Eleven of Missouri’s largest concentrated animal feeding operations are working to reduce the state’s oversight of their hog facilities despite a record of manure spills and clean water violations. Smithfield Foods, the world’s largest pork producer, has 11 CAFOs seeking new state permits. The facilities, dotted across northern Missouri, combined are capable of raising more […]
Tag: process
Webinar and publications offer guidance for local broadband initiatives
Thirty-seven percent of Missourians did not have wired broadband in their homes from 2015 to 2019. Should we be concerned that one out of three Missouri households are not connected to high-speed internet? What does “wired broadband” mean? As governments roll out new broadband initiatives, these are timely questions that Broadband Technologies: A Primer on […]
Grundy County Health Department reports 43 new cases of COVID-19 in the last week
Grundy County now has 48 active cases of COVID-19. That’s out of a total of 1,199 cases since testing began 15 months ago. Grundy County Health Department reports a total of 43 cases have been reported during the past seven days. Grundy County’s rate on testing is 16 and a half (16.47%), being positive. The […]
Nominate a veteran or active service member for 2021 Missouri State Fair Flag Retreat Ceremony
The deadline to nominate a Missouri veteran or active duty service member for the 2021 Missouri State Fair Military Flag Retreat Ceremony is fast approaching. Veterans and active duty service members from across Missouri are eligible to be honored in a Military Flag Retreat Ceremony that will take place near the Centennial Entrance on the Missouri […]
A.T. Still University’s Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine awarded ‘Accreditation with Exceptional Outcome’
A.T. Still University’s Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine (ATSU-KCOM) has been awarded Accreditation with Exceptional Outcome by the American Osteopathic Association’s Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA). This achievement, the highest possible under COCA, grants ATSU-KCOM the maximum accreditation length of 10 years. The School’s next accreditation review will be in the 2030-31 academic year. […]
Missouri prison healthcare contract won by a company accused of bid-rigging in Tennessee
(Missouri Independent) – The long-time contractor for medical services in Missouri’s prisons is protesting the state’s decision to award the business to a company that will charge more than lawmakers appropriated and is accused of bid-rigging to obtain a contract in Tennessee prisons. Centurion Health, a Virginia subsidiary of St. Louis-based managed care company Centene, beat […]
Missouri State Auditor begins citizen-requested audit of community of Town and Country
Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway today announced her office has begun an audit of the city of Town and Country, located in St. Louis County. Residents of Town and Country requested the audit through the petition process. “My office will conduct an independent review of the financial practices of Town and Country government to ensure […]
Missouri hospitals sue to block changes in Medicaid payments
(Missouri Independent) – After obtaining some relief from lawmakers for revenue cuts likely from a change in the way Medicaid pays for outpatient services, Missouri hospitals are asking the courts for relief from a coming change in payments for inpatient care. The Missouri Hospital Association on Friday filed a lawsuit in Cole County alleging the Department of […]
Feds pony up to get more SNAP-eligible families enrolled
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is offering a 50/50 match on Nebraska dollars invested in outreach to get more eligible families enrolled in SNAP, the program formerly known as food stamps. Ellen Vollinger, legal director at the Food Research and Action Center, said the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program helps struggling families put food on the […]
Chillicothe Police Department busy with assault at water park, person that was “lost and confused,” and arrests on Alexander Street
Chillicothe Police officers took reports of an assault at the Chilli Bay Water Park, an apparently lost and confused person in the 700 block of Elm Street, and a disturbance in the 1400 block of Alexander Street on June 15. Assistant Police Chief Rick Sampsel says two juveniles assaulted each other at the water park, […]
Two teenagers injured, buggy demolished after pickup strikes buggy north of Kidder
Two teenagers were injured, treated at the scene by EMS, and declined further medical attention following an accident approximately two miles north of Kidder. One of the teenagers injured was listed as a driver of a horse-drawn conveyance, 19-year-old Namoi Herschberger of Kidder, who had what was called a serious injury. A passenger in the […]
Missouri lawmakers passed a host of reforms aimed at keeping kids out of jail
(Missouri Independent) – Retired St. Louis Judge Evelyn Baker once sentenced a 16-year-old Black boy to 241 years in prison for two armed robberies. No one was seriously injured in the robberies, but the boy “didn’t express any remorse,” Baker said, remembering the sentencing hearing. Now, when she thinks back, Baker deeply regrets the sentence […]
Report urges strong eviction moratoriums, robust rental aid
A new study of eviction filings in St. Louis during the pandemic found people within protected classes under the Fair Housing Act, communities of color, women-led households, and families with children are impacted at higher rates than others. The Metropolitan St. Louis Equal Housing and Opportunity Council’s report noted even though moratoriums have kept many people unable to […]
‘Defund the police’ was designed to provoke a response. In Missouri, it worked
(Missouri Independent) – For years after the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, activists and community leaders have pushed to “re-envision public safety.” Inspired in part by the Ferguson Commission, which recommended that cities focus more resources on the root causes of crime, organizers across the state echoed these calls. But they largely fell on deaf ears. […]
Hy-Vee and Google Cloud partner to enhance digital capabilities
Hy-Vee, Inc. has signed a multi-year partnership with Google Cloud to stay on the cutting edge of digital technology and drive new and unique innovation for its customers – both in-store and online. The company is utilizing a suite of services powered by Google Cloud to make online shopping easier for customers who use its […]
GRM Networks partners with Foundation for Rural Service to offer grant opportunities for local organizations
GRM Networks has partnered with the Foundation for Rural Service (FRS), the philanthropic arm of NTCA – The Rural Broadband Association, to offer grants that support local organizations in their efforts to build and help sustain a high quality of life in rural America. Grants may be awarded for the following categories: Business and Economic […]
Lawmakers release bipartisan report investigating January 6 Capitol attack
U.S. Senators Roy Blunt (Mo.) and Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), Ranking Member and Chairwoman of the Committee on Rules and Administration, and Gary Peters (Mich.) and Rob Portman (Ohio), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, released a bipartisan report on the security, planning, and response failures related to the violent […]
Filibusted: Experts say the time has come to end Senate practice
(Missouri Independent) – Even the stuffy, florid name of the procedure, “filibuster” sounds like something conceived around a table of wig-wearing Founding Fathers. While the name has its roots in the 18th Century (with pirates nonetheless), the concept and practice in the United States Senate is much younger, not being implemented in a modern form until […]
Plain language guide on COVID-19 and vaccine for those with disabilities now available
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, along with the Missouri Developmental Disabilities Council, released a new resource, the “Missouri Plain Language Guide for People with Disabilities, their Families and Caregivers,” on COVID-19 and the vaccine. Through this partnership, the new guide will ensure that important information related to COVID-19 and vaccine access is more […]