[{"_1":2,"_112":-5,"_113":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88,100],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6626589,"mediaKeyId","2752227-9fad32e78635f2090539dccdcf413c2d","parentId",2752227,"title","Big Lakes announces CEO transition; agency warns of state policy changes and long waiver waiting list","audioSeconds",328,"startMs",2721000,"endMs",3049000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2752227-9fad32e78635f2090539dccdcf413c2d&start=2721&end=3049","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2752227-9fad32e78635f2090539dccdcf413c2d/thumbnail_2721000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6626589/Kansas/Big-Lakes-announces-CEO-transition-agency-warns-of-state-policy-changes-and-long-waiver-waiting-list","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6626589-1d91fe278cd6abb932281dfd9bcf1544/orig.mp4?Expires=1773643088&Signature=nLQYXgsciSUKjTArKkPnAwYk9z7mUeQ-O21pNFZZRZVKunabaBVDyqAuXLcSupxfkK9A7x47x~fMBCbpdc2C3g~rKjuj3VnaDsShGyfSCDaEmzREAyXXhVpI5eS~MkJzdz3qLjhZ8FSBPs4~dxSGuWT8ydqNUE64KvktMaIUcPPlOfCzZkdYsUYn6qkub2OfdpZ1o3vC7kj6gu5LiJzdOOrzkBpHTr0gVxKkdLSz6hxNVtY8w~u-njH6mqn46ruLY7icArmBuKe2ItfuPPb8dCfygkixYDRrMkiKWhGKkYw6KNdyzkukrGFbRdld1PNik2OpR1soZlCSMGx~M~LyYQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Riley County","date","2025-03-24T15:11:16.317Z","article","An unidentified outgoing executive of Big Lakes told Riley County commissioners on March 24 that she plans to retire and that Liz Holly, the agency's deputy operations officer, will become the next CEO effective June 1.

The speaker reported a statewide waiting list for developmental disability waivers of 4,426 as of March 13 and said the average wait time is nine years. She said a new \"community support waiver\" would offer limited, capped assistance (she cited a $20,000 cap) intended to provide smaller amounts of support for people who do not require the comprehensive waiver.

Nut graf: Big Lakes used its appearance to announce an internal leadership change and to flag potential state-level policy and funding changes at the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services (KDADS) that could affect local services and budgets. The agency is also tracking proposed legislative and administrative changes to day services, a new assessment tool and conflict-of-interest questions about the Community Developmental Disability Organization (CDDO) role.

The outgoing executive said the state is working on three initiatives at KDADS that worry providers: splitting day services into multiple categories that would be billed separately, implementing a new assessment tool, and addressing conflict-of-interest rules that could affect entities that currently serve as CDDOs.

\"As of March 13, it's 4,426. That's actually up a 42 from the last time I was here,\" the outgoing executive said when describing the statewide waiver waiting list. She said the new community support waiver is capped at $20,000 and is intended to provide smaller amounts of assistance to reduce the waiting list.

Liz Holly, identified in the meeting as deputy operations officer and the incoming CEO, said providers are concerned that KDADS is considering splitting the current broad definition of day services into seven distinct categories. \"Now they are looking to separate them into 7 different definitions for day services,\" Holly said. She described potential administrative and billing complexity if services are defined and billed in multiple categories.

The outgoing executive and Holly said the agency has been engaging with lawmakers and KDADS, and that there had been some legislative movement: she said an additional $4,900,000 was added on the Senate side to address waiting-list funding and that the Senate included a 3.4% rate increase while the House had not yet matched that provision.

The speaker said the Big Lakes board asked the outgoing executive to continue as a consultant through the end of the year to support the leadership transition and to help navigate finance and budget uncertainties.

Ending: The agency said it would return to provide updates in May as legislative work continues; commissioners did not take formal action at the meeting beyond receiving the report and acknowledging the CEO transition.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","3/24/25 Riley County Commission's Meeting","oneSentenceSummary","An unidentified outgoing executive of Big Lakes told Riley County commissioners on March 24 that she plans to retire and that Liz Holly, the agency's deputy operations officer, will become the next CEO effective June 1.","taxTitle","Riley, Kansas","taxId",4218,"location","Kansas","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6626593,"Riley County commissioners approve $272,797 bid for tandem-axle dump truck",32,440000,472000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2752227-9fad32e78635f2090539dccdcf413c2d&start=440&end=472","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2752227-9fad32e78635f2090539dccdcf413c2d/thumbnail_440000.jpg","/articles/6626593/Kansas/Riley-County-commissioners-approve-272797-bid-for-tandem-axle-dump-truck","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6626593-537b0b52bd9a3115a9008721f1522106/orig.mp4?Expires=1773643088&Signature=abao5VFvqh8MVD5UGEcKJi7wkHVpDDvdkcWU0HzcAeoC5x92op8I0JTvKeB0PgUwzPGEvaGJzyQaKfxX6kXWkNiWLtuid6df~iE0Qry5ajSMugMgqI2vUW37X8nCL9ag3h2BnmjyMN5m6EnpMXtRjc0rGRw1a1E1x5Y0nL5444Mos2Z5Yf2gTBz9wWB~CVAod6N9P5sg1Q0GMhpnPi2BzmDmY2Pw00b3ogKIYjE9zS6sjXIKMzy~RPPhKh4DhcwQfiGEMZ7iXwvTWxI1f~6Wj7gq9qexIOTCxa2kXxjcOEUJtewxJWheAl6BF1Clqd9OKcwoANOl2xGSCaatH2zk2w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Riley County commissioners voted on March 24 to accept a bid from Rush Truck Center of Topeka for a tandem-axle dump truck at a price of $272,797.

