The governor confirms the state is considering an incentive program to encourage more Missourians to get vaccinated. Governor Mike Parson tells Capitol reporters that he wants to do what he can to encourage more Missourians to take the COVID vaccine. The details of the incentive program are unclear because it’s still being worked […]
Tag: consider
Sara Walsh joins growing field in Missouri’s 4th Congressional District
(Missouri Independent) – A crowded Republican primary is emerging in Missouri’s 4th Congressional District, a solidly GOP seat that is also the only one of the state’s eight districts certain to have a new lawmaker at the end of 2022. State Rep. Sara Walsh, R-Ashland, on Wednesday became the latest candidate to enter the race […]
Farm Service Agency now accepting nominations for county committee members
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency began accepting nominations for county committee members on June 15. Elections will occur in certain Local Administrative Areas for these members who make important decisions about how federal farm programs are administered locally. All nomination forms for the 2021 election must be postmarked or received in the […]
Bob Griffin, longest-serving Missouri House speaker, has died at age 85
(Missouri Independent) – Bob F. Griffin, who served as speaker of the Missouri House for 15 years until he was forced to resign in the face of a federal criminal investigation, died Wednesday in Columbia. He was 85. Griffin was the longest-serving speaker in the state’s history. During his tenure as speaker from 1981 to 1996, the […]
Grundy County to request bids to replace radio equipment for fire department and ambulance
Grundy County is requesting formal qualifications-based competitive sealed proposals from qualified, licensed, and experienced providers for a turnkey project to provide the county a new Conventional Project-25 700/800 Megahertz digital simulcast radio network. Emergency Management Director Glen Briggs reports the radio system is a proposed replacement system for the current fire and ambulance system. The […]
Jamesport Tri-County Board of Education to meet July 8
The Jamesport Tri-County R-7 Board of Education will consider bids for milk, bread, and fuel on July 8, 2021. The board will also discuss lunch prices in the superintendent’s office at 6 o’clock that evening. The agenda also includes capital projects, the second reading of Missouri School Boards Association policy updates, employee and student handbooks, […]
Delta variant spread means Missouri COVID cases may ‘double or triple’ in July
(Missouri Independent) – During June, as the Delta variant of COVID-19 took hold in Missouri, the seven-day average of new cases doubled. And now that the easily spread mutation has reached every corner of the state, July will be a repeat of June, or worse, according to the University of Missouri professor monitoring wastewater for the […]
Four injured in two-vehicle crash north of Gower
A Milan man and three other individuals sustained injuries in a two-vehicle crash four miles north of Gower on Sunday, July 4. The Highway Patrol reports 39-year-old Jeremy McAlister of Milan was a passenger in a pickup truck driven by 40-year-old Curtis Faulconer of Smithville. They were taken by emergency medical services to Mosaic Life […]
Trenton man already in custody faces new charge
A Trenton man already in custody in Grundy County was arrested on a new felony drug-related charge on July 1st. The Grundy County Sheriff’s Office reports 48-year-old Patrick Shaun Michael has been charged with unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. His bond is $10,000 cash only, and he is scheduled for the Associate Division of Circuit […]
Grundy County Sheriff, U.S. Marshall looking for sexual predator who absconded from Florida
Grundy County Sheriff Rodney Herring is asking for the public’s help in providing any information regarding the whereabouts of a man described as a fugitive from Florida who reportedly was seen Thursday morning in Laredo. According to Grundy County authorities, Dale Edward Green is wanted in Florida for crimes of an original offense of sexual […]
U.S. Attorney General imposes moratorium on federal executions; orders review of policies and procedures
Attorney General Merrick B. Garland issued a memorandum imposing a moratorium on federal executions while reviewing the Justice Department’s policies, and procedures is pending. “The Department of Justice must ensure that everyone in the federal criminal justice system is not only afforded the rights guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States but […]
Four injured in two-vehicle crash five miles east of Gallatin
Four people sustained injuries in an accident involving two pickup trucks five miles east of Gallatin on Thursday afternoon July 1. The Highway Patrol reports the driver of one pickup, 33-year-old Daryl Betts of Fayette, the driver of the other pickup, 34-year-old Jonathan Parker of Gallatin, and Parker’s passenger, 82-year-old Billy Parker of Gallatin, received […]
Missouri State Auditor begins review of city of Purcell
Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway announced her office has begun an audit of the city of Purcell, located in Jasper County. City residents requested the audit through the petition process. “The petition audit process allows citizens to be engaged and ensure accountability with their local government,” Auditor Galloway said. “I look forward to conducting this […]
Missouri House passes Medicaid provider tax bill, preventing major budget cuts
(Missouri Independent) – With fewer than 12 hours to spare before the start of a new fiscal year, the Missouri House on Wednesday approved a bill extending medical provider taxes essential to balancing the budget, forestalling more than $700 million in cuts planned by Gov. Mike Parson. Divisions over how and whether to add provisions sought by […]
U.S. House votes to remove bust of Supreme Court justice who wrote Dred Scott decision
(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 […]
Audio: October execution date set for convicted triple killer Ernest Lee Johnson
A convicted triple killer from Columbia is set to be executed in October at the state’s maximum-security prison in Bonne Terre. The Missouri Supreme Court has scheduled an October 5 execution date for 60-year-old Ernest Lee Johnson. The Supreme Court scheduled the execution date on Tuesday. He’ll be executed by lethal injection at the southeast […]
Missouri State Auditor launches audit of Lawrence County
State Auditor Nicole Galloway said today her office has begun a regularly scheduled audit of Lawrence County, located in southwest Missouri. The most recent audit of Lawrence County was completed in December 2016, with the county receiving an overall rating of “poor.” A follow-up report, released in 2017, showed county officials had made some progress addressing the issues […]
Grundy County Health Department reports on COVID Delta Variant, breakthrough cases and spread of COVID by water
As of June 29th, 16 breakthrough cases of COVID-19 had been reported in Grundy County since vaccination began in the county. One of the 38 active cases on June 29th was a breakthrough case. Health Department Administrator Elizabeth Gibson says that is about typical for breakthrough cases. Two thousand four hundred eighty-four Grundy […]
Chillicothe Board of Adjustments to hold public hearing
The Chillicothe Board of Adjustments will hold a public hearing to consider a variance application involving 96 Virginia Avenue. The hearing will be at the Chillicothe City Hall on July 6, 2021, at 5:30 in the evening. The variance application by Pat Scott and John Graber involves constructing a deck with a roof within six […]
Cole County judge blocks changes in Medicaid payments to Missouri hospitals
(Missouri Independent) – A Cole County judge has temporarily blocked the state’s new policy for Medicaid hospital payments which was set to take effect Thursday and ordered a hearing July 9 to determine if the order will become permanent. In response to a lawsuit filed by the Missouri Hospital Association, Circuit Judge Cotton Walker on Friday […]