Stevens County is located in the far southwest corner of Kansas, along the Oklahoma state line and near the Colorado border. Organized in 1886 during the late-19th-century settlement of western Kansas, it developed as part of the High Plains agricultural region. The county is small in population, with roughly 5,000 residents, and is characterized by a predominantly rural settlement pattern centered on a few small communities. Agriculture is a primary economic base, with irrigated and dryland crop production and livestock operations supported by the area’s flat to gently rolling prairie landscape. Land use is dominated by farmland and rangeland, and the region’s semi-arid climate shapes both water use and cropping choices. Hugoton is the county seat and the largest city, serving as the main hub for local government, services, and commerce in Stevens County.

Stevens County Local Demographic Profile

Stevens County is a rural county in far southwestern Kansas, bordering Oklahoma and located within the High Plains region. The county seat is Hugoton, and county services are administered locally through county government.

For local government and planning resources, visit the Stevens County, Kansas official website.

Population Size

According to the U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts profile for Stevens County, Kansas, the county’s population size is reported on the county’s QuickFacts page (including the most recent annual estimate and the 2020 Census count).

Age & Gender

According to the U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts profile for Stevens County, Kansas, county-level age and gender indicators are provided on the same profile page, including:

  • Percent of the population under age 18
  • Percent age 65 and over
  • Percent female (gender composition)

Racial & Ethnic Composition

According to the U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts profile for Stevens County, Kansas, the county’s racial and ethnic composition is reported using standard Census categories, including:

  • Race (e.g., White, Black or African American, American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, Two or more races)
  • Hispanic or Latino (of any race)

Household Data

According to the U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts profile for Stevens County, Kansas, household characteristics reported at the county level include:

  • Total number of households
  • Average household size
  • Owner-occupied housing unit rate (a commonly used proxy for owner vs. renter occupancy at the county level)

Housing Data

According to the U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts profile for Stevens County, Kansas, housing indicators reported at the county level include:

  • Total housing units
  • Housing unit owner-occupancy rate
  • Median value of owner-occupied housing units (where available on the profile)
  • Median selected monthly owner costs and median gross rent (where available on the profile)

Source Notes (Coverage and Availability)

The U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts county profile compiles multiple Census Bureau programs (including the decennial census and American Community Survey). Some detailed measures may be suppressed or shown as unavailable for smaller geographies in certain years; in those cases, the QuickFacts profile displays the unavailability directly rather than providing an estimate.

Email Usage

Stevens County, Kansas is a sparsely populated, largely rural county where longer distances between homes and providers can constrain fixed-line infrastructure, influencing how reliably residents can access email and other online services. Direct county-level email usage statistics are not routinely published; broadband subscription, device access, and demographics serve as proxies for likely email adoption.

Digital access indicators for Stevens County are available through the U.S. Census Bureau data portal (ACS), including household broadband subscriptions and computer ownership, which are commonly used to gauge practical access to email. Age structure also shapes email adoption because older populations tend to have lower rates of routine internet use; Stevens County age distribution can be referenced via QuickFacts for Stevens County. Gender composition is generally less predictive of email adoption than age and connectivity, but local male/female distribution is also reported in QuickFacts.

Connectivity constraints in rural Kansas—such as limited last-mile options and variable speeds—are reflected in provider coverage and broadband-availability reporting from the FCC National Broadband Map.

Mobile Phone Usage

Stevens County is in far southwest Kansas on the High Plains, bordering Colorado and Oklahoma. It is predominantly rural with a low population density and large distances between population centers (notably Hugoton as the county seat). Flat to gently rolling terrain generally supports wide-area radio propagation, while long backhaul distances, fewer towers, and smaller customer bases typically constrain the economics of dense mobile network buildouts. For baseline geography and population context, see Census.gov QuickFacts for Stevens County.

Key distinction: network availability vs. household adoption

  • Network availability (supply-side): Where carriers report coverage and where broadband-capable service is considered available by federal and state datasets.
  • Adoption/usage (demand-side): Whether residents actually subscribe to mobile service, rely on smartphones for internet access, or maintain fixed home broadband alongside mobile.

