The Grundy County Commission on March 2nd approved an amendment to Public Administrator Jill Eaton’s resignation which is effective on March 9th. The commission has restarted the process of appointing an interim public administrator. Applications will be accepted for the position at the county clerk’s office until the position is filled. The county commission will […]
Fans in the Ketcham Community Center and those viewing from home through the Pirates Digital Media website helped NCMC celebrate Homecoming and Alumni Appreciation Day Saturday, February 27th. Pirate Crew rally towels were made available by Phyllis Jackson, and additional give-a-ways were provided by the NCMC Alumni Association and the NCMC Marketing Department. NCMC Student […]
Missouri voters could decide who sits on the state board of education – not the governor. Eureka Republican Representative Dottie Bailey is proposing to let voters choose board members during each general election of a presidential election year. A House committee is scheduled to vote Tuesday on the measure. St. Louis Democrat Ian […]
A Kansas City mother whose daughter was killed by a stray bullet from celebratory gunfire on the Fourth of July 2011 urged Missouri lawmakers to approve Blair’s law. Michele Shanahan Demoss traveled to Jefferson City on Monday to testify for the bill, which makes discharging a firearm within or into city limits with criminal negligence […]
A one-point-nine-trillion-dollar pandemic relief package heads to the U-S Senate after approval by the Democratic-controlled U.S. House. The plan featuring $1,400 stimulus checks passed early Saturday with no Republican support. Missouri GOP Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler says it’s “serving as an excuse to spend our tax money on unnecessary things completely unrelated to the […]
COVID-19 presented considerable challenges to Missouri schools, staff, and students in 2020, including closures, cancellations, remote learning, and more. The pandemic also presented challenges to schools and instructors teaching the Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) hunter education courses. “Many schools were closed for much of the year, which reduced the number of kids who could […]
After years of attempts, the state House has voted to pass a bill that would let donors provide scholarships for students to attend a private Missouri K-12 school. In return, they would get state tax credits. Under the bill, students with special needs and those who qualify for free and reduce price school meals would […]
(Missouri Independent) – The eyes of the nation turned to U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley over the holidays when he became the first senator to announce an objection to the certification of presidential electors. But the eyes of local politicos turned instead to his home-state colleague, Missouri’s senior senator. How would Roy Blunt — up for […]
(Missouri Independent) – About 137,700 registered voters in Missouri did not have a state-issued identification in 2017, according to an analysis from the Secretary of State’s Office. Another 140,000 voters had expired IDs, and 2,000 more voters had forfeited their driver’s licenses. Under a bill passed Wednesday in the Missouri House, those registered voters would either have to […]
The USDA says export sales numbers for most major commodities declined during the week ending February 18th. Corn and wheat were driven to new marketing year lows following cancellations by unknown destinations, possibly China, while soybean sales dropped also following cancellations by an unknown destination. China also canceled on U.S. beef and while it was […]
A state House committee has voted unanimously today to pass two bills that aim to keep tabs on unregulated faith-based boarding schools in Missouri. Former students from across the country attended a recent hearing and talked about getting beaten, being starved, restrained, forced to eat their own vomit, and put in isolation for days or […]
There is bipartisan support for legislation ensuring that Missourians cannot be taxed on their federal stimulus checks. Missouri House Budget Committee chairman Cody Smith of Carthage presented his bill Wednesday in Jefferson City, Smith tells lawmakers it’s important to act, noting that under Missouri’s tax code, federal stimulus checks related to COVID are […]
The Missouri Senate has passed a bill that would protect some businesses and organizations from COVID-19 exposure lawsuits. The legislation is designed to protect businesses like health care providers, manufacturers, schools, and churches from such lawsuits in many instances. Under the bill, the lawsuits must be filed within a year of an alleged COVID-19 exposure. […]
After about twelve hours of debate, the Missouri Senate refrained from voting overnight on a contentious K-12 public education package. There was some confusion towards the end that appeared to ultimately lead to the plan getting shelved – at least for now. Several changes were made over the course of the day and night. As […]
(Missouri Independent) – Republican state Senators advanced sweeping legislation early Tuesday morning aimed at penalizing protestors who block streets, while also providing further protections for law enforcement under investigation for misconduct or excessive force. The bill also aims to prevent municipalities from decreasing the budgets for law enforcement agencies in Missouri by more than 12 percent over […]
(Missouri Independent) – Last spring, as Missouri businesses shed hundreds of thousands of jobs, Gov. Mike Parson warned that the state was headed for the worst financial crunch since the 2008 recession. Ten months later, Parson presented a budget plan that anticipates a $1.1 billion surplus on July 1, the biggest in state history. And if the $1.9 trillion pandemic […]
The Missouri Department of Conservation director has testified against a proposal to increase the size of the Conservation Commission from four to nine, saying it could lead to regional favoritism. Conservation director Sara Parker Pauley testified last (Monday) night during a lengthy House committee hearing in Jefferson City. Conservation director Sara Parker Pauley […]
In 2019, Gov. Mike Parson closed a prison in northwest Missouri’s Cameron. Most staff and inmates transferred to the other prison in town – Western Missouri Correctional Center. Now, Parson wants to reopen the Crossroads Correctional Center and turn it into a training academy for correctional officers. During a House Budget Committee hearing, Trevor Foley […]
Missouri could catch up by the end of the next state budget year on its outstanding debt owed to counties for jail reimbursements. For years, the state has been behind in paying counties and the city of St. Louis for a portion of a defendant’s entire local jail stay if the individual ends up going […]
(Missouri Independent) – The White House on Wednesday indicated that President Joe Biden would support studying reparations for slavery, the same day that House Democrats held a hearing on legislation that would set up a reparations commission. But White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki stopped short of saying Biden would sign the bill under consideration […]
