Category: Business

Eighteen permits for single-family homes issued in May

Permits for new single-family home starts in Kansas City, Kan., were down slightly in May, according to Unified Government statistics.

Sixty-nine new single-family home permits were issued from January to May 2014 as compared to 75 from January to May 2013, a slight drop of six. It was a slighter drop than January-April 2014, which was down 26 percent from January-April 2013.

The value of the home permits issued, $12.5 million, was up 6 percent in January to May 2014 as compared to January to May 2013.

According to the Greater Kansas City Home Builders Association May statistics, 15 of the new home permits issued in May were in Kansas City, Kan., while three were in Bonner Springs.

Johnson County, Kan., including 14 cities, had the highest number of single-family building permits issued in May, at 153, according to GKC-HBA statistics. Jackson County, Mo., had the second highest number of new home permits in May, at 69.

According to the GKC-HBA, although the market is continuing to improve, the numbers in the Kansas City metropolitan area were a little short of April’s.

While residential building permits have not yet regained the levels established during the past 35 years, May extended the levels achieved during the past year, a GKC-HBA spokesman stated.

In the metropolitan area, the year-to-date total for 2014 is 1,685 single-family permits, while in May, there were 381 single-family permits in the metropolitan area, according to GKC-HBA statistics. May was a decrease of 60 permits from April, but the year-to-date total is a 4 percent increase over 2013.

Multi-family permits are up by 200 in the metropolitan area for the first five months of the year. Wyandotte County did not record any new multi-family permits in May.

May sales tax distributions holding their own

The Wyandotte County economy is holding its own currently in comparison with one year ago.

According to sales tax distribution figures compiled by the Unified Government for May, total figures were up just one-tenth of one percent in May. April sales tax distribution figures were up 16.9 percent in comparison with April of 2013.

Manufacturing was very strong in May 2014. There was a 33.8 percent increase in sales tax collections in the manufacturing sector for May 2014 as compared to May 2013.

Construction showed a 33.5 percent increase for the same period of comparison. Utilities were up 15.2 percent, while the wholesale trade was down very slightly, about one-tenth of one percent.

Retail showed some highs and lows in May, with motor vehicle and parts dealers up 22.1 percent; furniture, electronics and appliances down 39.2 percent; building material and garden supplies up 17.7 percent; groceries down 6.4 percent; health and personal care down 15.8 percent; gasoline stations and convenience stores up 1.5 percent; apparel and general merchandise stores down 5.7 percent; and miscellaneous store retailers down 52.2 percent.

The figures do not include the speedway and tourism district areas of Kansas City, Kan.

Supreme Court decision an ‘important victory’ in Kansas’ fight against federal overregulation, Kansas attorney general says

The U.S. Supreme Court today sided with Kansas and blocked the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency from proceeding with greenhouse gas regulations.

In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court held that EPA exceeded the statutory authority that Congress gave it. The decision is expected to have an effect on the Board of Public Utilities and Kansas City, Kan., electric customers.

Kansas argued that EPA tried to shoehorn regulation of greenhouse gases into parts of the Clean Air Act that were not meant to regulate greenhouse gases, according to Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt.

The Supreme Court agreed, stating that it was “patently unreasonable—not to say outrageous—for EPA to insist on seizing expansive power that it admits the statute is not designed to grant.”

“This is an important victory for Kansas jobs, our state’s economy, and the rule of law,” Schmidt said. “The bottom line is that EPA cannot rewrite federal statutes to pursue a regulatory agenda that is beyond its statutory authority.”

Schmidt led a group of six states in support of the Texas-led legal challenge to the EPA regulations. The Kansas support was filed with the Supreme Court in December 2013.

“This ruling is about basic civics: Those who seek additional government controls on greenhouse gases need to engage the United States Congress, where issues like these can be fully debated—not bypass Congress and attempt to stretch existing laws beyond all recognition,” Schmidt said. “To ensure that any regulatory action EPA pursues stays within the law, Kansas stands ready and willing to challenge any regulation that exceeds EPA’s authority.”

The proposed EPA rule had been expected to cost billions of dollars in administrative and permitting costs, which in turn would have driven up electric rates for consumers. The regulations could have eventually required stationary sources such as Kansas schools, churches, shopping centers and small businesses to get expensive greenhouse gas permits.

The case is Utility Air Regulatory Group v. EPA, No. 12-1146, which was consolidated with Texas v. EPA, No. 12-1269 and four other cases.