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, […]
Tag: States
Rotary members learn about chestnut trees during visit to the DeVorss farm
Joe DeVorss talked about his chestnut tree crop at the Trenton Rotary Club meeting on September 23rd, which was held at DeVorss’s farm. He said he started the tree crop more than three years ago. He has seedling-grown and grafted trees, which are starting to produce chestnuts that he will be able to sell. DeVorss […]
Advocates press for action in Congress on voting rights, despite grim outlook
(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 […]
USDA and HHS launch resource guide to help rural communities increase access to child care services
United States Department of Agriculture Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development Justin Maxson and Department of Health and Human Services Deputy Assistant Secretary for Early Childhood Development Katie Hamm today unveiled a joint resource guide (PDF, 3.5 MB) to help people in rural and Tribal communities increase access to child care services. “Access to quality, affordable […]
Video: One of the only annual fireworks competitions in the U.S. is this Saturday in Missouri
The Missouri Pyrotechnics Association holds one of the only annual fireworks competitions in the country. The Sky Wars Invitational Fireworks Championship is this Saturday near eastern Missouri’s Innsbrook. Vice President Rob Cima says the event is expected to attract a total of 8,000 people from 31 other states. Missouri Pyrotechnics Association Vice President […]
Missouri Attorney General files brief in support of Rae’s Café arguing that it is a private club
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt filed an amicus brief in support of Rae’s Café in their lawsuit against Jackson County. The brief, which was filed earlier in the case Jackson County v. Rae’s Café, argues that Rae’s Café, now Rae’s Private Club, is in compliance with the mask mandate and that Jackson County has violated […]
Woman pleads guilty to carjacking in Missouri
A woman pleaded guilty in federal court to stealing a vehicle at gunpoint from the parking garage at the Country Club Plaza. Maricela Delores Lozano, 21, of Kansas City, Kansas, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Howard F. Sachs to one count of carjacking and one count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of […]
Missouri Attorney General’s push to sue every school with mask mandate heads to court next week
(Missouri Independent) – Orders requiring school children to wear masks in class will be tested in court next week when a Boone County judge will be asked to decide if Attorney General Eric Schmitt can sue every district in the state in a single case. Circuit Judge Brouck Jacobs has set a hearing for 9 […]
Jury convicts Missouri man of illegal firearm
A Missouri man has been convicted by a federal trial jury of illegally possessing a firearm. Jeremiah Ezekiel Brown, 36, of Columbia, was found guilty on Monday, Sept. 20, of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Brown was arrested by a Columbia police detective during a traffic stop on Nov. 24, 2020. The […]
Lawsuit filed by lobbyist accuses MOSERS of violating Missouri Sunshine Law
(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 […]
U.S. Supreme Court schedules December 1 oral arguments in major abortion case
(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 Files Brief in support of Texas lawsuit that allows migrants to be expelled
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. […]
Immigration reform blocked from reconciliation bill in Congress, but Democrats vow to try again
(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 […]
Struggle over tax break for inherited farmland churns below surface in reconciliation bill
(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 lawmakers buck national trend by establishing police “Bill of Rights”
(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 […]
Groups see Missouri proposals as voter-suppression attempts
As lawmakers in Congress work to expand access to voting, members of the Missouri Legislature are proposing laws their critics say would limit people’s ability to vote. State legislative committees on elections convened last week to discuss measures that would impose a stricter voter ID law, require election officials to purge voter rolls more frequently, and others. Luz […]
Missouri Livestock Symposium keynote speaker, Dr. Frank Mitloehner, to speak on cows and climate change
Dr. Frank Mitloehner, University of California-Davis professor and air quality extension specialist will be the keynote speaker on Friday evening December 3rd at the 22nd annual Missouri Livestock Symposium, says Garry L. Mathes, chairman. The Missouri Livestock Symposium returns to an in-person event on December 3 and 4, 2021 at the William Matthew Middle School […]
New owners of Trenton Republican-Times, Green Hills Weekly Shopper speak at Trenton Rotary Club meeting
The new owners of the Trenton Republican-Times and Green Hills Weekly Shopper spoke at the Trenton Rotary Club meeting on September 16th. Jamey and D’Anna Honeycutt took ownership of the two on September 1st. They also own the Clinton County Citizen newspaper in Plattsburg. The Honeycutts have been in the newspaper business for about 20 […]
Report: Missouri receives failing grade for handling of COVID-19 in prisons
(Missouri News Service) – One out of every three people incarcerated in the United States has contracted COVID-19, and a new report shows how state prison systems – including in Missouri – have failed to properly handle the public-health crisis. The Prison Policy Initiative report evaluates how corrections departments have responded in four areas: limiting the […]
$6.8 million from state’s medical marijuana program transferred to veterans fund
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services has made the second transfer of funds from Missouri’s medical marijuana program to the Missouri Veterans Commission. The total amount transferred is $6,843,310. Missourians voted in November 2018 to adopt Constitutional Amendment 2, known now as Article XIV. The amendment includes a provision requiring that fees and taxes […]