Worsening drought conditions for much of Kansas have led Governor Sam Brownback to update the Drought Declaration for Kansas counties he previously issued. Executive Order 11-27 signed by the Governor today includes moving 15 counties from warning status up to emergency state.

· Declare a Drought Emergency, for the counties identified below;

· Authorize and direct all agencies under the jurisdiction of the Governor to implement the appropriate watch or warning level-drought response actions assigned in the Operations Plan of the Governor’s Drought Response Team.

The Governor’s Drought Response Team will continue to watch the situation closely and work to minimize the effects the drought has on Kansans.

For more detailed information about current conditions, see the Kansas Climate Summary and Drought Report on the Kansas Water Office website at: www.kwo.org

Drought Emergency: Barber, Clark, Comanche, Harper, Kingman, Kiowa, Meade , Morton, Pratt, Reno, Seward, Stafford, Stanton, Stevens, Sumner