Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson

U.S. Senate panel bickers over Supreme Court nomination but sets vote next week

(Missouri Independent) – The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee reopened partisan disagreements Monday as members scheduled a vote for April 4 on Ketanji Brown Jackson’s nomination to the Supreme Court. Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said Republicans’ criticisms of Jackson’s record and responses were either untrue or disingenuous. Meanwhile, ranking Republican Chuck Grassley of Iowa again raised […]

Sleeping Baby in dark room (Photo by Kevin Keith on Unsplash)

House grants initial approval to bill that would allow prison nurseries in Missouri

(Missouri Independent) -The House gave initial approval Wednesday to a bill that would allow newborns to remain with their incarcerated mothers for the first year and a half of the baby’s life. The bill would permit the Missouri Department of Corrections to establish nurseries within the state’s correctional facilities, allowing children born to incarcerated women to […]

Photo of cattle (cows) by Photo by Etienne Girardet on Unsplash

Beef processing facility near KC in violation of Missouri regulations for polluting waters

(Missouri Independent) – A beef processing facility 40 miles southeast of downtown Kansas City polluted at least a mile of nearby streams and allowed septic tanks of sewage and entrails to overflow, state regulators found this month.  The facility, the former site of a beef operation that neighbors felt threatened a nearby botanical garden, was referred […]

Generic City Water

Experts say federal funds for lead pipe replacement needed in Missouri

Missouri has roughly 330,000 lead service lines, the pipes connecting water mains to buildings including people’s homes, and federal funding could help speed up the process of removing and replacing them. The bipartisan infrastructure bill passed by Congress last year includes $15 billion for lead-pipe replacement, building on funds from the American Rescue Plan. Erik D. Olson, senior strategic director at […]

Law and Settlement scroll with gavel

Missouri Attorney General announces finalization of opioid settlement

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt announced that his Office has finalized opioid settlements with Johnson & Johnson and major opioid distributors McKesson, Cardinal Health, and AmerisourceBergen. The Attorney General was joined by families of victims of opioid overdose and representatives from treatment centers and nonprofits across the state. Combined, these settlements bring a total of […]

Mercer Homecoming

New dates announced for Mercer Homecoming

New dates have been announced for the Mercer Homecoming celebration this year. The Mercer Homecoming Committee has decided to move away from Labor Day weekend and hold the Homecoming events the last weekend in July. This year, those dates are July 28th through the 30th. According to Jeff Girdner, the change occurred because the committee […]

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 […]