(Missouri Independent) – The U.S. House voted Tuesday to remove from the Capitol a bust of the late Supreme Court Chief Justice Roger Taney, who in 1857 wrote the Dred Scott decision (Dred Scott pictured above article) that stripped all Black Americans, free or slave, of their citizenship. The legislation passed on a vote of 285-120 with only 67 […]
Tag: civil
Governor Parson signed four bills into law on Tuesday afternoon
Governor Mike Parson signed four additional bills into law on Tuesday afternoon. SB 36 – Capitol Complex Tax Credit: Creates a $10 million tax credit for rehabilitation or renovation of buildings in the Capitol Complex. SB 57 – Funding for Criminal Behavior Deterrence: Creates the Economic Distress Zone Fund, which provides funding to nonprofits that […]
Coalition of lawmakers sound alarm on Biden administration’s plan to redefine “Waters of the United States” or WOTUS
Congressman Sam Graves (R-MO), Ranking Member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, joined Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee Ranking Member Congressman David Rouzer (R-NC) and other top Republican leaders in outlining their concerns regarding the Biden administration’s intention to undo the Trump administration’s Navigable Waters Protection Rule. The Biden administration’s recent announcement signaled its intent […]
Missouri State Highway Patrol accepting applications for Community Alliance Program in Macon
Captain Erik A. Gottman, the commanding officer of Troop B, Macon, Missouri, announces Troop B is seeking individuals interested in attending Troop B’s 16th Community Alliance Program. The Community Alliance Program will begin on Monday, September 13, 2021, and will be hosted at the Hannibal Career and Technical Center in Hannibal. Participants will meet for […]
Native north Missourian and long time employee named as NW District Engineer for MoDOT
Marty Liles has been named the district engineer for the Missouri Department of Transportation’s Northwest District. The district covers 20 counties, including nearly 5,625 lane miles of highway and 1,383 state bridges. He will take over the leadership of the Northwest region from Chris Redline, who recently transferred to run MoDOT’s Kansas City region. Liles […]
Audio: Missouri Public Defender System prepares to hire 53 new attorneys, biggest staffing increase since around 1989
If Gov. Mike Parson does not make changes to the Missouri Public Defender System’s next budget, the office is on track to get its largest staffing increase since about 1989. Director Mary Fox tells Missourinet 53 new public defenders would be hired statewide. “This is going to make a huge difference in terms […]
May jobs report shows Missouri unemployment rate at 4.2%
Missouri non-farm payroll employment increased from April 2021 to May 2021, but the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased by a tenth of a percentage point. Employment, seasonally adjusted, increased by 6,000 jobs over the month, with job gains in both goods-producing and service-providing industries. The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 4.2 percent in May […]
Missouri Attorney General opposes reinstatement of overreaching WOTUS rule in Letter to EPA and Army Corps of Engineers
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency and the United States Army Corps of Engineers, opposing their recent move to reconsider the more limited Navigable Waters Protection Rule, a President Trump-era rule that reversed the 2015 Obama-era Waters of the United States rule. EPA Administrator Michael Regan and the […]
Missouri Attorney General files suit against Hickory County dog breeder
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt today filed suit against Laurie Lund of Cridder Creek Kennel for multiple violations of the Animal Care Facilities Act and for operating without a license since January 2021. “The vast majority of Missouri’s commercial breeders comply with the Animal Care Facilities Act, however, when my Office finds repeat violations of […]
Chillicothe police respond to report of suicidal person
Chillicothe Police responded Thursday evening, June 10 to a report of someone in the area of Hedrick Medical Center attempting to injure himself or herself and who was suicidal. Assistant Chillicothe Police Chief Rick Sampsel reports the person was belligerent and assaulted officers. The person was transported to the police department and then to Hedrick […]
‘Defund the police’ was designed to provoke a response. In Missouri, it worked
(Missouri Independent) – For years after the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, activists and community leaders have pushed to “re-envision public safety.” Inspired in part by the Ferguson Commission, which recommended that cities focus more resources on the root causes of crime, organizers across the state echoed these calls. But they largely fell on deaf ears. […]
Missouri Attorney General files civil suit against St. Louis County illicit massage business
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt filed a civil lawsuit against an illicit massage business, Royal Day Spa, located in St. Louis County. This lawsuit is the fifth filed by Attorney General Schmitt as part of his Office’s Hope Initiative to combat human trafficking in illicit massage businesses. “Human trafficking is a scourge on our society […]
Lawmakers release bipartisan report investigating January 6 Capitol attack
U.S. Senators Roy Blunt (Mo.) and Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), Ranking Member and Chairwoman of the Committee on Rules and Administration, and Gary Peters (Mich.) and Rob Portman (Ohio), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, released a bipartisan report on the security, planning, and response failures related to the violent […]
Governor Mike Parson appoints fifteen to various boards and commissions
Governor Mike Parson announced fifteen appointments to various boards and commissions. Bryan Atkins, of Rea, was appointed to the Board of Probation and Parole. Mr. Atkins served as the Sheriff of Andrew County from 2009 until his retirement in 2020. Prior to being elected sheriff, he served as a Deputy Sheriff for Andrew County. He also formerly […]
Missouri Secretary of State seeks $125,000 in penalties after company allegedly defrauds investors
The Missouri Secretary of State, Securities Division ordered Cryotherm USA, Inc., John (Jianxin) Wang, and Dennis R. Di Ricco to cease and desist after allegedly issuing more than $2 million in unregistered, non-exempt promissory notes. Between December 1, 2015, and October 31, 2020, the Florida-based Cryotherm USA allegedly sold the promissory notes through a Las Vegas, […]
Scams targeting clients of Legal Services of Eastern Missouri
The Attorney General’s Office is warning of a scam targeting potential clients of Legal Services of Eastern Missouri. The Attorney General’s Office was notified by Legal Services of Eastern Missouri yesterday of a scam letter received by a client purporting to be from Legal Services of Eastern Missouri seeking a “retainer fee” of $3500. Legal […]
County by county unemployment rates in north Missouri range from 1.9% to 5.9%
County by county unemployment rates in north Missouri range from a low of 1.9% in Gentry County to 5.9% in Linn County. Statewide, the unemployment rate is 4%. Area counties, besides Gentry, with jobless rates for April that are lower than the state average, are Worth at 2.1%; Mercer at 2.3%; Putnam at 2-1/2 %, […]
Attempts to ban teaching on ‘critical race theory’ multiply across the U.S.
(Missouri Independent) – From statehouses to Congress, Republicans have launched into a fight against the teaching of “critical race theory,” which just a year ago was a niche academic term. Experts in critical race theory say it’s about acknowledging how racial disparities are embedded in U.S history and society, and the concept is being mischaracterized […]
USDA to begin loan payments to socially disadvantaged borrowers under American Rescue Plan Act
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency published the first notice of funding availability announcing loan payments for eligible borrowers with qualifying direct farm loans under the American Rescue Plan Act Section 1005. The official NOFA will be published in the Federal Register early next week and USDA expects payments to begin in early […]