Ukrainian flag- Photo by Max Kukurudziak on Unsplash

Missouri Representative: The war on Ukraine will have global consequences and will affect every American

State Representative Mike Haffner of Pleasant Hill says the largest invasion has occurred on a sovereign nation in Europe since World War Two. Haffner, a retired Navy fighter pilot, says Russia’s attack on Ukraine is unprovoked and unjustified.     Last Thursday, the Republican requested a moment of silence in the Missouri House of Representatives […]

Structure Fire

Fire destroys garage east of Chula

Fire Saturday morning destroyed a garage and its contents approximately four to five miles east of Chula. Chula Rural Fire Chief Jeff Gillespie said, when firefighters arrived at 16573 Atom Drive, the roof of the garage was starting to collapse because of the flames. A side by side, a lot of tools, and an air […]

Gallery View of Missouri Senate

Missouri Senate passes $4.6B spending bill with pay raises, federal school funds

(Missouri Independent) – With a deadline looming that could cost Missouri almost $2 billion in federal education aid, the bill to distribute the money passed the state Senate on Wednesday after Democrats slammed a zero-dollar funding line as a partisan attack on Planned Parenthood. The $4.6 billion spending bill approved on a 25-7 vote is the first legislation requiring […]

Recall Alert

WIC formula manufacturer, Abbott, recalls powdered infant formula

Abbott, the WIC infant formula manufacturer, announced the proactive, voluntary recall of some powdered Similac, Alimentum, or EleCare formulas manufactured in Sturgis, Michigan. Missouri WIC, the Department of Health and Senior Services Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, is working to make participating families aware of the disruption. The powdered formula products […]

North Central Missouri College Website V2 (NCMC)

Audio: North Central Missouri College Scholarship Reception, held on Wednesday evening, featured speakers from staff and students

North Central Missouri College employees spoke at the scholarship reception on the campus in Trenton February 16th. Student Support Services Assistant Director Tocarra Williams talked about intangible things that scare us, like being the first person in a family to attend college. Williams, herself, was a first generation college student, and she attended NCMC. Student […]

Medicaid Expansion in Missouri

Audio: Missouri voters could be asked to let Legislature decide whether to fund Medicaid expansion

Missouri voters could be asked in November to let the Legislature decide whether to fund Medicaid expansion. The Missouri House has given initial approval to the proposed ballot measure. Last year, the Legislature attempted to defund the expansion population, but the Missouri Supreme Court ruled against that move. House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith says […]

Donald Kauerauf, the director of the Department of Health and Senior Services, speaks during a press conference at the Missouri Capitol in Jefferson City on July 21, 2021

Before ouster, Missouri health director drafted a letter to senators that was never sent

(Missouri Independent) – On the Friday before a drawn-out confirmation battle ended with his ouster from office, Missouri state Health Director Donald Kauerauf wrote an impassioned letter meant to convince conservative legislators who were on the fence about his appointment.  The message: While he believed in vaccines and data and science, he didn’t believe in vaccine […]

American Farm Bureau Federation president Zippy Duvall spoke at the organization’s 2022 annual convention in Atlanta, Georgia (photo provided by American Farm Bureau Federation)

American Farm Bureau Federation claims it’s the ‘voice of agriculture,’ Others beg to differ

(Missouri Independent) – This story was originally published as a collaboration between Investigate Midwest and Watchdog Writers Group. The American Farm Bureau Federation calls itself the “voice of agriculture,” a slogan it trademarked in 2007. But as the divide between agribusiness and small farmers has grown in recent decades, a unified voice of agriculture has become harder to […]

Medical Marijuana

Criticism of Missouri medical marijuana system seeps into initiative petition debate

(Missouri Independent) – A handful of Republican lawmakers lashed out at the state’s medical marijuana industry Thursday, lobbing accusations of corruption into a Missouri House debate over whether to make it harder to amend the state’s Constitution.  On a mostly party-line 98-53 vote, the Missouri House signed off on legislation Thursday that would require a two-thirds […]