County-specific adoption metrics are limited; many authoritative adoption indicators are published at the state or multi-county survey level rather than for a single rural county.

Mobile penetration or access indicators (where available)

Direct county-level measures

  • County-level “mobile penetration” is not consistently published in a single official statistic (for example, a countywide percent of residents with an active mobile subscription). The most comparable public indicators tend to be:
    • Household internet subscription and device type measures from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS), which can be used to assess household adoption of internet service and the prevalence of cellular-data-only households (where available in table detail).
    • Broadband availability datasets that describe where service could be provided, not whether it is purchased.

For device and subscription-related household indicators, ACS tables accessible via data.census.gov are the primary federal source. County-level detail can be constrained by sampling and margins of error in low-population areas.

State-level context relevant to Stevens County

  • Kansas-level smartphone ownership and mobile internet use patterns are available through national surveys (for example, Pew Research Center), but these are not county-specific and therefore should not be treated as Stevens County estimates. (These sources provide context only, not local measurement.)

Mobile internet usage patterns (4G, 5G availability)

4G LTE and 5G network availability (supply-side)

  • The most widely cited federal source for carrier-reported mobile broadband coverage is the FCC’s Broadband Data Collection and associated maps. These indicate reported availability by technology (e.g., LTE, 5G) rather than adoption.

Important limitations for rural counties:

  • FCC mobile coverage is based on provider-submitted propagation models and can overstate real-world performance, especially at cell edges and indoors. It is best interpreted as availability claims, not measured user experience.
  • Coverage within the county can vary substantially between the county seat, highway corridors, and sparsely populated areas.

Typical rural usage patterns (evidence constraints)

  • County-specific breakdowns of how many users are on 4G vs. 5G are generally not published in public administrative datasets.
  • In rural Kansas, mobile internet use commonly concentrates along highways and population centers where tower density and backhaul are more robust; however, public datasets do not quantify this at the Stevens County level.

Fixed vs. mobile broadband relationship

  • Rural households may use mobile broadband as a supplement to fixed broadband or as a primary connection where fixed infrastructure is limited. County-level measurement of “mobile-only internet households” may be available through ACS table detail, but estimates can be unstable due to small sample sizes. The ACS remains the best public source for adoption comparisons between fixed and cellular internet subscriptions (when available in published tables).

Common device types (smartphones vs. other devices)

What is measurable publicly

  • County-level device ownership (smartphone vs. basic phone) is not typically available as an official county statistic.
  • The ACS provides household-level indicators related to computing devices and internet subscriptions (such as presence of a computer and type of internet subscription), which can partially illuminate the balance between mobile and non-mobile access. Access these via data.census.gov and related ACS documentation on the American Community Survey site.

Interpreting device mix in a rural county (without overstating precision)

  • Publicly available county data tends to support statements about internet subscription types more reliably than phone device types.
  • Device-type insights (smartphone vs. feature phone) are generally obtained from commercial market research or state/national surveys, which do not publish representative county-level estimates for small rural counties.

Demographic or geographic factors influencing mobile usage

Geography and settlement pattern

  • Low population density and dispersed residences increase the cost per user for tower siting, maintenance, and fiber/microwave backhaul, shaping where carriers invest in capacity upgrades.
  • Flat High Plains terrain can aid long-range coverage, but it does not eliminate gaps caused by limited tower density or backhaul constraints.

Population distribution and travel corridors

  • Mobile performance and technology availability typically differ between:
    • Hugoton and other settled areas (more consistent coverage and higher likelihood of newer radios)
    • State highways and major routes (often prioritized for continuous coverage)
    • Remote farmland and oil/gas-related areas (coverage may be more variable depending on tower placement)

These are structural factors; publicly available datasets generally do not quantify them at fine spatial resolution beyond modeled coverage displays (FCC) and broadband availability layers (state/federal).

Socioeconomic factors (adoption-side)

  • Household adoption of mobile and broadband services is associated in many studies with income, age, and educational attainment, but county-specific causal estimates are not available in standard public datasets. For county demographic profiles used as correlates (not proof of causation), the most authoritative sources are:

County-relevant public data sources for availability and adoption

Data limitations and reporting cautions

  • County-level mobile penetration (subscription) is not published as a single official indicator in major federal statistical programs.
  • FCC coverage reflects reported availability, not measured speeds, indoor reliability, or congestion during peak hours.
  • ACS county estimates can have large margins of error in sparsely populated counties; figures derived from detailed tables should be interpreted with that limitation in mind.
  • Device-type detail (smartphone vs. feature phone) is not typically available at the county level from public sources; county reporting focuses more on household internet subscriptions and general computing device presence.

