngest is a See FAMILY | Page A4
Bronson man dies in ATV accident FORT SCOTT — Billy G. Minor, 25, Bronson, died Saturday after the all-terrain vehicle he was driving crashed in rural Bourbon County Saturday. According to the Kansas Highway Patrol, Minor was eastbound on Maple Road,
KPERS funding formula on the table TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas House committee is reviewing Gov. Sam Brownback’s proposal to issue $1.5 billion in bonds to help lower the state’s annual costs in funding pensions for teachers and government workers but extend payments another 10 years. The House Pensions and Benefits Committee’s focus today is on a bill authorizing the bonds if the state would pay interest of 5 percent or less to bondholders. The Kansas Public Employees Retirement System has a projected long-term funding gap of $9.8 billion, and the state had committed to raising annual contributions to eliminate it by 2033.
about 4.5 miles west of Fort Scott, with a pair of other ATV operators, when his cycle struck the rear end of an ATV piloted by Jeremiah N. Dawson, 23, Bronson. Minor’s vehicle flipped, ejecting him. Minor was transported to
Freeman Hospital in Joplin, Mo., where he was declared dead. Dawson was not injured in the accident. A third ATV, piloted by Matthew R. Grieves, 27, Lincoln, Neb., was at the scene but was not involved in the accident.
KS lawmakers venture into saving marriage TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Divorce is expected to be the main focus of two days of information legislative committee hearings on marriage. One of the key questions to be addressed this week is whether Kansas has made it too easy for couples to end their marriages, said Rep. Jan Pauls, a Hutchinson Republican who serves on the House Federal and State Affairs Committee. “Some people have suggested it would be helpful to have requirements of counseling, or extended or longer waiting periods, as long as it doesn’t involve domestic violence or problems like that,” Pauls told the Lawrence JournalWorld.
Quote of the day Vol. 117, No. 68
Kansas is what’s considered a “no fault” divorce state, which means that either party in a marriage can petition for divorce. The person seeking the divorce doesn’t have to prove that there are legal grounds for it beyond “incompatibility.” Kansas also does not have a mandatory waiting period before a divorce can be granted, and it does not require couples to go through counseling before a divorce. Judges do have the discretion to order counseling, and in some counties they do so routinely, especially in cases that involve the custody of minor children. “I think what’s being disSee DIVORCE | Page A4
Crowded prisons spur review of sentencing TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas is the latest in a series of states moving to reduce its prison population and cut costs, but parallel legislation stiffening penalties for some crimes may nullify the effort. The Kansas Sentencing Commission has submitted two bills to a House panel to ease overcrowding in state prisons and save money. The bills, which have been endorsed by the Department of Corrections and many legislators, would keep offenders out of prison on their first two marijuana possession offenses and allow some prisoners to knock off additional time for good behavior. Scott Schultz, executive director of the Kansas Sentenc-
“You grow up the day you have the first real laugh at yourself.” — Ethel Barrymore 75 Cents
ing Commission, said the cost of incarcerating criminals is starting to get lawmakers’ attention. “I think the dialogue is open for us and the Legislature is in some sense being pushed in that direction just because of budget issues. Things are not as flexible as they used to be,” Schultz said. Kansas’ prison population is already 146 prisoners over capacity and is expected to grow to 107 percent capacity by 2024. Department of Corrections Secretary Ray Roberts has said 1,160 prisoners have been added to Kansas’ system since 2009. With an annual cost of See PRISON | Page A4
Hi: 54 Lo: 32 Iola, KS