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• UPDATE 1-Republicans pledge to block Obama consumer finance pick

  WASHINGTON, Feb 1- U.S. Senate Republicans on Friday pledged to block President Barack Obama's choice to lead the consumer finance watchdog until Democrats agree to restructure it, ramping up an expected fight this year over the controversial new bureau.

• Neb. lawmakers asked to exempt pensions from taxes

  LINCOLN, Neb.-- Veterans' groups told lawmakers Thursday that Nebraska's tax on military retirement pay is driving people out of the state, while some lawmakers questioned whether the losses are influenced more by warmer climates and family connections elsewhere.

• Report: Kan. gov's tax plan causes 2018 shortfall

  TOPEKA, Kan.-- Kansas would face a $782 million budget shortfall in 2018 under Gov. The report from the nonpartisan Legislative Research Department undercuts Brownback's argument that his proposals would stabilize the budget and build healthy cash reserves while allowing the state to follow up on aggressive income tax cuts enacted last year.

• Kansas saw $62M in unexpected tax revenues in Jan.

  TOPEKA, Kan.-- Kansas revenue officials say the state collected $62 million more in taxes than expected in January. A preliminary report Thursday from the Department of Revenue says January's tax collections totaled nearly $635 million _ almost 11 percent above an official forecast for the month.

• Kan. House passes bill on public employee unions

  TOPEKA, Kan.-- The top Democrat in the Kansas Senate warned Thursday that there would be a "firestorm of protests" if senators follow the state House and approve a measure restricting political fundraising by public employee unions and teachers. Similar legislation cleared the House in 2011 but died in the Senate.

• U.S. spring crop season jeopardized as drought persists

  *Nebraska the most drought-stricken state. Jan 31- The unrelenting drought gripping key farming states in the U.S. It's not a pretty picture, "said climatologist Mark Svoboda of the University of Nebraska's Drought Mitigation Center.

• West U.S. Plains wheat stays starved for moisture

  Midwest rains lift Mississippi River water level. Plains states of Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado and Nebraska is expected to continue struggling through the worst drought in over 50 years into early February and perhaps longer, an agricultural meteorologist said on Thursday.

• Lobbyist: Kan. tax cuts last year hurt bank owners

  TOPEKA, Kan.-- A lobbyist for the Kansas Bankers Association is telling legislators that bank stockholders are paying $2.5 million more a year in taxes because of a law passed last year to eliminate income taxes for thousands of business owners.

• Kan. revenue chief touts governor's tax proposals

  TOPEKA, Kan.-- Kansas Revenue Secretary Nick Jordan is telling legislators that Kansas must further reduce individual income tax rates to remain competitive economically. Jordan testified Tuesday before the Senate Assessment and Taxation Committee on its first of three days of hearings on tax proposals from conservative Republican Gov.

• GRAINS-Soybean, corn futures rise on Argentina drought fears

  *Dry weather in Argentina, rain in Brazil among concerns. HAMBURG/ SINGAPORE, Jan 30- U.S. soybean futures rose for a fourth straight session on Wednesday with prices underpinned by drought fears in top exporter Argentina and concerns that rain will delay Brazil's crop.

• Kan. Senate panel reviewing governor's tax plan

  TOPEKA, Kan.-- Revenue Secretary Nick Jordan told legislators Tuesday that Kansas must further reduce individual income tax rates to remain economically competitive, but he faced questions about whether it's fair to the poor to offset those cuts by scrapping deductions for homeowners and raising additional sales tax revenues.

• GRAINS-Dryness in Argentina, U.S. Plains boosts prices

  *Dry weather in Argentina underpins corn, soy. CHICAGO, Jan 29- U.S. corn and soybean futures rose on Tuesday as dry weather threatened to reduce production in major exporter Argentina, while wheat jumped on deteriorating crop conditions in the U.S.

• Minimal relief coming to U.S. Plains drought area

  CHICAGO, Jan 29- Dry weather continues in the far western portion of the drought-stricken U.S. "There will be a lot of rain in the Midwest and northern Delta today and tomorrow and the rain will spread into the southeast Plains... eastern Kansas and eastern Oklahoma," said Don Keeney, a meteorologist for MDA EarthSat Weather.

• GRAINS-U.S. corn edges up on dry weather in Argentina

  *Dry weather in Argentina underpins corn, soy. LONDON, Jan 29- Chicago corn and soybean futures rose on Tuesday as dry weather threatened to reduce production in major exporter Argentina while wheat prices were boosted by deteriorating crop conditions in the U.S.

• Report: States force jobless to pay needless fees

  That's because states issue bank cards automatically, require complicated paperwork or phone calls to set up direct deposit and fail to explain the card fees, according to a report issued Tuesday by the National Consumer Law Center, a nonprofit group that seeks to protect low-income Americans from unfair financial-services products.

• Drought seen worsening in U.S. Plains and west Midwest

  Dee said there would be some light rain in the eastern portions of Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas late Monday and Tuesday, with heavier rainfall seen for the eastern and southeastern Midwest late Tuesday and Wednesday.

• UPDATE 1-GM to invest $600 mln in Kansas City car plant

  DETROIT, Jan 28- General Motors Co on Monday said it will invest $600 million at its assembly plant in Kansas City, Kansas, to build a new paint shop and make other upgrades. The investment is part of the U.S. automaker's previously announced plan to spend $1.5 billion on its North American plants this year, up from the $436 million last year.

• GRAINS-Wheat rallies on better-than-expected U.S. export data

  At the Chicago Board of Trade as of 10:24 a.m. CST, March wheat was up 11-1/ 2 cents, or 1.5 percent, at $7.80 per bushel. March soybeans were up 8-1/ 2 cents, 0.6 percent, at $14.43- 3/ 4 a bushel and March corn was up 2 cents, or 0.3 percent, at $7.26- 1/ 4 a bushel.

• UPDATE 1-SandRidge board finds no wrongdoing in land deals of CEO, family

  NEW YORK, Jan 25- SandRidge Energy Inc's board said Friday it reviewed land deals involving entities controlled by Chief Executive Tom Ward and his family and found no wrongdoing. Another top shareholder, Mount Kellett Capital Management, joined TPG-Axon in urging the board to further investigate the land deals.

• Tax Tattoos? Red States Look to Sales Over Income Taxes

  

  Republican governors are moving to cut income taxes, including proposals that would increase reliance on state sales taxes, setting up ambitious experiments in tax reform that could shape what is possible on a national level.