Social Media Trends

Stevens County is in far southwestern Kansas along the Oklahoma border, with Hugoton as the county seat. The area is sparsely populated and strongly shaped by agriculture and energy activity (including oil and natural gas), characteristics that tend to align with heavier reliance on mobile connectivity, community Facebook networks, and messaging for local information sharing.

User statistics (penetration / active use)

  • Local (county-specific) social media penetration: No regularly published, statistically reliable dataset reports platform usage specifically for Stevens County residents.
  • Best available benchmarks (U.S. adult adoption): National survey data indicates about 7 in 10 U.S. adults use social media. This benchmark is commonly used as a proxy baseline in small-area contexts where direct measurement is unavailable (see Pew Research Center’s Social Media Fact Sheet).
  • Kansas context: Kansas is more rural than the U.S. average, and rural adults tend to report lower social media use than urban/suburban adults in national polling; this rural–urban gradient is documented in Pew’s platform breakdowns (see the same Pew Research Center platform fact sheet).

Age group trends

National patterns consistently show social media use decreasing with age, with the highest use among younger adults:

  • 18–29: Highest adoption across most platforms; strongest concentration on visually driven and video-first apps.
  • 30–49: High, broad multi-platform use; strong representation on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
  • 50–64: Moderate adoption; Facebook and YouTube dominate, with lower usage on newer youth-skewing platforms.
  • 65+: Lowest adoption overall, but Facebook and YouTube remain the most commonly used platforms among users. Source: Pew Research Center (U.S. adults by age, platform use).

Gender breakdown

Across major platforms, gender skews vary by service in national survey data:

  • Women tend to be more represented on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
  • Men tend to be more represented on YouTube and are more likely to report using some discussion- or news-adjacent platforms. These gender patterns are reported in platform-by-demographic tables in the Pew Research Center Social Media Fact Sheet.

Most-used platforms (with percentages where possible)

County-level platform shares are not published in standard public datasets; the most defensible percentages come from national surveys of U.S. adults:

  • YouTube: ~83% of U.S. adults
  • Facebook: ~68%
  • Instagram: ~47%
  • Pinterest: ~35%
  • TikTok: ~33%
  • LinkedIn: ~30%
  • X (Twitter): ~22%
  • Snapchat: ~27%
  • WhatsApp: ~29% Source: Pew Research Center’s Social Media Fact Sheet (latest reported platform adoption percentages for U.S. adults).

Behavioral trends (engagement patterns / preferences)

  • Video is a dominant mode of engagement: YouTube’s high penetration nationally indicates broad cross-age video consumption and “how-to”/information-seeking behavior, which aligns with rural audiences’ practical content preferences reported in multiple digital use studies (platform penetration source: Pew Research Center).
  • Community information flows favor Facebook in rural areas: Local organizations, schools, and community groups commonly rely on Facebook Pages/Groups for announcements and event updates; nationally, Facebook remains the most widely used “network” platform among adults (source: Pew Research Center).
  • Younger-skewing entertainment platforms show sharper age concentration: TikTok and Snapchat usage is disproportionately higher among younger adults, producing higher posting frequency and short-form video engagement relative to older groups (source: Pew Research Center).
  • Messaging and private sharing are significant alongside public posting: National research notes a long-term shift toward more private or small-audience sharing behaviors in addition to public feeds, with messaging features integrated into major platforms (context summarized across Pew internet and social media reporting: Pew Research Center internet research).
  • Rural connectivity constraints shape usage patterns: In sparsely populated counties, engagement often clusters around mobile access and asynchronous consumption (scrolling video, checking community updates), reflecting broader rural broadband and usage realities tracked by federal reporting (connectivity context: FCC National Broadband Map).

