The Trenton City Council is requesting more information before it can decide whether to give an endorsement allowing a public vote to make the Grundy County Prosecuting Attorney position full-time instead of the current part-time. Kelly Puckett is the Prosecuting Attorney and prosecutes cases investigated by Trenton Police that result in felony charges. That’s in […]
Tag: ballot
Absentee ballots now available for April 5th Municipal Election
Absentee ballots are available for the April 5th Municipal Election at the county clerk’s offices in Grundy and Livingston counties. Absentee voting may be done during regular hours. The Grundy County Clerk’s Office in the courthouse in Trenton will be open for absentee voting on April 2nd from 8 o’clock to noon. The Livingston County […]
Disability advocates say to focus on accessibility in voting reforms
Experts say Missouri ranks low among states when it comes to steps it has taken to improve accessibility in voting. Denise Lieberman, director and general counsel of the Missouri Voter Protection Coalition, which has a disability-rights committee, said people with disabilities face barriers at all stages of the voting process, from registering to vote to […]
Missouri takes months to process Medicaid applications — longer than law allows
(Missouri Independent) – This story was originally published by Kaiser Health News. Aneka French applied for Medicaid in October, not long after Missouri became the 38th state to expand eligibility for the program. But her application sat for months in a backlog with tens of thousands of others. While she waited, French, 45, an uninsured medical […]
Audio: Missouri voters could be asked to let Legislature decide whether to fund Medicaid expansion
Missouri voters could be asked in November to let the Legislature decide whether to fund Medicaid expansion. The Missouri House has given initial approval to the proposed ballot measure. Last year, the Legislature attempted to defund the expansion population, but the Missouri Supreme Court ruled against that move. House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith says […]
Criticism of Missouri medical marijuana system seeps into initiative petition debate
(Missouri Independent) – A handful of Republican lawmakers lashed out at the state’s medical marijuana industry Thursday, lobbing accusations of corruption into a Missouri House debate over whether to make it harder to amend the state’s Constitution. On a mostly party-line 98-53 vote, the Missouri House signed off on legislation Thursday that would require a two-thirds […]
Grundy County Soil and Water Conservation District holding supervisor election
The Grundy County Soil and Water Conservation District is holding a supervisor election. David Meservey is running for Area 2, and Jared Lamma is running for Area 4. Both would be for four-year terms. Ballots can be found on the Missouri Soil and Water Conservation website. They can be mailed to the Grundy County Soil […]
Missouri Supreme Court tosses laws that blocked 2019 abortion bill referendum
(Missouri Independent) – In a case that grew out of a law making it a crime for a doctor to perform an abortion after eight weeks, the Missouri Supreme Court on Tuesday said those seeking to force a referendum on new laws can begin collecting signatures as soon as the bill is passed. The ruling threw […]
Audio: Bill to change Missouri’s ballot initiative process advances
Some Missouri Republican lawmakers are working to make it harder for voters to get an initiative on the ballot. A bill aimed at changing the ballot initiative process advanced Monday evening in the House of Representatives. It would require signatures of 10-percent from all Missouri’s congressional districts from the current requirement of 10-percent of voters […]
Judge approves most of Ashcroft’s summary for Missouri school funding ballot measure
(Missouri Independent) – A Cole County judge kept intact most of the ballot summary Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft wrote for an initiative petition seeking to bar public funds from going to private schools. On Wednesday, Cole County Circuit Court Judge Jon Beetem ruled that Ashcroft was correct to say in the summary that the […]
Missouri Groups to Lawmakers: Don’t limit citizen-led ballot petitions
Some lawmakers in Jefferson City are pushing forward bills that would limit citizens’ ability to put constitutional amendments on the ballot. The proposed legislation would double the number of signatures required to get on the ballot and raise the thresholds to pass them from a majority to two-thirds. Benjamin Singer, CEO of the group Show-Me Integrity, noted […]
Several file for positions on area boards and governing bodies that require no election
Some governmental jurisdictions in Grundy County will forgo an election on April 5th. That is because of a law that allows them to go without an election when the number of candidates is equal to the number of positions to be filled. The candidates will assume the responsibilities of their offices at the same time […]
Election Officials to Missourians: “Become a poll worker”
It is National Poll Worker Recruitment Day, and with April municipal elections coming up, clerks and boards of election across the state are looking for poll workers to help them run as smoothly as possible. Poll workers, sometimes known as election judges, have a number of responsibilities on Election Day. They set up the polling place, […]
As Missouri looks to legalize recreational marijuana, expungement gets renewed attention
(Missouri Independent) – The push to legalize recreational marijuana use in Missouri is coming from multiple directions, with a handful of proposed initiative petitions and at least one bill, and potentially more, backed by Republican lawmakers. Each hopes to place the issue on the 2022 ballot for voter approval. And each proposal also includes a […]
Missouri bipartisan campaign seeks to switch to ranked-choice voting
A ballot initiative in Missouri is seeking to change the way statewide elections are run. Currently, in the Show-Me State, there are party primaries in August, and voters choose between the winners of the primaries in November. The Better Elections initiative seeks to move to what’s known as ranked-choice voting. Rosetta Okohson, a Democratic consultant and co-leader of the […]
Missouri budget proposal includes dispersing federal funds for child care
More than half of Missouri families report paying more than $500 a month for child care, and child-care providers have been struggling to keep their doors open. Advocates for children say there are some promising actions the Legislature could take to improve both ends. Craig Stevenson, director of policy and advocacy with Kids Win Missouri, noted […]
State Senator Dan Hegeman files Bill 633 regarding election integrity and reform
State Senator Dan Hegeman has pre-filed Senate Bill 633 regarding election integrity and reform. While it contains some familiar language, Hegeman said it also embraces new technology, with what he called “voter safety” in mind. The legislative proposal would allow a local election official to oversee ballot-counting machines and ensure these machines are not connected […]
Governor Parson appoints Judge Jennifer Growcock to the Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District
Governor Parson has appointed Judge Jennifer Growcock to the Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District. Judge Growcock will succeed Judge Nancy Steffen Rahmeyer, who retired in October. Judge Growcock earned her Bachelor of Arts in English with minors in political science and psychology from the University of Iowa. She received a Juris Doctor from the […]
NCMC hosts legislative forum with four state representatives, one senator, two representatives for federal legislators and president of MCCA
Four state representatives, one state senator, two representatives for federal legislators, and the president of the Missouri Community College Association spoke at a forum in Trenton November 29th. The legislative forum was in Cross Hall on the campus of North Central Missouri College. The speakers were asked to answer one question: What is your perspective […]
Greene County taxpayers footed a $25,000 legal bill in connection with 2017 ballot measure ethics probe
Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway released the audit of the Greene County Commission that included the involvement of a former Greene County commissioner in a 2017 sales tax ballot measure campaign. Among its findings, the audit found that taxpayers paid more than $25,000 in legal invoices sent to the personal address of now-former Presiding Commissioner […]