The Grundy County R-5 Board of Education approved an extension of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act on Wednesday evening, January 13th. The act provides employees 80 hours of paid sick leave if the employee is quarantined with COVID-19. The board approved the purchase of a new curriculum for the elementary school. Math Expressions will […]
University of Missouri extension has a report on the 2020 survey regarding crop and pasture land. MU Specialist in agriculture and the environment, Jackie Spainhauer, reports the average cropland values for eight area counties. Jackie Spainhauer noted the average 2020 land values are based on surveys among ag lenders and others in the […]
Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway has released an audit of the County Reimbursement Program, which reimburses county governments for certain costs for housing and transporting state prisoners. The program is administered by the Missouri Department of Corrections. The audit found that a combination of delayed reimbursements due to lack of state funding and increasing incarceration […]
The Missouri Economic Research and Information Center (MERIC) released new statewide employer survey results to correspond with its 2020 Missouri Economic & Workforce Report, which was published earlier this fall. The Economic & Workforce Report tracks the state’s economy and workforce by fiscal year (July 2019 – June 2020). The corresponding employer survey results focus […]
As of December 1, there were 77.5 million hogs and pigs on U.S. farms, down 1 percent from December 2019 and down 1 percent from September 1, 2020, according to the Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service. Other key findings in the report were: Of […]
Farmers who fear they are falling behind in farm technology might not be as behind as they think. Kansas State University cropping system economist Terry Griffin explains that a recent Kansas Farm Management Association study of farm technologies dispels the myth that all farmers use all of the latest technology. Griffin was one of the […]
The ability to meet basic needs is out-of-reach for many Missouri families because of the pandemic. The challenges facing households with children are detailed in a new national report. This week, the Annie E. Casey Foundation released findings for all states, using weekly Census survey data on such topics as food insecurity and housing instability. One […]
The Grundy County Nursing Home District Board of Directors heard about various topics at its meeting on December 15th. It was announced the United States Department of Agriculture approved the energy project. Administrator Jerry Doerhoff explained the project involves replacing the boiler and putting in mini-split units in each resident room. Each of those units […]
The Newtown-Harris R-3 Board of Education the evening of December 14th approved Missouri Consultants for Education as its service provider for district policies, regulations, and forms. There was discussion of the results of a four-day week teacher survey, COVID-19, and shifting contracted transportation pay to payroll for full-time employees. The board reviewed the district report […]
The Grundy County R-5 Board of Education approved a proposal for insurance on the evening of December 9th. The Missouri United School Insurance Council’s insurance will cost $36,206, which is an increase of $1,900 from last year. The board also approved an umbrella policy from MUSIC for an additional $5,000,000 of coverage for $1,533. The […]
The following is a list of general highway maintenance and construction work the Missouri Department of Transportation has planned in North Missouri for the week of December 7 – 13. All road closures and planned roadwork may be viewed on the Traveler Information Map at http://traveler.modot.org/map/. Inclement weather may cause schedule changes in some of […]
(Missouri Independent) – Hundreds of thousands of Missourians are struggling to get by during our coronavirus public health emergency, including children, according to the recently released U.S. Census Bureau Household Pulse Survey. While 40.8 percent of Missouri households report losing income since March, families with children under 18 have been especially impacted, with 51.4 percent reporting […]
Economist Ernie Goss says this year’s increase in Missouri farm income is leading to an increase in farmland prices. Goss, an economics professor at Creighton University in Omaha, says rising global oil prices are also generally good news for the state’s ethanol industry. Goss surveys rural bankers monthly as part of his Rural […]
Decker and Associates have announced Southwest 80th Avenue in Grundy County is anticipated to be closed December 14th through April 14th due to construction of an off-system bridge replacement and rehabilitation project. The announcement was made at the Grundy County Commission meeting on November 24th. No formal business was conducted at the meeting due to […]
The Grundy County Nursing Home District Board of Directors on November 17th received a report on a recently completed audit, which was said to be clean. Administrator Jerry Doerhoff reported the Department of Health and Senior Services completed focused infection control surveys on November 4th. No deficiencies were cited. The filing dates for the April […]
(Missouri Independent) – A Missouri family that was denied a license to grow medical marijuana alleged in court this week that outside groups and individuals had undue access to top state officials — and that access led to an opaque process and contributed to the decision to cap the number of licenses granted. To buttress […]
Governor Mike Parson announced that Missouri has been recognized as a national leader in digital technology best practices. The Center for Digital Government (CDG) released its 2020 Digital States Survey, which showed that Missouri received a grade of “A,” one of the top grades among all 50 states. The grade A demonstrates very strong innovation […]
A contractor bidding process is to begin this fall to prepare for the construction of a 344-acre multipurpose reservoir in Caldwell County. This comes after all agencies involved approved the Little Otter Creek Lake to move forward to begin construction after nearly 25 years of planning, design, reviews, and permitting. The primary purpose of the […]
According to the recent public opinion survey the Missouri State Highway Patrol is fulfilling its mission of service and protection. Colonel Eric T. Olson, superintendent of the Missouri State Highway Patrol announced the results of the 2020 Public Opinion Survey. Although the response rate increased with the use of a web-based survey compared to the […]
The University of Missouri Extension is looking for farmers to participate in fertilizer trials as part of the “MU Certified” Strip Trial Program. MU Extension nutrient management specialist John Lory, who leads the program, said this year’s farmer panel approved trials focused on improving the management of fertilizer in corn and soybean rotations, wheat, and […]