Family & Associates Records

Stevens County, Kansas family-related records are primarily maintained at the state level through the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) Office of Vital Statistics. Kansas issues certified copies of birth and death certificates (and other vital records), while county offices commonly provide local assistance and limited informational services rather than serving as the official custodian. Requests, identity requirements, and fees are administered by KDHE via Kansas Vital Records (KDHE).

Adoption records are generally handled through the court system and are typically sealed; access is restricted under Kansas law and court procedures. Court-related family filings and case indexing for Stevens County are administered through the Kansas Judicial Branch; access information and court contact details are available through the Stevens County District Court (Kansas Judicial Branch). Kansas provides a statewide online case search portal for courts through Kansas District Court Public Access.

Associate-related public records commonly include marriage licenses (often maintained by the district court/clerk in Kansas) and property records that document relationships such as joint ownership. Stevens County real estate records are maintained by the Register of Deeds; recorded-document access and office information are provided by Stevens County, Kansas (official website).

Privacy restrictions apply broadly to vital records (certified copies limited to eligible requestors) and to sealed adoption files; non-certified informational access varies by record type and custodian.

Marriage & Divorce Records

Types of records available

  • Marriage licenses and marriage records
    • Marriage licenses are issued at the county level and, after completion and return, the marriage record is maintained as part of county vital records practices and state vital records holdings.
  • Divorce decrees (divorce judgments)
    • Divorces are handled as civil court cases. The final decree is part of the district court case file.
  • Annulments
    • Annulments are also handled as civil court matters in district court. The final journal entry/order (or decree) is kept in the court case file in the same manner as divorces.

Where records are filed and how they can be accessed

  • Stevens County marriage records (local issuance)
    • Marriage licenses are issued by the Stevens County Clerk (county-level issuance).
    • Access is generally through the county clerk’s office for local marriage license records and through the Kansas state vital records system for certified copies and statewide indexing practices.
  • Stevens County divorce and annulment records (court filings)
    • Divorce and annulment case files are maintained by the Stevens County District Court Clerk as part of the official district court record.
    • Public access is typically provided through the clerk of the district court for in-person records review and copies, subject to redaction and confidentiality rules.
    • Kansas courts also provide electronic case docket access via the Kansas Judicial Branch’s public access portal, which commonly displays register-of-actions/docket information with document access subject to court rules and restrictions: https://www.kansas.gov/countyCourts/
  • State-level vital records
    • The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), Office of Vital Statistics, maintains statewide marriage and divorce certificate files and issues certified copies under state rules: https://www.kdhe.ks.gov/1185/Vital-Statistics

Typical information included in these records

  • Marriage license / marriage record (county and state formats vary)
    • Full legal names of the parties
    • Date and place of marriage (and/or license issuance and return)
    • Ages/birthdates (often recorded), and sometimes birthplaces
    • Names of officiant and witnesses (as recorded on the returned license)
    • License number, filing/recording details, and certifying official information
  • Divorce decree / divorce case record
    • Names of the parties and case caption
    • Case number, county, and court
    • Date of filing and date of final decree/journal entry
    • Findings and orders addressing dissolution of the marriage
    • Orders on children (legal custody/parenting time), child support, spousal maintenance, and property/debt division, as applicable
    • Restored former name orders, when granted
  • Annulment order / annulment case record
    • Names of the parties and case caption
    • Case number, county, and court
    • Legal basis and findings supporting annulment
    • Orders addressing related issues (property, support, children) as applicable under Kansas law and court practice

Privacy or legal restrictions

  • Marriage records (certified copies)
    • Certified copies issued by KDHE Vital Statistics are subject to Kansas eligibility and identification requirements. Access rules are governed by state vital records statutes and administrative policies.
  • Divorce and annulment court records
    • Court case records are generally public records at the case and docket level, but specific documents or information may be restricted by statute, court rule, or court order.
    • Common restrictions include sealed filings; confidential information protected by law; and required redaction of sensitive identifiers (such as Social Security numbers, financial account numbers, and information involving minors) from publicly accessible copies.
    • Records involving adoption, certain domestic violence protections, or other specially protected proceedings may have additional confidentiality protections when they appear within or alongside family-law case files.
  • Access format limitations
    • Online docket systems commonly provide case event information and limited document access, while certified copies and complete files are obtained through the official custodian (KDHE for vital records; district court clerk for decrees and case filings), subject to applicable fees and legal restrictions.

