The Board of County Commissioners reached a tentative agreement on July 12 on an approximately $190.7 million budget for 2024. They agreed on a mill levy of 44.219 mills, which is a decrease of two mills from 2023. One mill is one dollar per $1,000 of assessed value.

The 2024 budget included growth in property values (assessed valuation) of 10.98%.  This higher than traditional rate of growth allowed the Commission to reduce the mill levy by $3.8 million in the general fund.  The 2024 budget does not eliminate any current county services. 

In the general fund — the largest and most general purpose of the County’s budgeted funds — approximately 77% of Douglas County’s revenues are from ad valorem taxes and 10% are from sales taxes. Total assessed valuation for real estate and personal property increased 10.98% in 2022 compared to 12.44% the year before. During the past two years, the assessed valuation growth rate has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent economic stimulus, leading to fluctuation in the normal rate of growth seen in Douglas County.

Fireworks can be legally discharged in the unincorporated areas of Douglas County as long as the property owner has given permission and provides supervision. Fireworks should not be discharged on a public street or roadway. Fireworks are allowed at the following times:

Douglas County Appraiser Steven Miles is retiring June 23, 2023. Miles began working in the Appraiser’s Office in 1991 and was appointed County Appraiser by the Board of County Commissioners in 2009. The public is welcome to attend a retirement reception for Miles from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, June 23, at the Douglas County Courthouse, 1100 Massachusetts St., in the County Commission meeting room.

At upcoming meetings of the Lawrence City Commission and Douglas County Commission, the City of Lawrence, Douglas County, and other members of the Housing and Homelessness stakeholder group will be sharing an update on the Housing and Homelessness Strategic Plan, which is called A Place for Everyone: A Community Plan to End Homelessness. 

Douglas County District Attorney Suzanne Valdez today announced that Isaiah J. Duckworth, 36, of Lawrence, was sentenced to 79 months in the Kansas Department of Corrections for the aggravated sexual battery of a teen.

Judge Sally D. Pokorny sentenced Duckworth to 47 months on the first count, and 32 months on the second count. Judge Pokorny ordered the sentences to run consecutively.

Duckworth was convicted of two counts of aggravated sexual battery on June 6, 2023, when he pleaded no contest at the beginning of his jury trial. 

Kansas Senate Bill 180 goes into effect on July 1, 2023. This statewide law bars transgender people from using restrooms, locker rooms and other public facilities that have been earmarked for cisgender use. Until this bill was passed, trans people were free to utilize these services according to their gender identity.

The Douglas County District Court Legal Self-Help Office is open to the public. The office will assist self-represented litigants with finding and filling out necessary forms as well as providing information about court processes and available resources. The office is open:

• 9 a.m.- noon Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays
• 1-4 p.m. Wednesdays

The Legal Self-Help Office is located in the Judicial and Law Enforcement Center, 111 E. Eleventh St., on the first floor next to the court security screening area.

The Douglas County Clerk’s Elections Office is being recognized today for excellence in election administration with a national Clearinghouse Award for “Outstanding Innovations in Elections – Small/Medium Jurisdictions.” Also, known as the “Clearies,” the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) presents the awards program annually to celebrate the hard work of election offices across the country.

Starting on Monday, March 6, Douglas County Route 458 (N1000 Road) is scheduled to be closed for construction at two locations:

The historic Douglas County Courthouse, 1100 Massachusetts Street, designed by famous architect John G. Haskell, has been a landmark in Northeast Kansas since its construction in 1903. Douglas County invites local organizations to display their artwork on its second floor, so that they may take part in its history. This will become a rotating exhibition in the administration department of the courthouse. 

The Treatment and Recovery Center (TRC) of Douglas County will begin a phased opening on April 10.

Douglas County Commissioners approved a lease agreement and an operating agreement on April 5 for the Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center to operate the TRC, located at 1000 W. Second St.