Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt

Missouri Attorney General statement on school districts continuing to enforce mask mandates, quarantine orders

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt released the following statement addressing school districts that continue to illegally enforce mask mandates and quarantine orders despite the recent Cole County ruling.     “School districts have never been given the authority by the legislature to enact public health orders like mask mandates or quarantine orders – the recent […]

City of Chillicothe Website

Two meetings in Chillicothe postponed

The Chillicothe Historic Preservation Commission meeting scheduled for January 18th has been canceled due to illness. City Clerk Roze Frampton reports the meeting will be rescheduled for a later date. Nuisance hearings scheduled for January 19th have been postponed until the February 16th hearing date. Notices of the change will be mailed this week.

Coronavirus Update

Livingston County Health Department reports COVID-related death; 5 health departments report on new COVID cases

The Livingston County Health Center reports a COVID-19-related death. The total number of deaths is 83.  Thirteen cases have been added since January 13th, bringing that total to 2,821. The number of active cases went down by 17 to 129. Another COVID-19-related death has been added for Harrison County. The county’s COVID-19 dashboard shows that, […]

Newtown-Harris School Website

Newtown-Harris Board of Education approve personnel actions; five file for seats on the Board of Education

The Newtown-Harris R-3 Board of Education approved personnel actions on January 12th. Mic Halferty was approved as a substitute and hired to fill the upcoming maintenance position in school year 2022-2023. Samantha Miller was hired to coach elementary basketball. The board approved transferring $50,000 from the General Fund to the Capital Projects Fund. Superintendent Doctor […]

United States Supreme Court (Phot credit Laura Olson - States Newsroom)

Supreme Court appears wary of Biden vaccine-or-test employer mandate

(Missouri Independent) – The U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative majority appeared unconvinced Friday of the Biden administration’s authority to impose a vaccine-or-test mandate on private businesses, casting doubt on a key piece of the White House COVID-19 response. The justices seemed potentially more comfortable with another Biden administration rule to fight the virus that requires certain […]

Gallatin City Hall

Gallatin Board of Aldermen discuss 2022 budget and approve an agreement with Allstate Consultants

The Gallatin Board of Aldermen on December 13th approved an ordinance involving an agreement with Allstate Consultants LLC. The ordinance authorized the city to enter into an engineering service agreement for street and drainage improvements. City Administrator Lance Rains reported the City of Gallatin has received notice that D. A. Davidson and Company is willing […]

Scott Fitzpatrick

Missouri schools must comply with COVID ruling to win treasurer approval of bond deals

(Missouri Independent) – If school districts want to take advantage of a lower interest rate on bonds, Missouri Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick is requiring them to certify compliance with a recent court ruling targeting local health orders before his office will approve of the deal. Fitzpatrick detailed the decision he described as “unprecedented” in an interview Wednesday […]

School buses wait Tuesday outside Thomas Hart Benton Elementary School in Columbia (Photo Credit Rudi Keller Missouri Independent

Confusion around COVID ruling swirls as two Missouri school districts end semester early

(Missouri Independent) – As a growing number of Missouri school districts drop COVID mitigation measures under threat from Attorney General Eric Schmitt, at least two closed the doors on their fall semester early due to large numbers of staff and students out sick. Meanwhile, local public health departments said Tuesday they still have not heard […]

Mitchell Lovelace Booking Photo

Audio: Missouri man arrested for allegedly threatening to open fire at high school “in the name of Kyle Rittenhouse”

An eastern Missouri man has been charged after allegedly threatening to open fire at a high school. Festus Police Chief Tim Lewis says 27-year-old Mitchell Lovelace reportedly posted the threatening message Saturday night against Festus High School.     Rittenhouse took an AR-15-style gun to a Wisconsin riot last year – shooting to death two […]

Christmas Carol Play Graphic

Due to increase in COVID-19 cases, those attending performances of “A Christmas Carol” are strongly encouraged to wear a mask

All three performances are sold out for “A Christmas Carol” to be presented this weekend in Trenton. Organizers of the play are requesting because of a current increase in COVID-19 cases, that those attending are encouraged to wear a mask for performances that are held inside the 137-seat Hoover Theater of the Jewett-Norris Library. Arts […]

Generic Missouri Livestock Symposium Kirksville

Audio: All about what is taking place at the Missouri Livestock Symposium in Kirksville this weekend

The livestock symposium in Kirksville is coming up this Friday and Saturday with activities scheduled at the Kirksville Middle School. A variety of speakers and sessions are planned. MU Specialist Valerie Tate of Linn County reviews some of the speakers and sessions:     Valerie Tate of the University of Missouri Extension office in Linn […]

NEW COVID Dashboard for Missouri

Breakthrough infection data added to Missouri’s COVID-19 dashboard

A new addition to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services statewide COVID-19 dashboard finds that vaccination remains a strong defense against the virus, and that older age and health co-morbidities are strongly correlated with “breakthrough infections.”  The new data identifies COVID-19 breakthrough infections among the fully vaccinated. The analysis is the result of a partnership […]