During routine business, the commission announced the single bid and then a commissioner moved to approve the Rush Truck Center bid; another commissioner seconded the motion and the chair called for the vote. The motion passed by voice vote with the chair saying \"All in favor.\" No roll-call tally was recorded in the transcript.

Nut graf: The purchase was handled during the consent/routine-business portion of the meeting; commissioners also handled personnel changes and approved the minutes from the March 20 meeting.

The meeting packet listed the bid and the purchasing motion was limited to approving Rush Truck Center's bid to supply the tandem-axle dump truck for $272,797. Commissioners then reviewed employee action forms that included a volunteer firefighter hire and a paramedic separation among other personnel items, and they approved minutes from the March 20 meeting.

Ending: The motion to accept the bid was approved by voice vote; the transcript does not include a recorded roll-call or numerical vote tally.","Commissioners voted to accept a bid from Rush Truck Center of Topeka to supply a tandem-axle dump truck at $272,797 and approved personnel actions and prior meeting minutes as part of routine business.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6626597,"Riley County Community Corrections seeks staff and grant funding to sustain protective homes and drug testing",828,1800000,2628000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2752227-9fad32e78635f2090539dccdcf413c2d&start=1800&end=2628","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2752227-9fad32e78635f2090539dccdcf413c2d/thumbnail_1800000.jpg","/articles/6626597/Kansas/Riley-County-Community-Corrections-seeks-staff-and-grant-funding-to-sustain-protective-homes-and-drug-testing","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6626597-0145e06a567ee43039f11d4fd5cca130/orig.mp4?Expires=1773643088&Signature=STza~zDJ384fzK0tsjFeocm~bxDt15RGLDWbSlSpOPFPgTb5Tf1VoLv2a7h2Cj2yolDZ~o0kVn9u89SyHNL-OQCVhcEJSEiWrIFnqCGsA~rh8Ihd0cqyyKP3PWKAoNoztEyZU7Cz-kMIlwuhq0Xze9rPV1EN57bksXNHQZ8wHEDwqDdLOkQo22oj59alY22zLsvN-ARPn2tg24gGqENHk2qYl7jE3thonPY3Y~bM7ZOuMamOVp7Q5~6X50qkmv9fejOHLuXJWXIasFu~ypvsP05IEksopTFbJMhRDEUh~EPVIongx8h5r3dRjYZG3GR~rS-LBI2afb3gJErOAXultw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Megan Lewis, a representative of Riley County Community Corrections, told county commissioners on March 24 that the office is seeking to hire additional juvenile intake officers and plans to apply for outside funds to support protective homes and random drug testing in Clay County.

Lewis said her office is down two juvenile intake officers and requested authorization to advertise and hire two to three on-call officers for the summer so positions would be staffed and trained before the busier months. Commissioners moved and seconded the request and approved it by voice vote.

The request to hire follows a report Lewis gave about recent program activity. Lewis said February intake was low \"—we had 4 intakes\"—of which two were returned to a parent or guardian, one was placed with a relative and one was placed in an emergency shelter. She said juvenile intensive supervision included 10 Riley County youth, with an additional youth from Clay County, and that adult intensive supervision caseloads totaled 104 people at the time of her report.

Nut graf: The Community Corrections presentation focused on short-term protective homes for youth taken into police protective custody, staffing gaps that affect after-hours response, and funding requests to maintain random drug testing and the protective-homes program. Commissioners approved motions allowing the office to recruit on-call juvenile intake staff and to apply for two outside funding sources.

Lewis described how the protective-homes program operates and why county officials are seeking to rebuild volunteer capacity. \"Protective homes on a very short notice take in and care for a child that has been placed in police protective custody,\" Lewis said, explaining the placements typically last about 72 hours and provide sleep, meals and basic supplies.

She said eligibility to serve as a protective home includes passing background checks and a home-visit safety assessment, and that adults in a household must attend a protective-home training. Lewis said the office planned to schedule training in April to recruit new homes after a decline in the number of available families.

