U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) sent a letter to the Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery, Brian D. Miller, and acting Inspector General Richard K. Delmar urging an investigation into the widespread layoffs of airline workers who declined to submit themselves to President Biden’s vaccine mandate and the potential misuse of CARES Act funds by airlines. “The […]
Tag: U.S.
Feds seize property of Kansas City area companies accused of COVID relief fraud
(Missouri Independent) – The federal government has seized two vehicles and is threatening to seize a lake house, allegedly purchased illegally with COVID-19 relief money by a Kansas City-area businessman. The property was seized from several real estate companies incorporated in Kansas by Joseph Campbell, with most operating under a version of the name Titan […]
How a Mississippi court case could pave the way for new abortion bans across the U.S.
(Missouri Independent) – A six-week abortion ban in Texas enacted in September forced those seeking abortion services in the Lone Star State to look across state lines for care. But the timing couldn’t have been worse for Texans living near the state’s eastern border. The law took effect as neighboring Louisiana was reeling from the […]
Department of Natural Resources awards $30,000 grant to Galt
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources awarded a $30,000 Drinking Water Engineering Report Grant to the city of Galt to evaluate the city’s drinking water system. The grant offers funding to qualified communities to help cover engineering costs for evaluating water and wastewater system improvements. The city will use the grant to identify drinking water […]
COVID-19 outbreak at Smithfield plant in Milan, Missouri likely larger than originally known
(Missouri Independent) – The COVID-19 outbreak at Smithfield Foods’ northern Missouri plant — the focus of a worker safety lawsuit that garnered national attention last year — resulted in two worker deaths and was worse than previously thought, according to newly obtained federal documents. Early on in the pandemic, the Sullivan County Health Department told local […]
Department of Natural Resources awards $339,559 grant to Ludlow
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources awarded $339,559 in financial assistance through the Clean Water State Revolving Fund Regionalization Incentive Grant program to the village of Ludlow. The funding will be used to construct a connection between Ludlow’s wastewater treatment system and the Southwest Livingston County R-1 School. This grant will fund 100% of the […]
Missouri governor vows criminal prosecution of reporter who found flaw in state website
(Missouri Independent) – On Tuesday, a reporter with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch alerted the state that Social Security numbers of school teachers and administrators were vulnerable to public exposure due to flaws on a website maintained by Missouri’s department of education. The newspaper agreed to hold off publishing any story while the department fixed the problem and […]
Missouri Attorney General joins 19 state coalition urging Congress to reject legislation that increases energy fees
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt joined a 19-state coalition urging Congress to reject burdensome legislation that would increase fees on energy producers and hit American consumers with even greater price hikes. The two bills in question are the Methane Emissions Reduction Act in the Senate and a provision of the Build Back Better Act in […]
Three Missouri residents indicted for using identities of deceased people to file hundreds of COVID relief claims
Three Missouri residents have been indicted by a federal grand jury in a scheme to use the identities of deceased people to file hundreds of false stimulus claims under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Warren W. Watkins, 39, and Marissia Jackson, 25, both of Kansas City, Mo., and Lamar K. Johnson, […]
North Central Missouri College awarded Talent Search grant
North Central Missouri College has been chosen for a Federal TRIO Talent Search grant among 865 total applications submitted to the U.S. Department of Education. The grant provides funding of $277,375 annually. NCMC is partnering with the St. Joseph School District by directing grant activities toward Benton, Central, and Lafayette High School, and Robidoux, Spring […]
Online tool now available for drought-stricken farms to estimate compensation for feed transportation costs
An online tool is now available to help ranchers document and estimate payments to cover feed transportation costs caused by drought, which are now covered by the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-raised Fish Program (ELAP). The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) updated the program this year to include feed transportation costs as well as […]
Missouri man sentenced to 10-years in prison without parole for distribution of methamphetamine
A Missouri man was sentenced in federal court for his role in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in Howell, Greene, and Texas counties. Jose I. Gonzales, 39, of West Plains, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to 10 years in federal prison without parole. On July 23, 2020, Gonzales pleaded guilty to […]
Missouri Department of Conservation graduates 15 new conservation agents
The Missouri Department of Conservation congratulates 15 new conservation agents upon their graduation from MDC’s 2021 Conservation Agent Training Academy. The agent class of 2021 took the Conservation Agent’s Oath during a special graduation ceremony Tuesday, Oct. 12 at Richardson Fine Arts Center on the Lincoln University campus in Jefferson City. MDC Director Sara Parker […]
Missouri man pleads guilty to receiving and distributing hundreds of images and videos of child pornography
A Missouri, man pleaded guilty in federal court to receiving and distributing hundreds of images and videos of child pornography. Chandler Durham, 31, of Springfield, pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to one count of receiving and distributing child pornography. On Feb. 5, 2020, a detective with the Southwest Missouri Cyber […]
Missouri man pleads guilty to his role to distribute 551 pounds of meth
A Missouri, man pleaded guilty in federal court to his role in a conspiracy to distribute more than 250 kilograms of methamphetamine in the Kansas City metropolitan area. Noah Frazier, 39, of Independence, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner to one count of conspiracy to distributed methamphetamine and one count of being […]
Missouri couple plead guilty to selling counterfeit Disney movies on eBay
A Missouri, couple pleaded guilty in federal court to a scheme to smuggle counterfeit Disney DVDs into the United States and sell them on eBay. Tabitha Nicole Rodgers, 42, and her husband, Clint Travis Rodgers, 48, of Columbia, Missouri, pleaded guilty in separate appearances before Magistrate Judge Willie J. Epps, Jr. Tabitha Rodgers pleaded guilty […]
USDA Invests $15 million to construct a regional water distribution system in Northwest Missouri
U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development Missouri Acting State Director D Clark Thomas announced that the USDA is investing an additional $15,018,000 to Great Northwest Wholesale Water Commission for the development of a regional water distribution system. This funding brings USDA’s total investment for this project to $46,945,210. “Some areas of rural Missouri suffer significantly […]
Judge blocks residency rule for Missouri medical marijuana licenses
(Missouri Independent) – A federal judge last week permanently blocked Missouri from enforcing a requirement that medical marijuana licenses go to businesses owned by residents of the state. Following a bench trial Thursday, U.S. District Judge Nanette Laughrey agreed to grant a permanent injunction. Her written order has not yet been filed. News of the injunction […]
Missouri Livestock Symposium names Dr. David Patterson as inaugural Achievement Award recipient
The Missouri Livestock Symposium will recognize Dr. David Patterson as the inaugural recipient of the Missouri Livestock Symposium Achievement Award. Dr. Patterson will become a member of the Missouri Livestock Symposium Hall of Fame and will be inducted at a ceremony at the Symposium on Friday evening, December 3 in Kirksville, MO. According to committee […]