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Hornets ready for regionals PAGE 9 TE G THURSDAY, MAY 19, 2016 V V V PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING FAMILY OWNED SINCE 1895 V V V WWW.EMPORIAGAZETTE.COM MOVEMENT GOING SLOW By Cathryne Scharton [email protected] Many Gazette readers have inquired about the status of Amtrak returning to Emporia, but according to several individuals involved with Amtrak, the process is still a long way down the line.  According to Marc Magliari, spokesperson for Amtrak, Emporia was eliminated as a stop by trains three and four via the Southwest Chief May 11, 1997. The Amtrak stop at the time was much like a bus shelter and was not sufficient to continue serving as the stop. When the city showed little interest in building a new station, service was ended.  Aug. 9, 1999, the Amtrak station built in the 1880s burned and was eventually torn down. The building was in disrepair at the time of the fire and was not in suitable condition to serve as the station.  Rev. Andrew McHenry, who heads the Amtrak task force, said his next move will be to go before the city commission. Some feel the Amtrak task force should join forces with the Multi-use Pathway Planning board to gain steam, but others feel MUPP has its own purpose and the Amtrak force does not have a place within MUPP. One of the problems the task force is facing is communication with BNSF. “BNSF will not typically engage in conversations with ad hoc groups of citizens. They need to confer with official entities,” McHenry said. McHenry said during the last two years the task force has found there is sizable interest in bringing passenger rail service back to Emporia and Amtrak is interested in stopping Please see Amtrak, Page 3 EMPORIA STATE TAKES A HIT TO BALANCE THE BUDGET By Jessie Wagoner [email protected] SEMI DRIVER IN STABLE CONDITION AFTER WEDNESDAY ROLLOVER By John Robinson [email protected] The driver of a semi-tractor trailer is in stable condition after a Wednesday injury accident on the Kansas Turnpike at Emporia. The accident occurred around 4:20 p.m. on the Exit 127 southbound ramp. The vehicle — which was said to have been carrying 43,000 pounds of organic green tea — tipped into the west ditch. The driver of the semi was responsive and was transported to Newman Regional Health by ambulance. The Emporia Police Department, Emporia Fire Department, Lyon County Sheriff’s Office, Kansas Highway Patrol and the Kansas Turnpike Authority assisted at the scene. Master Sgt. Sage Hill with the Kansas Highway Patrol said the driver of the semi sped around the curve at Exit 127, causing the vehicle to roll into the ditch. Hill said the vehicle will still be in the ditch on Thursday, but crews will be working to remove it. —Gazette News Editor Zach Hacker contributed to this report. VOL. 124, NO. 275 JOHN ROBINSON/GAZETTE  A 2006 Freightliner tipped over on the southbound ramp to the KTA from the Emporia terminal at about 4:20 p.m. Wednesday afternoon. The driver of the semi was transported to Newman Regional Health via Emporia Ambulance and was in stable condition. Governor Sam Brownback balanced the budget on Wednesday — announcing allotments of $97 million to make the balance happen. Medicaid and higher education — including Emporia State University — saw the largest cuts. K-12 funding was spared in this round of allotments. The 4-percent allotment to higher education translates into $30.6 million that the state’s 32 public postsecondary institutions will not receive. Emporia State University will see a reduction of $855,204. “State General Fund appropriations in (fiscal year) 2017 will be 8.6 percent less than what was allocated in FY2008, meaning state funding for higher education has decreased by nearly $100 million since 2007-2008 levels,” Breeze Richardson with the Kansas Board of Regents said. Senator Jeff Longbine said the allotments weren’t surprising as the legislature left a budget gap that Brownback would be required to fill by making cuts. “When the legislature passed the budget it was going to require that the governor do somewhere around $90 million worth of cuts,” Longbine said. “The legislature designed it that way because the governor actually has a better feel for what is going on in the agencies and where those cuts can be made.” Rep. Don Hill was also unsurprised by the cuts, saying there are very few places left to make cuts since K-12 funding consists of more than half the state budget. “It wasn’t unexpected to me,” Hill said. “There are precious few areas left where the budget can be cut and they are precious, all of them.” Please see Budget, Page 3