U.S. Senators Roy Blunt (Mo.), Sherrod Brown (Ohio), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and Dick Durbin (Ill.), as well as U.S. Representatives Joyce Beatty (Ohio) and Ann Wagner (Mo.), introduced legislation that would commission a study reviewing current homelessness and housing services for survivors of trafficking. “We can […]
Missouri’s population grew by about 11,000 people from 2019 to 2020. This 0.2% increase is only half the national rate of 0.4%, though it is typical of the modest growth experienced by many other Midwestern states. But the picture gets more complicated when you zoom in to specific regions and counties. “This growth is uneven,” […]
Frozen Food Express Transportation Services, Inc., a leading nationwide temperature-controlled transportation and warehousing provider, is expanding its business with a new transportation and logistics facility in Butler, Missouri. The company is investing nearly $6 million and creating nearly 60 new jobs in the region. “Missouri’s central location and business-friendly environment is a leading destination for […]
(Missouri Independent) – Missouri and Kansas residents’ utility bills may be helping to bankroll the energy sector lobbying against policies aimed at lowering greenhouse gas emissions. Federal and state rules prohibit utility companies from passing their lobbying costs on to customers through bills. But in both Kansas and Missouri, utilities like Evergy, Ameren, and Spire […]
An annual statewide report shows Black drivers were 71-percent more likely to be pulled over than white drivers and 25-percent more likely to be arrested in Missouri last year. The percentages improved from 2019, but racial inequalities still exist. Cheryl Clay with the Springfield NAACP tells NewsNation she is still reviewing the numbers. […]
The Missouri Attorney General’s Office has released the annual vehicle stops report, an aggregation of data covering all vehicle stops in the state of Missouri in 2020. The report shows the number of people pulled over and then arrested in Missouri dropped significantly in 2020 but racial inequalities continue. It says the pullover rate declining […]
(Missouri Independent) – In 2018, 66% of Missouri voters voted to legalize medical marijuana, picking a Constitutional amendment proposal floated by a group called New Approach Missouri. Two and a half years later, access to medical marijuana remains limited, due to both a cap on the number of licenses and the extremely high regulatory compliance […]
A Missouri man was charged in federal court with setting the arson fire of an apartment building in which several residents were injured. Rodney Boyles, 35, of Kansas City, was charged with one count of arson in a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo. Boyles remains in federal custody […]
(Missouri Independent) – In the last week of April, the Linn County Health Department signaled that the COVID-19 pandemic had cooled enough that it could discontinue weekly reports on new cases. With only three active cases on April 21, the urgency for frequent updates seemed to have passed. But the coronavirus came roaring back this […]
Missouri State Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick announced he has joined a coalition of 15 State Treasurers to speak out against apparent attempts by the Biden Administration to pressure banks and other large financial institutions to divest from coal, oil, and natural gas companies. “While the pursuit of more renewable sources of energy is a noble cause, […]
(Missouri Independent) – Missourians voted to legalize medical marijuana in 2018. But under federal law, growing, transporting, or selling marijuana remains a crime. Unsurprisingly, that dynamic has created a lot of headaches for the fledgling industry. One notable example: Unlike every other legal business in the state, marijuana companies are prohibited from deducting business expenses […]
U.S. Senators Roy Blunt (Mo.) and Sherrod Brown (Ohio) introduced bipartisan legislation to require states to report data on all child abuse-related deaths and develop recommendations to prevent child abuse deaths from occurring in the first place. The senators’ bill would provide policymakers and public health officials with a clearer picture of the number of […]
(Missouri Independent) – On Monday morning, Jeremy Cady, state director of Americans for Prosperity, filed paperwork with Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft’s office to begin the process of putting the 12.5-cents a gallon tax increase on a statewide ballot. To succeed in forcing a referendum on the bill, the campaign would have to gather about 110,000 […]
A North Carolina man pleaded guilty to a bribery and smuggling scheme. He abused his position as a prison official to funnel drugs and other contraband into Caledonia Correctional Institution. According to court documents, Ollie Rose III, 62, of Pleasant Hill, worked as a case manager at Caledonia Correctional Institution, a state prison in Halifax […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt filed a lawsuit against St. Louis County Executive Sam Page, Dr. Faisal Khan, and the St. Louis County Department of Public Health for the arbitrary, capricious, and unreasonable application of COVID-19 restrictions in St. Louis County. Specifically, the suit takes issue with the restrictions on religious institutions, masking requirements for […]
Multiple awards were presented to North Central Missouri College faculty/staff in recognition of their years of service and exemplary accomplishments. Linda Brown, Director of Records and Enrollment/Registrar, Cindy Petrie, Admissions Representative, Lisa Hostetler, WIB Executive Director, Linda Cowling, English Instructor, Vicki Weaver, Board Clerk, Mike O’Neal, Custodian, Stan Scott, Industrial Technology Instructor, and Steve Richman […]
As demand for the COVID-19 vaccine has significantly decreased in recent weeks, Governor Mike Parson announced the Missouri National Guard (MONG) has begun scaling back its involvement at mass vaccination site locations in May. The drawdown of National Guard members is set to be completed by June 1, 2021. “We are in a far different […]
(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 […]
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 […]
The Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission today selected the Lehman-Wilson team for the design-build contract to replace 31 weight-restricted and poor condition bridges in northern Missouri over the next two and a half years through the Fixing Access to Rural Missouri Bridge Program. It was made possible by the 2019 receipt of a $20.7 million […]
