Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt filed a comment letter opposing the Environmental Protection Agency’s plan to use “interim values” of the Social Cost of Greenhouse Gases to regulate light-duty vehicles through emission standards. “The Biden Administration’s attempts to impose massive federal regulations on Missouri’s farmers, ranchers, and manufacturers could have vast negative impacts. Now, the […]
(Missouri Independent) – The Biden administration on Monday unveiled a proposed new rule that would strengthen the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program to protect undocumented people in the program from legal challenges. The proposed rule, announced by the Department of Homeland Security, would “preserve and fortify” the DACA program, an Obama administration-era initiative that protects […]
(Missouri Independent) – School districts are not subject to the law Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt is using to challenge masks mandates in classrooms, attorneys for Columbia Public Schools wrote in a court filing seeking dismissal of a lawsuit initiated last month. The district also challenges Schmitt’s standing to file the lawsuit, argues that he is […]
(Missouri Independent) – Booster shots soon will begin rolling out to some Americans who received the two-shot vaccine made by Pfizer—after a contentious and confusing federal approval process that isn’t over yet. Determining who exactly should be rolling up their sleeves for an additional dose was tricky. The Biden administration had leapfrogged federal regulatory panels […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt has filed a motion to enforce a permanent injunction and for expedited discovery, which seeks a court order from the District Court to compel the Biden Administration to reimplement the Migrant Protection Protocols, or “Remain in Mexico” Policy. “We sued the Biden Administration in April over their cancellation of the […]
The Department of Justice announced that the Bureau of Justice Assistance, a component of the department’s Office of Justice Programs, has awarded almost $187 million to support state, local, and tribal public safety and community justice activities. The awards, from the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program, are going to all 50 states, […]
(Missouri Independent) – Activists are ramping up the pressure on Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to move on his chamber’s version of a voting rights bill, even though there’s no sign there will be enough Republican support to advance it. Alternatively, they’re pressing for an end to the filibuster, though there’s no indication there would […]
The American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri has asked a state court to let it intervene in state Attorney General Eric Schmitt’s class-action lawsuit seeking to prevent school districts from requiring masks. A press release from the ACLU says under federal law, public schools cannot exclude students with disabilities, denying them equal access […]
More than 600,000 vaccinated Missourians have entered the MO VIP, Missouri’s COVID-19 vaccine incentive program, for a shot at $10,000. The statewide program was launched on July 21. The fourth of five drawings will take place Friday, with the deadline for new entries being Wednesday, Sept. 22 at 11:59 p.m. Winners of the program’s third drawing have […]
The Highway Patrol reports a Spickard woman sustained serious injuries when a pickup truck struck a hatchback head-on seven miles southeast of Princeton on Tuesday morning, September 21. A medical helicopter took hatchback driver 74-year-old Diana Miller to Truman Medical Center. No injuries were reported for the pickup driver, 54-year-old Jeffrey Siemer of Princeton. The […]
Boone Construction Company of Columbia has filed a petition against the City of Trenton related to work on the 17th Street Bridge. The petition involves five counts including breach of contract, breach of warranty ex contractu, unjust enrichment, quantum meruit, and damages and costs pursuant to the Missouri Public Prompt Payment Act. Boone requests the […]
(Missouri Independent) – A new lawsuit will test whether public agencies can hide how much they are paying attorneys and determine how far they must go in searching for records sought under the Missouri Sunshine Law. The lawsuit, filed Sept. 10 in Jefferson City by lobbyist John Gaskin of Flotron McIntosh, accuses the Missouri State Employees […]
(Missouri Independent) – The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on December 1, 2021, in a case that threatens to overturn decades of abortion protections established under the landmark 1973 ruling in Roe v. Wade. The upcoming case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, stems from a Mississippi law that bans most abortions after 15 […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt filed a brief in support of Texas’ lawsuit against the Biden Administration over their proposed exceptions to the Title 42 program. Title 42 is a President Trump-era rule that allows for the federal government to expel migrants who are immigrating from a country where communicable disease is or was present. […]
(Missouri Independent) – The U.S. Senate parliamentarian has turned down a plan to include a pathway to citizenship for millions of undocumented people in the $3.5 trillion reconciliation package, a blow for Democrats and immigration advocacy groups when the decision was disclosed late Sunday. “We are deeply disappointed in this decision but the fight to […]
(Missouri Independent) – Agricultural groups and farm-state lawmakers notched a significant win when U.S. House Democrats chose not to touch a big tax break for inherited property, avoiding, for now, a confrontation. But opponents remain wary that the idea could come back at any time as Democrats shape their massive $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation package, and […]
(Missouri Independent) – On the final day of the 2021 legislative session in May, Missouri lawmakers passed a “law enforcement bill of rights” that gives officers special legal protections and closes files to police misconduct. When Gov. Mike Parson signed it into law in July, the bill of rights portion was largely overshadowed in press […]
A Missouri business owner who engaged in a $4 million scheme to defraud his customers was sentenced in federal court for tax evasion after failing to pay more than $768,000 in state and federal taxes. “Not only did this defendant steal millions of dollars from his customers, but he stole from the public by evading […]
Wealthy Americans have a message for Congress: Tax us more. More than 200 high-income taxpayers and business owners have sent an open letter urging elected leaders to raise the tax rate for rich people to fund the infrastructure plan now being debated in Congress. Three of the signers are from Oregon, including Sandy Polishuk, a retired […]
Kansas City State Senator Greg Razer says he will try to block every bill he considers to be anti-LGBT that reaches the Missouri Senate. On the Senate floor Wednesday, Razer, a Democrat who is openly gay, says protecting the rights of the LGBT community will be the goal for the rest of his term. […]
