(Missouri Independent) – With several months to go before state lawmakers return for the 2022 legislative session, Republicans are promising to once again push to require photo identification to vote. Committees in the Missouri House and Senate held hearings Tuesday dominated by discussions of requiring a government-issued ID for both in-person and absentee voting. Secretary […]
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Ashcroft announces plan to keep voting secure and accurate in Missouri elections
After releasing the findings of a voter fraud investigation involving two St. Charles County voters, Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft went on record to make clear his intentions regarding voter integrity by announcing his plan to keep voting secure and accurate in upcoming Missouri elections while making sure no voter is turned away from the […]
TierPoint announces plan to build new data center in the St. Louis Area
TierPoint, a leading provider of secure, connected data center and cloud solutions, announced plans to build a new, 23,000 square foot Tier III data center in the Westport area of St. Louis County, Missouri. Backed by an approximately $20 million commitment, the facility will include 14,500 square feet of production or raised floor space. “Missouri […]
In court, drug middlemen fight to limit pharmacies insured patients can use
(Missouri Independent) – In the first test of a 2020 U.S. Supreme Court ruling, drug middlemen last week argued that federal law gives them a right to limit which pharmacies patients with health insurance can use — or at least make it more expensive if patients get their medicine at a shop that isn’t preferred […]
Missouri 4-H Hall of Fame inducts 44 members
“Making the best better” for generations of Missouri 4-H club members, 44 volunteers joined the Missouri 4-H Hall of Fame on Aug. 21 at State Fair Community College in Sedalia. The Missouri 4-H Foundation recognizes individuals who have created a legacy of service to 4-H by honoring them with membership in the Missouri 4-H Hall […]
Audio: Lack of funding prevents Missouri from helping thousands of rape victims
In 2020, nearly 15,000-thousand victims asked a Missouri rape crisis center for help. During a statewide task force online listening session last week, members found out about 8,000 of those victims were turned away due to a lack of funding. Creve Coeur State Senator Jill Schupp, a member of the task force, says members want […]
July unemployment rates for Green Hills area counties
July 2021, unemployment rates for this area range from two percent in Mercer County up to four point nine percent in Clinton County. At two percent, Mercer County has the second-lowest jobless rate in the state; only Scotland County is lower at one point eight percent. The July unemployment rate average for Missouri is three […]
Supreme Court rejection of eviction ban increases pressure to dole out rental aid money
(Missouri Independent) -The U.S. Supreme Court’s rejection of the Biden administration’s last-ditch effort to extend a federal ban on evictions has put hundreds of thousands of American renters at risk of losing their housing — and is increasing pressure on states and localities to get rental assistance dollars distributed faster. In an eight-page majority opinion […]
Trenton City Council looks at creation of a “Social District,” discuss increasing monthly base rate of water meter charge
The Trenton City Council Monday night reviewed a preliminary report on proposed improvements to the aging water treatment plant, including an initial discussion on how to pay for an anticipated loan to finance the projects. The council also endorsed a developer’s application seeking funding for senior citizen housing, the creation of a social district for […]
FDA gives full approval to Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine
The U.S. has its first fully approved vaccine against COVID-19, with federal health officials announcing Monday the approval of Pfizer-BioNTech’s two-dose vaccine. The green light from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to move Pfizer’s vaccine from emergency use to full approval is a milestone in the national pandemic response, and one that comes as the […]
As Missouri students head back to class, state launches new COVID testing program
(Missouri Independent) – Monday marks the first day of school for thousands of students across Missouri and it’s also when schools can begin enrolling in a new federally-funded testing program aimed at helping facilitate a safe return to the classroom. The Department of Health and Senior Services announced Friday evening that Ginkgo Bioworks, Inc., a […]
Meatpacking plants have long relied on immigrant labor. Some now turn to foreign visa workers
(Missouri Independent) – Colored hard hats distinguish different roles and jobs at Seaboard Foods, a major meatpacking plant in Guymon, Oklahoma. Senior management have green. Supervisors wear dark blue. Foreign workers on visas don yellow-green. But Seaboard is part of a small but growing trend in the meatpacking industry, which already largely relied on an […]
Audio: Afghanistan refugees arrive in Missouri
Refugees from Afghanistan are beginning to arrive in Missouri. Missourinet’s Brent Palm has more on the story. Some of the first refugees flew into St. Louis Lambert International Airport over the weekend. One man named Mohammed told the St. Louis Post Dispatch that “it’s very nice to be here” and said he really […]
Governor Parson announces $400 million plan to improve broadband infrastructure in Missouri
During a press conference at the Missouri State Fair hosted by the Missouri Farm Bureau, Governor Mike Parson announced plans to deploy more than $400 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to increase broadband internet access, adoption, and assistance statewide. “Investing in our broadband infrastructure is critical to unlocking our full economic potential […]
Audio: Online pet product retailer Chewy to hire 1,600 employees in western Missouri’s Belton area
The governor traveled to rural western Missouri’s Belton this week to help cut the ribbon on an 800-thousand square foot new e-Commerce fulfillment center that’s located near I-49. State Department of Economic Development Director Rob Dixon says Chewy has seen enormous growth. Dixon says Chewy plans to hire 1,600 employees in the Belton […]
Audio: Missouri legislator’s federal court trial delayed
A Missouri State Representative’s federal court trial has been moved to June 2022. The trial for Nixa Republican Tricia Derges was scheduled to begin Monday at a federal courthouse in southwest Missouri’s Springfield. Don Ledford, with the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Western District of Missouri, says a witness suffered a stroke and […]
Judge orders state to immediately allow Missourians to enroll in expanded Medicaid
(Missouri Independent) – The Missouri Department of Social Services must allow newly eligible residents that qualify for benefits under voter-approved Medicaid expansion to enroll and cannot impose greater restrictions on them, a Cole County judge ruled Tuesday. Cole County Circuit Court Judge Jon Beetem sided with the plaintiffs who urged him to allow Medicaid expansion to take […]
Unionville man drowns at Thousand Hills State Park
The Highway Patrol reports a Unionville man has drowned at Thousand Hills State Park near Kirksville the afternoon of August 9 after he voluntarily left a pontoon boat in an attempt to rescue another swimmer. Sixty-four-year-old Steven Puckett was taken to the Travis Noe Funeral Home. Puckett went under the water at Forest Lake and did […]
Secretary of State announces Bicentennial-Day release of the State of Missouri Constitution in audiobook format
Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, in commemoration of the two-hundredth anniversary of Missouri’s entry into the United States, has announced that the Constitution of the State of Missouri will be released in audiobook format on August 10, 2021. This 13-hour recording, produced by the Wolfner Talking Book and Braille Library, is the first audio version […]