Education, Employment and Housing

Stevens County is in far southwest Kansas along the Oklahoma border, with Hugoton as the county seat and largest community. The county is rural and sparsely populated relative to Kansas as a whole, with an economy historically tied to agriculture and oil-and-gas activity in the Hugoton Gas Field area, and with daily life organized around a small number of schools, a regional healthcare presence, and long-distance commuting typical of the High Plains.

Education Indicators

Public schools (counts and names)

  • Primary public school system: Hugoton USD 210 (county’s main unified district serving Hugoton and surrounding areas).
  • Public schools (commonly listed under USD 210):
    • Hugoton Elementary School
    • Hugoton Middle School
    • Hugoton High School
  • School and district profiles are typically summarized in state and federal reporting, including the Kansas Report Card and National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) district/school entries (directory-style listings): Kansas Report Card (KSDE); NCES.
    Note: A definitive current school roster can vary by year (e.g., grade reconfigurations or building naming). The sources above are the standard references for the most current listings.

Student–teacher ratios and graduation rates

  • Student–teacher ratio (proxy): Rural Kansas districts of comparable size commonly fall in the low-to-mid teens (students per teacher); a county-specific ratio is reported in USD-level profiles (KSDE and NCES).
  • Graduation rate: Kansas publishes four-year adjusted cohort graduation rates at the district and high-school level through KSDE; Stevens County’s public high school graduation outcome is captured under Hugoton High School / USD 210 in the Kansas Report Card.
    Data availability note: Countywide “one-number” ratios and graduation rates are not always provided as a county aggregation; district/school reporting is the standard unit.

Adult educational attainment

  • Adult educational attainment is typically tracked through the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) at the county level (25+ population). Stevens County generally reflects a more vocational/industry-aligned rural attainment profile than the Kansas average, with:

Notable programs (STEM, CTE, AP)

  • Kansas high schools commonly offer a mix of Career and Technical Education (CTE) pathways (e.g., agriculture, mechanics/industrial technology, business) aligned with regional employers and trades; AP/dual-credit availability varies by cohort size and staffing.
  • District-level program offerings are typically documented in district materials and KSDE reporting; the most consistent statewide reference for outcomes and accountability context remains the Kansas Report Card.
    Proxy note: In rural High Plains districts, CTE participation is typically a prominent component of secondary programming due to local labor-market demand.

School safety measures and counseling resources

  • Kansas districts generally implement standard safety practices such as controlled building access, visitor management, emergency drills, and coordination with local law enforcement; counseling services are typically provided via school counselors (often shared across grade spans in smaller districts) and, where available, partnerships with regional behavioral health providers.
    Data limitation: Public, county-specific inventories of security hardware/staffing are not consistently published as a single dataset; district handbooks/board policies are the usual sources.

Employment and Economic Conditions

Unemployment rate (most recent year available)

  • The most consistently cited official local unemployment statistics are published through the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS) and Kansas labor-market products. The latest annual and monthly rates are available via BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) and Kansas labor-market summaries (often compiled through the state labor agency).
    Data note: A single “most recent year” figure varies depending on whether the reference is the latest annual average or the latest monthly estimate; LAUS is the authoritative series.

Major industries and employment sectors

Stevens County employment is typically concentrated in:

  • Agriculture (crop and livestock operations and support services)
  • Oil and gas / energy-related activity (historical linkage to the Hugoton Gas Field, plus related services)
  • Local government and education
  • Healthcare and social assistance (clinics, long-term care, and regional providers)
  • Retail and accommodation/food services (serving local and regional travel demand)

Sector employment mixes at the county level are available through the ACS and other federal datasets (e.g., ACS industry/occupation tables).

Common occupations and workforce breakdown

Common occupational groups in rural southwest Kansas counties typically include:

  • Management and business (small-business owners, farm operators, public administration)
  • Education, healthcare, and community services
  • Construction, extraction, and maintenance (including energy-related and building trades)
  • Production, transportation, and material moving (ag processing/logistics where present)
  • Sales and office support County-level distributions are published through ACS occupation tables at data.census.gov.
    Proxy note: Due to small population size, year-to-year sampling variability can be more noticeable in ACS 1-year/5-year estimates; 5-year ACS is commonly used for stability.

