EXECUTIVE ORDER 06-09

WHEREAS, the Director of the Kansas Water Office has informed me, pursuant to K.S.A. 74-2608, of the persistent drought conditions within the state; and

WHEREAS, Kansas, after experiencing one of its driest winters on record; has continued to experience deficient rainfall and high temperatures during the growing season leading to numerous grass and range fires, below normal reservoir and streamflow levels, deficient soil moisture and local public water supply shortages; and

WHEREAS, the Kansas Emergency Management Act (K.S.A. 48-924 et seq.) states that the Governor shall be responsible for meeting the dangers to the state and its people from disasters, including drought.

NOW, THEREFORE, pursuant to the authority vested in me as Governor of the State of Kansas, I hereby:

1. Declare or continue a Drought Warning for the counties identified below; and
2. Authorize and direct all agencies under the jurisdiction of the Governor to implement the appropriate Warning-level drought response actions assigned to them in the Operations Plan of the Governor’s Drought Response Team.

Drought Warning continued in these counties organized by Climate/Crop Reporting District:

Northwest:  Cheyenne, Rawlins, Decatur, Norton, Sherman, Thomas, Sheridan and Graham.

West Central:  Greeley, Wichita, Scott, Lane, Ness, Gove, Logan, Trego and Wallace.

Southwest:  Clark, Finney, Ford, Grant, Gray, Hamilton, Haskell, Hodgeman, Kearny, Meade, Morton, Seward, Stanton and Stevens.

North Central:  Phillips, Rooks, Smith, Jewell, Osborne, Mitchell, Republic, Washington, Cloud, Clay and Ottawa.

Central:  Barton, Dickinson, Ellis, Ellsworth, Lincoln, McPherson, Marion, Rice, Rush, Russell and Saline.

South Central:  Barber, Comanche, Edwards, Harper, Harvey, Kingman, Kiowa, Pawnee, Pratt, Reno, Sedgwick, Stafford and Sumner.

Southeast:  Allen, Bourbon, Butler, Chautauqua, Cherokee, Cowley, Crawford, Elk, Greenwood, Labette, Montgomery, Neosho, Wilson and Woodson.

Drought Warning declared in these counties organized by Climate/Crop Reporting District

Northeast:  Atchison, Brown, Doniphan, Jackson, Jefferson, Leavenworth, Marshall, Nemaha, Pottawatomie, Riley and Wyandotte.

East Central:  Anderson, Chase, Coffey, Douglas, Franklin, Geary, Johnson, Linn, Lyon, Miami, Morris, Osage, Shawnee and Wabaunsee.

County drought stages declared in this Executive Order shall remain in effect until revised or rescinded by a subsequent Executive Order.

This document shall be filed with the Secretary of State as Executive Order No. 06-09 and shall become effective immediately.