Funding requests and motions: Lewis asked for permission to apply for Clay County opioid-settlement funds to cover costs of random drug and alcohol testing in Clay County. She told commissioners that Clay County had previously used a one-year grant from the Kansas Overdose Data to Action program worth $19,820.39 and that the county covered random testing in 2024 at a cost of $13,432.68. Commissioners moved, seconded and approved the application request by voice vote.

She also asked permission to apply for the Daniel Keating Foundation grant, a continuing local funding source that Community Corrections has used since 2018 to support protective homes (including purchasing items volunteers do not supply, paying for training speakers and covering stipends). Lewis told commissioners the Keating grant application was open and due April 4; commissioners moved, seconded and approved the application request by voice vote.

Lewis said the Keating funds help provide that volunteers who host protective-home children receive a $25 per-child, per-day stipend to offset costs of care.

Context and next steps: Commissioners approved Community Corrections' requests to recruit additional juvenile intake officers and to apply for both Clay County opioid-settlement funds and the Daniel Keating Foundation grant. Lewis said an intern, Emily Lund, is assisting with outreach to faith and community organizations to rebuild protective-home capacity.

Ending: Lewis closed the presentation after the approvals; commissioners did not request additional information at the meeting but indicated support for recruiting and funding steps to sustain protective homes and after-hours intake coverage.","Community Corrections reported vacancies in juvenile intake staff, described the county's protective homes program and asked commissioners to authorize hiring and to apply for Clay County opioid-settlement funds and the Daniel Keating Foundation grant; all requests were approved by voice vote.",{"_33":101,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":102,"_41":103,"_43":104,"_45":105,"_47":106,"_49":107,"_51":108,"_53":109,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":110,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":111,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6626584,"County counselor briefs commissioners on Senate Bill 199 and possible limits on local fireworks rules",119,3965000,4084000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2752227-9fad32e78635f2090539dccdcf413c2d&start=3965&end=4084","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2752227-9fad32e78635f2090539dccdcf413c2d/thumbnail_3965000.jpg","/articles/6626584/Kansas/County-counselor-briefs-commissioners-on-Senate-Bill-199-and-possible-limits-on-local-fireworks-rules","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6626584-134b7487c78322fea1327ee47a6eade3/orig.mp4?Expires=1773643088&Signature=Pla008KeXd8rTaPfohgknMHhvHzyA7bP~oGVCgIrXmLQvbhQxkkKaOoK9yDDIe6qmbBg-ZGnHctKjZ9hrT7rBHaWkkgV~5KrmRLG5sgm6WtEd6TMsvd9a~VeBgoedSusdjgeFOymtIjtSEZHiEqer6UDWHgvJFF5vFhF9G7IYm~5Mkok4FgJElFkYCYGDAzvh9ZggWzNeXJWCGod7OJz3poYzZtzEDn2heuU2EiuQw57Nk5CJt66BtsIpSRkFBk91pLxIq75aRVJgDSMGtFscZc8Dc2OOMHfoIky5rjU4~BCaKo5a2WCyboCb3QrS~IIbqRi6ZpeJM7iWftNWQH6VQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Bridal Parker, Riley County counselor, briefed commissioners on March 24 about a state-level bill under consideration (Senate Bill 199) that would expand statewide fireworks sales. Parker said the bill appears to grant a right to sell fireworks statewide but does not explicitly grant the right to discharge them.

\"It talks about the right to sell. It does not talk about the right to shoot off,\" Parker said at the meeting while describing the bill's current language and possible implications for local regulation.

Nut graf: The counselor's remarks emphasized that even if statewide sales become legal, counties and municipalities may still need local rules addressing where and when fireworks can be discharged, particularly during burn bans or other unsafe conditions. Parker recommended watching legislative developments and guidance from the Kansas Association of Counties and municipal leagues.

Parker told commissioners that several jurisdictions that allow sales impose storage and confined-space requirements and that the state fire marshal can set additional regulations. He also said the Kansas Association of Counties and the League of Kansas Municipalities will likely issue positions or guidance and that the county should monitor those resources.

Commissioners discussed concerns about storage, improper handling and the practical challenges of policing fireworks use. Parker and other commissioners noted that allowing statewide sales can increase the risk that residents will buy and store fireworks in unsuitable conditions.

Ending: No formal county action was taken; the briefing was informational and commissioners were told to expect possible guidance or model ordinances from state associations if the bill proceeds through reconciliation.","Riley County's county counselor briefed commissioners about Senate Bill 199, which would permit statewide fireworks sales; counselor said the bill addresses the right to sell but not explicitly the right to discharge fireworks and said jurisdictions may need local regulations for safety during burn bans and other hazardous conditions.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Big Lakes announces CEO transition; agency warns of state policy changes and long waiver waiting list

Riley County commissioners approve $272,797 bid for tandem-axle dump truck

Riley County Community Corrections seeks staff and grant funding to sustain protective homes and drug testing

County counselor briefs commissioners on Senate Bill 199 and possible limits on local fireworks rules