Commuting patterns and mean commute times

  • Commuting in Stevens County typically features high auto dependence and longer rural drive times relative to metropolitan counties, with limited public transit.
  • Mean commute time and commuting mode share are reported in ACS “commuting characteristics” tables (e.g., mean travel time to work; percent driving alone/carpooling) at data.census.gov.
    Regional proxy: Rural southwest Kansas counties commonly show mean commutes in the ~15–25 minute range, with a meaningful share commuting to nearby counties for specialized jobs and services.

Local employment vs. out-of-county work

  • A typical rural pattern is a sizable share of residents working within the county in schools, healthcare, local government, agriculture, and local services, while others work out-of-county in adjacent Kansas counties or across the Oklahoma line for energy, healthcare, construction, and specialized trades.
  • Formal “inflow/outflow” commuting shares can be approximated using U.S. Census commuting flow products; one commonly used reference is the Census Bureau’s workforce/commuting datasets accessible through OnTheMap / LEHD (where available).

Housing and Real Estate

Homeownership rate and rental share

  • Stevens County’s tenure pattern is typically majority owner-occupied, consistent with rural Kansas counties, with a smaller rental market concentrated in town.
  • Official homeownership and rental shares are reported via ACS housing tables at data.census.gov.
    Proxy note: Rural counties in the region commonly show homeownership rates around two-thirds to three-quarters of occupied units, with rentals concentrated in Hugoton and other small towns.

Median property values and recent trends

  • Median owner-occupied home value is available via ACS. In rural southwest Kansas, median values are generally below the Kansas statewide median, with trends influenced by:
    • interest rates and construction costs,
    • local employment cycles (especially energy-related),
    • limited inventory and slower housing turnover.
  • County-level median value estimates and time-series context (via multi-year ACS comparisons) are available at data.census.gov.
    Trend proxy: Recent years across rural Kansas have generally seen upward nominal price pressure (construction and financing costs), though smaller markets can show uneven year-to-year changes.

Typical rent prices

  • Typical gross rent levels are reported in ACS (median gross rent). In small rural markets like Stevens County, rents typically remain lower than large Kansas metros, with limited multifamily supply.
  • County median gross rent is available via ACS housing rent tables.
    Proxy note: Rental stock is often dominated by single-family rentals, duplexes, and small apartment buildings, producing a narrower range of advertised units than urban areas.

Types of housing

  • Single-family detached homes dominate owner-occupied stock in and around Hugoton.
  • Rural homes on larger lots/acreages are common outside city limits, often tied to agricultural operations.
  • Apartments and small multifamily units exist primarily in town, typically as small complexes or duplex-style properties rather than high-density buildings.

Neighborhood characteristics (proximity to schools or amenities)

  • In Hugoton, housing near the main school campuses tends to be within short driving distance of schools, parks, and core services (grocery, clinics, municipal offices). Outside town, housing is characterized by greater distances to services and reliance on highway travel for shopping and healthcare.
  • Because the county has a limited number of population centers, most residential areas are functionally connected to Hugoton’s school and amenity nodes.

Property tax overview (average rate and typical homeowner cost)

  • Kansas property taxes are based on assessed value (a fraction of market value) multiplied by local mill levies; effective rates vary by jurisdiction and school funding needs.
  • County-level property tax burden can be summarized using:
    • ACS median real estate taxes paid (owner-occupied units),
    • Kansas/Local government mill levy publications.
      A common national reference for county property tax comparisons is OfficialData.org county property tax summaries (secondary compilation), while Kansas local levy details are often published through county appraisal and Kansas government finance sources.
      Proxy note: In rural Kansas counties, effective property tax rates often fall near ~1.2%–1.8% of market value annually, but the most accurate local measure is the county’s effective rate derived from actual levy and assessed valuations.

Data-quality note (county scale): Stevens County’s small population means that some ACS estimates can have wider margins of error, and education metrics are most reliable when taken from district/school administrative reporting (KSDE/NCES) rather than countywide aggregations.

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