(Missouri Independent) – A constitutional amendment asking Missourians to let lawmakers decide year-to-year whether the state will offer Medicaid to working-age adults moved closer to passage on Wednesday. By an 8-5 vote, the Senate Appropriations Committee sent the House-passed proposal to the full Senate for debate. Only Sen. Lincoln Hough, R-Springfield, voted with Democrats to oppose the measure, which […]
Tag: billion
Missouri State Treasurer, MOST 529, and Sallie Mae to hold free webinar about paying for education
As part of Financial Literacy Month, Missouri State Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick, MOST 529, and Sallie Mae are partnering to bring a free webinar to Missourians focused on paying for higher education. The free virtual event will take place on Tuesday, April 19 at 6 p.m. Those who wish to participate can register here. The webinar will feature […]
Audio: Missouri House leaders support one-time $500 tax credit
Leaders in the Missouri House are supporting a plan to give residents a one-time economic recovery tax credit to help with the increased cost of living. House Budget Committee Chair Cody Smith of Carthage says his bill would provide a $500 credit to anyone who filed a 2021 income tax return and couples […]
Supreme Court refuses to hear Kim Gardner appeal in Eric Greitens records case
(Missouri Independent) – It will be up to a St. Louis judge to decide how long Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner has to produce records sought by a journalist considered an ally of former Gov. Eric Greitens. The Missouri Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to hear a last-ditch appeal by Gardner of an order giving her […]
Record Missouri surplus likely to grow under $46.5B House budget plan
(Missouri Independent) – The biggest state budget in Missouri history could also leave the biggest surplus in state history when the next fiscal year ends. The Missouri House on Thursday sent 15 appropriation bills to the state Senate, one supplemental spending bill for the current fiscal year, and 14 spending $46.5 billion in the coming year. The […]
University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine tracking the spread of bird flu, one test at a time
Throughout the country, an extremely infectious disease called highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) has been circulating rapidly among flocks of chicken and turkeys. While the disease poses little risk to humans, it presents a serious threat to infected birds as well as the nation’s poultry industry, which is already facing supply chain disruptions. At the […]
Missouri House signs off on $46.2 billion budget, leaves most of huge state surplus untouched
(Missouri Independent) – The Missouri House gave first-round approval Tuesday to a package of budget bills spending $46.2 billion, with Republicans defeating repeated Democratic efforts to tap the state’s record surplus. The budget includes boosts to higher education funding, both for institutions and scholarships, as well as funding one of last year’s most controversial issues, Medicaid […]
Missouri Senate committee takes up bill targeting Grain Belt Express transmission line
(Missouri Independent) – The Missouri Senate is poised to take up a long-running effort to stymie the Grain Belt Express, a massive transmission line meant to carry wind energy from southwest Kansas across three states. The $2 billion project would carry 4,000 megawatts of energy, dropping some off in Missouri before ending at the Illinois-Indiana […]
House Budget Committee rejects adding surplus revenue to Missouri public schools, colleges
(Missouri Independent) – Missouri’s record general revenue surplus was off-limits for spending plans as the House Budget Committee worked Thursday, defeating Democratic efforts to give boost money for public schools and state colleges. The only significant addition to education budgets approved by the committee was to restart the teacher Career Ladder program, providing $21 million to give experienced […]
Missouri House bill would cut down on poisonous lead in school drinking water
(Missouri Independent) – Missouri children would be better protected from lead poisoning under a state legislative bill to require schools to nearly rid their drinking water of the dangerous toxin. The bill, heard Monday by the House Conservation and Natural Resources Committee, would require schools to test drinking water, remove old coolers and filter water where […]
Supreme Court to hear case against Proposition 12 by National Pork Producers Council and American Farm Bureau Federation
The U.S. Supreme Court at its Mar. 25 conference agreed to hear a case brought by the National Pork Producers Council and the American Farm Bureau Federation against California’s Proposition 12, which bans the sale of pork from hogs born to sows that weren’t raised according to the state’s “arbitrary” production standards. “We are extremely […]
U.S. to accept 100,000 Ukrainian refugees, levy more sanctions on Russia
(Missouri Independent) – The White House announced a wave of new sanctions against Russia on Thursday while pledging to send more humanitarian assistance to Ukraine and welcome up to 100,000 refugees. The new economic restrictions on Russia and billions more in aid for Ukrainians were detailed as President Joe Biden huddled with the North Atlantic […]
Republicans push work requirements for coverage under Missouri Medicaid expansion
(Missouri Independent) – When the Good Samaritan Care Clinic opened in 2006 in Mountain View, only about 5% of the free clinic’s clients were eligible for Medicaid. When it closed late last year, that number had risen to 70%, Dr. John Roberts, one of the clinic’s founders, told the Missouri Senate Appropriations Committee on Tuesday. Medicaid […]
Missouri Celebrates National Agriculture Week
This week, the Missouri Department of Agriculture celebrates the state’s position nationally in agriculture production. Missouri is home to 95,000 farms, employs nearly 460,000 people in agriculture, forestry, and related industries, and has an estimated economic impact of $93.7 billion. Agriculture remains the state’s number one economic driver, supporting both rural and urban communities from […]
Missouri State Auditor releases annual report examining state’s financial reporting processes
State Auditor Nicole Galloway released her office’s annual report on the state’s financial reporting processes. The report examines Missouri’s annual statewide financial statements and makes recommendations to ensure accurate financial reporting, which better protects and accounts for taxpayer resources. Auditors found that the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations needs to improve controls in the […]
Biden urges city leaders to take advantage of billions in federal relief funds
(Missouri Independent) – President Joe Biden on Monday urged local and city governments to continue to use the $130 billion in funds allocated to them from the American Rescue Plan to help during the pandemic. The president of the National League of Cities, Vince Williams of Union City, Georgia, introduced the president to attendees of […]
Expanded rural broadband likely a focus of federal farm bill
(Missouri Independent) – The coronavirus pandemic highlighted the need for federal assistance to develop high-speed internet connectivity in all parts of the country, members of a U.S. House subcommittee agreed this week as they reviewed provisions that are likely to be included in the next farm bill. “I represent a largely rural district in north-central, […]
U.S. Senate Republicans attack Biden on energy costs, regulations after new inflation report
(Missouri Independent) – Nebraska’s Deb Fischer and fellow U.S. Senate Republicans slammed President Joe Biden on Thursday for the sharp rise in consumer prices, calling for policy shifts to increase U.S. energy supply, roll back regulations and curb spending. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said Thursday the consumer price index rose nearly 8% in February over the […]
Congress reaches deal on massive spending package with billions for COVID aid, Ukraine
(Missouri Independent) – Democrats and Republicans forged an agreement early Wednesday on a spending package that will fund the government for the next eight months, as well as provide billions in emergency funding for COVID-19 and the war in Ukraine. The announcement means Congress should be able to avert a government shutdown when a spending […]