Patrick McKenna Director of the Missouri Department of Transportation

Billions headed to Missouri transportation fund from gas tax hike, infrastructure bill

(Missouri Independent) – With $6.5 billion on the way from the federal infrastructure bill and a newly increased gas tax, Missouri is ready to take a big bite out of $4.5 billion in unfunded highway needs, Patrick McKenna, director of the Missouri Department of Transportation, said this week. But that doesn’t mean the state is ready to tackle […]

Spire Natural Gas Company Van

Critics say Spire Missouri’s warning of natural gas outages a “manufactured crisis”

(Missouri Independent) – As federal energy regulators prepare to decide the fate of a St. Louis natural gas pipeline, Spire Missouri is warning customers their gas service could fail this winter.  Business industry groups and the utility maintain their responsibility to keep customers informed. But environmental groups and some local elected officials — who note federal regulators seem […]

Credit Monitoring News Graphic

Missouri to provide credit monitoring for teachers after reporter found security flaw

(Missouri Independent) – Nearly a month after a reporter identified a security flaw in a state website that exposed teachers’ social security numbers, the state announced Wednesday it was offering a year of credit monitoring services to hundreds of thousands of teachers whose personal information was put at risk According to the Department of Elementary […]

Vaccine Mandate News Graphic

Missouri among first states to file suit challenging CMS vaccine mandate

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt and Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson led a coalition of 10 states in challenging the vaccine mandate propagated by the Biden Administration’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on healthcare workers across the nation, becoming the first states to file a lawsuit challenging this mandate. Attorney General Eric Schmitt […]

Cargo or container ship docked for unloading

White House says “Easing of supply chain problems to start with backed-up seaports”

(Missouri Independent) – The first seaport to improve its facilities following passage of the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill could be in Savannah, Ga., a senior Biden administration official said Tuesday. President Joe Biden has yet to sign the measure, which Congress sent to Biden’s desk late last week, funding improvements in highways, transit, ports, waterways, airports, […]

Cattle or Cows Behind a Fence in a Field

Agriculture Secretary: Biden Administration ‘protecting animal agriculture’ with methane reduction plans

(Missouri Independent) – Reducing the number of livestock will not be a priority for the Biden administration as it seeks to drastically cut methane emissions to stem climate change, according to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. Instead, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s “climate-smart” initiatives will focus on new types of animal feed and manure […]

Lead Hazard News Graphic

New funds and strategy may boost “massive task” of reducing lead exposure for Missouri kids

(Missouri Independent) – It’s clear that lead exposure is a problem for Missouri’s children. An estimated 4.5% have elevated levels of lead in their blood, more than almost any other state in the country. What’s far more difficult is figuring out where children are getting exposed to lead, said Carlton Waterhouse, President Joe Biden’s pick for […]

City of Trenton Website

Trenton City Council reviews problems with trash service; city health insurance premiums to decrease

All votes were unanimous Monday night when the Trenton City Council adopted four ordinances and approved a resolution. Faced with two dozen additional, documented complaints on trash service, at least two members of the council called for a change in trash hauling companies. The city of Trenton’s contract with Rapid Removal Disposal doesn’t expire until […]

A gavel and a name plate with the engraving Lawsuit

Gun safety group files suit alleging NRA illegally coordinated with Hawley campaign

(Missouri Independent) – The Giffords gun safety organization has sued the National Rifle Association and the campaigns of U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley and U.S. Rep. Matt Rosendale of Montana, alleging the group used shell corporations to improperly aid the Republican lawmakers in 2018. The suit alleges two NRA affiliates made up to $35 million in illegal […]