Missouri foster care advocates are praising Friday’s passage of the $35.1 billion state operating budget, saying it provides unprecedented support for the foster families who care for the thousands of children in Missouri foster care. House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith (R-Carthage) tells Missourinet that the budget provides a $90 million increase for foster and adoptive […]
Tag: policy
Newtown-Harris Board of Education to meet on Monday
The Newtown-Harris R-3 Board of Education will consider approval of the salary schedule next week. The board will meet in the high school Family and Consumer Sciences room on May 10, 2021, at 7 o’clock in the evening. The agenda also includes extracurricular trips, new board member training, summer personnel, and programming dates, and facility, […]
Grundy County R-5 Board of Education to meet on May 12
The Grundy County R-5 Board of Education will open and review bids next week. Bids to be opened May 12, 2021, at 6 o’clock in the evening include propane, fuel, and milk. Bus barn bids will be reviewed. The agenda also includes Missouri Consultants for Education policy updates, a Princeton transportation agreement, voluntary student insurance coverage, […]
Less pollution, lower bills: Missouri, Kansas move ahead on utility securitization
(Missouri Independent) – Utility providers across Kansas and Missouri may soon be able to retire coal-fired power plants faster as the energy sector accelerates its transition to renewable energy sources. Kansas already passed legislation that allows companies to shutter coal plants, which release considerable amounts of carbon dioxide, without the financial hit that would otherwise come […]
Groups say slate of school bills would undermine public education
Advocates for public schools are urging the Missouri Legislature to bolster funding for public education rather than shift resources towards charter schools and school voucher programs. A bill pending in the House would provide tax credits for paying for private school tuition. Another would change school funding formulas to give more resources to charter schools, specifically […]
Lawmakers send letter to Biden administration urging promotion of leadership on international religious freedom
Senator Roy Blunt joined Senator James Lankford and six other colleagues in sending a letter to President Biden on the pressing need for a nominee to the position of Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom. The Members emphasized the importance of America remaining a world leader in defending and promoting religious liberty for all […]
Audio: Missouri Legislature approves bill to let robots on wheels deliver goods to your door
Robots on wheels could soon be strolling down Missouri’s sidewalks and roads to deliver goods to your doorstep. The Missouri Legislature has passed a bill that would allow personal delivery devices to travel up to 10 miles per hour. During the debate, Senator Bill Eigel discusses the bill with the sponsor, Springfield area Senator Lincoln […]
Commentary: Family farms are the solution, corporate agriculture is the problem
DISCLAIMER: This article is a commentary. The statements and opinions contained in the article are those of the author, Tim Gibbons. The opinions expressed by the author do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of KTTN/KGOZ Radio, staff, management, or webmaster. (Missouri Independent) – Last month, Missouri Rural Crisis Center held a telephone town […]
Bipartisan coalition of lawmakers hope to fund free tampons, pads in Missouri prisons
(Missouri Independence) – In Missouri, incarcerated women’s access to feminine hygiene products depends on where they’re housed. Some are forced to pay to buy tampons and pads to meet their needs, while others are provided with such low-quality products they end up having to make their own. A bipartisan coalition of lawmakers hopes to change that […]
Evergy to shutter Kansas coal plant, speed transition to renewable energy
(Missouri Independent) – Evergy, an electric supplier to about 600,000 customers in western Missouri, will retire its coal power plant in Lawrence, Kansas, by the end of 2023, the company announced on Friday. The utility revealed its plan to regulators in a filing with the Missouri Public Service Commission. The “integrated resource plan” lays out Evergy’s next […]
Missouri KidsFirst announces recipients of 2021 “Standing with Children” awards
Missouri KidsFirst presented the 2021 Standing with Children Awards at a virtual event hosted by the organization at 12:00 PM on Monday, April 26, 2021. The 2021 recipients of the Standing with Children Awards are Laura Bauer and Judy Thomas, investigative reporters with the Kansas City Star, Dr. Linda Shaw, child abuse pediatrician with SSM […]
Audio: Missouri House gives initial approval to bipartisan feral hog legislation
Bipartisan legislation increasing penalties for people who knowingly release feral hogs into the wild has received initial approval from the Missouri House. The bill, which is sponsored by Portageville State Representative Don Rone, increases the criminal penalty from a class A misdemeanor to a Class E felony. The Missouri Department of Conservation, the […]
NCMC Board of Trustees approve renewal of health insurance, presented report from Faculty Senate Negotiations Committee
The North Central Missouri College Board of Trustees heard a report from the Faculty Senate Negotiations Committee on April 27th. History and Spanish Faculty Member Maryellen Harman and Psychology Faculty Member Lindsay Oram presented a proposal for a faculty salary schedule for 2021-2022. The proposal includes adding $1,000 to the salary base and continuing to […]
Spickard Board of Education accepts resignation of Kristi Weldon
The Spickard R-2 Board of Education offered a contract for the superintendent/principal position after a closed session this week. Board Secretary Kelli Girdner reports the person’s name has not yet been released. The board accepted the resignation in February of current superintendent/principal Kristi Weldon. The board also hired teachers for the next school year. They […]
Bill banning trans students from sports teams by gender wins support of Missouri House
(Missouri Independent) – After hours of fierce debate that spanned the course of two days, the Missouri House on Wednesday signed off on a prohibition on transgender students participating on the sports teams that match their gender identity. The provision, offered as an amendment by Rep. Chuck Basye, R-Rocheport, to House Bill 1141 was adopted by a vote […]
Missouri State Highway Patrol to implement “Operation P.R.O.T.E.C.T.” on April 26, 2021
Colonel Eric T. Olson, superintendent of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, would like to make the public aware of the Operation P.R.O.T.E.C.T. (Patrol Response Operation To Enforcement of Construction zone Traffic) enforcement projects scheduled for Monday, April 26, 2021, and Wednesday, April 28, 2021. The projects are part of a joint effort with the Missouri […]
Agenda for next meeting of North Central Missouri Mental Health Center Board of Directors includes services for incarcerated individuals
The North Central Missouri Mental Health Center Board of Directors next week will discuss agency services eligible to be provided to incarcerated individuals. The meeting will be held at the mental health center of Trenton and on Zoom on April 27th at 4:30 in the afternoon. The Zoom meeting ID will be 99535808670, and the […]
New anti-abortion effort derails Missouri Medicaid funding bill
(Missouri Independent) – A third attempt to get a bill that funds one-quarter of Missouri’s Medicaid program through the state Senate failed Tuesday night when a new anti-abortion issue was injected into the legislation. Sen. Dan Hegeman, R-Cosby, brought the bill that has been in limbo since late March to the floor just a few […]
Biden administration to reverse birth control access restrictions
The Biden administration has taken the first steps in the regulatory process to eliminate the domestic gag rule, which forced more than 900 reproductive-health clinics nationwide to leave the Title X family-planning program and lose major amounts of funding. Rachel Fey, vice president for policy and strategic partnerships at the contraceptive-access advocacy group Power to Decide, said the […]
Audio: Missouri House Health Committee Chairman says former DHSS Director Williams “Did a fine job”
Two key Missouri lawmakers from opposite parties view Tuesday’s resignation of state Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) Director, Dr. Randall Williams, very differently. Missouri House Health and Mental Health Policy Committee Chairman Rep. Mike Stephens (R-Bolivar) praises Dr. Williams, while House Minority Leader Crystal Quade (D-Springfield) says the resignation was long overdue. Chairman Stephens says Williams […]