In the News
Newly secured federal funding could soon help pull downtown Merriam out of a floodplain.
The federal spending bill approved Thursday night includes more than $15.7 million that will be spent on projects in the Third District of Kansas, including $500,000 for the Upper Turkey Creek Flood Risk Management project.
Following the passage of a federal spending bill Thursday night, U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids has announced that $15.7 million of it will come to Kansas' third district.
"Out of hundreds of bipartisan submissions, eight Davids-requested projects were passed into law last night as part of the broader government funding bill," a release from her office said.
The money will go to several local projects covering everything from new levees to cancer imaging technology.
The breakdown is as follows:
Kansas members of Congress say they've introduced resolutions in Washington, D.C. to honor Olathe East's school resource officer and assistant principal.
The pair are set to be honored just seven days after both School Resource Officer Erik Clark and Assistant Principal Kaleb were injured in a shooting involving an armed student.
In the wake of the shooting at Olathe East High last Friday, Rep. Sharice Davids took a few minutes on Wednesday to voice her support for more measures that could prevent future school shootings, including "common sense gun safety" and more comprehensive permanent mental health services at K-12 schools.
When Sen. Jerry Moran travels through rural Kansas, he normally stops at the town post office.
He sees it as an anchor for a community, a place where people pass in and out over the course of the day.
"There's a social aspect to a post office," Moran said. "And that's not the primary function of the Postal Service but it is an important asset to the community that they recognize as mattering to them and their future."
A Kansas lawmaker calls for gun safety and increased mental health help in schools five days after a shooting inside an office at Olathe East High School sent three people to a hospital.
Rep. Sharice Davids, D-Kan., made the plea during a speech on the House floor Wednesday morning.
"Students hid in classrooms, sending texts that every parent dreads receiving. Someone shooting inside the school," David said.
Pat & Rachel's Gardens, an Olathe organic food packaging and distribution business, received almost $50,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Development Awards.
Kansas' District 3 U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids announced the grant in an emailed press release on Thursday. The grant program is aimed at addressing food security and could support the economy in the state of Kansas "by bringing homegrown and locally-sourced foods to the Kansas City area all while focusing on sustainability," Davids says.
U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids visited Olathe-based bioscience firm Ronawk to highlight the value of local companies that are working to return manufacturing and competitive research innovation jobs to the U.S. The stop Wednesday was part of a push by some members of Congress to adopt the America COMPETES Act, which passed the U.S. House earlier this month, largely along party lines.
Davids, a Democrat, voted for the bill.
INNOVATION FOR THE FUTURE
U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, D-3rd Dist., recently announced federal funding for six local organizations to strengthen law enforcement and community-based responsiveness to victims and survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, rape and stalking.
Kansas received more than $1.8 million through these awards, with six agencies receiving $511,813.
Recipients of the 2022 S.T.O.P. VAWA grant award in the Kansas 3rd District included:
Congressional leaders from Kansas and Missouri on both sides of the political aisle condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine and called for additional sanctions against Russia after its unprovoked military invasion.
"We must make crystal clear that Russia cannot intimidate or invade our allies and partners without significant consequences," Rep. Sharice Davids — a Democrat from Kansas who represents the 3rd District, including Johnson and Wyandotte counties. "United as a country and with our allies, we must hold Putin accountable for his unjustified and unacceptable aggression.