(Missouri Independent) – Last Tuesday, Republicans appeared to have reached a fragile consensus around extending a tax crucial to Missouri’s Medicaid finances — opening the door for Gov. Mike Parson to call lawmakers into a special session this week. By Friday afternoon, June 18, that consensus appears to have been derailed, at least temporarily, by disagreements […]
Tag: special
Audio: Missouri Public Defender System prepares to hire 53 new attorneys, biggest staffing increase since around 1989
If Gov. Mike Parson does not make changes to the Missouri Public Defender System’s next budget, the office is on track to get its largest staffing increase since about 1989. Director Mary Fox tells Missourinet 53 new public defenders would be hired statewide. “This is going to make a huge difference in terms […]
Audio: Green Hills Animal Shelter keeps a busy schedule with cats, dogs, fundraising and repairs
The Green Hills Animal Shelter houses dogs and cats to be adopted. Manager Ronda Michael says the shelter tries to keep about 25 dogs at a time. Ronda Michael notes anyone wanting to adopt a pet can come to the shelter at 3041 East 10th Street in Trenton. Information about available […]
Trenton Rotary Club hears presentation from Green Hills Head Start specialists
Green Hills Head Start Family Engagement Specialist Lisa McLain and Enrollment Specialist Jenny Lewis spoke at the Trenton Rotary Club meeting on June 17. The program serves children from prenatal to five years old in the nine-county Green Hills area. Head Start is funded by a federal grant to serve 188 children from three to […]
Seasonal road striping operations underway, so watch out for slow-moving paint crews
Road striping operations are in progress throughout the state and the Missouri Department of Transportation is urging motorists to use caution when encountering work crews. Drivers may come upon slow-moving caravans of trucks refreshing the lines on the roadway at various locations in the state through August. “Stripes are refreshed periodically for the safety of […]
Missouri 4-H’ers flock to new American Sign Language project
Aynsley Harmon, a 12-year-old from Kahoka, Missouri, wanted to be able to talk with a deaf relative she sees at family reunions. So she did what any resourceful 4-H’er does: She looked for a project to help her accomplish her goal. With a lot of support and collaboration along the way, her determination resulted in […]
Gallatin Board of Education finalizes 2020-2021 budget, approves 2021-2022 budget
The Gallatin R-5 Board of Education finalized 2020-2021 expenditures and approved the 2021-2022 budget on June 17. The Teachers Fund was zeroed out with the estimated amount of transfer of $395,000 from General Fund 1 to the Teachers Fund 2. Student accounts were zeroed out for athletics, basketball, football, golf, softball, track, and wrestling. A […]
COVID-19 Delta Variant confirmed in Grundy County resident
The Grundy County Health Department has received confirmation of the COVID-19 Delta variant in a Grundy County resident. The Delta variant was previously known as the “Indian variant”, as it was first found in India. It’s one of three sub-lineages of the Indian variant, and is also known as B.1.617.2. The CDC has classified the […]
Texas man charged in Harrison County after fleeing from law enforcement
A man from Houston, Texas, has been charged in Harrison County after he allegedly fled from law enforcement on June 15. Twenty-five-year-old Onyedikachi Hakeem Shodimu faces felony charges of resisting arrest, detention, or stop by fleeing, creating a substantial risk of serious injury or death to any person and third-degree assault, special victim. He also […]
MFA Oil raises more than $1 million for military families
MFA Oil announces its Seventh Annual Charity Golf Scramble and Concert benefitting Operation Homefront raised $150,000 in donations and more than $1 million of support for America’s military families since the inaugural event in 2015. Operation Homefront is a national nonprofit that provides financial assistance to the families of U.S. military service members and veterans. […]
Owner of school sentenced to prison for defrauding program dedicated to rehabilitating disabled military veterans
A Maryland man was sentenced Monday to 30 months in prison and ordered to pay $150,000 in restitution for defrauding a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) program dedicated to rehabilitating military veterans with disabilities. According to court documents, Francis Engles, 65, of Bowie, was the owner and operator of Engles Security Training School (Engles […]
Princeton Board of Education approves bids, presented update on summer maintenance projects
The Princeton R-5 Board of Education on Monday evening, June 14, approved a bid for a passenger vehicle pending availability and final approval of a facility grant. The approved bid was from Suburban Chevrolet of Tulsa, Oklahoma for $45,695. Pettijohn Auto Center of Bethany also submitted a bid for $44,414. Pettijohn’s bid was lower, but […]
Lawmakers introduce Bill to improve housing services for survivors of human trafficking
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 […]
Stocker cattle could add value to your operation without breaking the bank
Stocker cattle make up just 12 percent of the 4.25 million head currently part of the beef industry in Missouri. But these cattle could add as much as $78 million to Missouri’s economy, according to the Missouri Beef Value-Added Study, a 2016 University of Missouri Extension report for the Missouri Agricultural and Small Business Development Authority. […]
Audio: Missouri’s Governor reluctant to call special session on Grain Belt eminent domain issue
The governor is reluctant to call a special session on the Grain Belt eminent domain issue in northern Missouri. While Missouri House Agriculture Committee Chairman Don Rone of Portageville has asked for a special session, Governor Parson says he has to be responsive to taxpayers as well: To be clear, Governor Parson supports […]
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 […]
Chillicothe City Council to meet on Monday
The Chillicothe City Council will hold a workshop for an overview of city finances before a regular meeting on Monday June 14. The workshop will be in the Chillicothe Municipal Utilities meeting room at 5:30 that evening. The council will consider ordinances at the meeting at 6:30 that would accept a bid for a street […]
Court news for Division One of Grundy County Circuit Court on Thursday, June 10, 2021
Jail sentences were ordered for several defendants during Thursday’s session of Division One of Grundy County Circuit Court. A Trenton resident, Joshua D. Phillips, pleaded guilty to felony domestic assault in the first degree, causing serious physical injury to another person. He also pleaded guilty to misdemeanor stealing. Both charges stem from an incident in […]