The state operating budget and prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) legislation will take center stage in the Missouri Legislature this week. Governor Parson has proposed a 34-billion dollar state operating budget. Missouri House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith of Carthage tells Missourinet that he hopes to see the House give initial and final […]
U.S. Senators Roy Blunt (Mo.), Mazie K. Hirono (Hawaii), Susan Collins (Maine), Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), and Tammy Duckworth (Ill.) announced that they have introduced the Adoptee Citizenship Act of 2021. The bipartisan bill would close a loophole in the Child Citizenship Act of 2000 (CCA), which has prevented internationally-adopted children, who are […]
Legislation that requires a photo ID and the use of a paper ballot was given final approval by the Missouri House in Jefferson City on Thursday. The vote, primarily along party lines, was 109-48. House Bill 738 is sponsored by veteran State Rep. Don Rone (R-Portageville), who represents the Bootheel. Rone was unable to make it to the […]
In 2019, the Missouri Supreme Court began restricting when judges can require bail. Currently, judges can only charge bail fees for safety reasons or to help ensure defendants appear in court. The Missouri House has given preliminary approval to Lake St. Louis State Representative Justin Hill’s bill that would undo the high court’s bail rules. […]
Legislation aimed at keeping registered sex offenders away from state Conservation areas has been given final approval today (Thursday) by the Missouri Senate. Riddle notes current Missouri law bans sex offenders from being 500 feet of public parks with playground equipment, public swimming pools, and children’s museums. The only exception would be a […]
U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (Mo.), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, and U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (Md.) introduced the No Fencing at the United States Capitol Complex Act. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC) previously introduced the legislation in the House. Their bipartisan, bicameral bill prohibits funding for permanent fencing […]
The Congressional Medal of Honor Society announced retired St. Louis Police Captain David Dorn would be posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor Citizen Honors Award for his courage when he was mortally wounded while saving his friend’s business from looters during the riots in St. Louis last June. U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) nominated him […]
(Missouri Independent) – Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt officially jumped into the GOP primary for the U.S. Senate on Wednesday, making him the second major Republican hopeful seeking to replace Roy Blunt. Schmitt’s decision comes after former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens jumped into the race earlier this week. Both made their announcements on Fox News. “Washington, D.C., needs more […]
(Missouri Independent) – Missouri Senate leadership pulled a bill vital for funding the state’s Medicaid program from floor debate Tuesday after adopting an amendment barring the use of public money for common contraceptive treatments. The amendment, sponsored by Republican Sen. Paul Wieland, could endanger the state’s entire Medicaid program by eliminating a health care service required by federal […]
In 2018, 62-percent of Missouri voters approved a gradual minimum wage hike of $12.00 an hour by 2023. A state House committee is considering a bill that would delay the full increase by three years. During a committee hearing, Representative Allen Andrews of northwest Missouri’s Grant City says he supports the bill. He says his […]
A proposed constitutional amendment that would prevent Missouri seniors 65 and older with incomes of less than $45 thousand dollars from paying property tax has been heard by a House committee in Jefferson City. Branson GOP State Representative Brian Seitz testified today (Wednesday) before the Ways and Means Committee. While the proposal’s fiscal […]
U.S. Senators Roy Blunt (Mo.) and Mark Warner (Va.) introduced legislation to prevent further financial instability for rural health clinics and safeguard the care they provide to underserved communities. The bipartisan Strengthening Rural Health Clinics Act of 2021 would make a technical fix to protect existing rural health clinics from a sudden and unexpected Medicare […]
The head of the Missouri Department of Social Services is scheduled to appear before a panel of lawmakers Wednesday about the agency’s handling of abuse investigations within boarding schools. The Missouri House Special Committee on Government Oversight has called a Wednesday afternoon hearing to question the department’s acting director, Jennifer Tidball. The Kansas City Star has […]
(Missouri Independent) – President Joe Biden on Tuesday urged the U.S. Senate to immediately pass legislation to close loopholes on background checks for guns and to ban assault weapons, following a mass shooting that killed 10 at a Colorado supermarket. “This should not be a partisan issue,” Biden said. “This is an American issue.” Biden’s […]
Advocates for family farms, rural neighborhoods, and the environment are asking Iowa lawmakers to find a more equitable balance between the interests of factory farms and of the communities they’re in. Research has shown higher levels of nitrates and phosphorus in the water, as well as air quality issues, in communities with nearby concentrated animal feeding […]
The Missouri Department of Conservation and the Conservation Federation of Missouri support legislation aimed at keeping registered sex offenders away from state Conservation areas. House Bill 1090 is sponsored by State Rep. Barry Hovis (R-Whitewater), a former law enforcement officer with more than 30 years of experience. The House Public Safety Committee approved the bill 8-0, and it’s […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt joined 20 other state attorneys general in filing suit on Wednesday, led by Montana and Texas, in United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas challenging President Joe Biden’s cancellation of the permits for the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline. The lawsuit argues that President Biden’s administration […]
(Missouri Independent) – Legislation creating a path to citizenship for undocumented people brought to the U.S. as children face a new border crisis and old partisan objections, diminishing the chances it will become law despite full Democratic control of Congress and the White House. On Thursday, the U.S. House is poised to pass the American […]
Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and 16 of his colleagues reintroduced the Protect and Serve Act, legislation that would create federal penalties for individuals who deliberately target local, state, or federal law enforcement officers with violence. In 2020, more than 300 officers were shot in the line of duty and 47 officers were shot and killed, including […]
(Missouri Independent) – More than 70 million Americans have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine — and along with that shot, a small paper card with the CDC’s label detailing the timing and manufacturer of the dose. Those paper cards at the moment are the only proof readily available to Americans of […]
