MoInd 📰

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Agriculture began planning this month to develop outdoor recreation opportunities near national forests and grasslands, part of a broader Biden administration push to help communities reap economic rewards from the growing recreation sector. Three USDA agencies — the U.S. Forest Service, the National Institute of Food and Agriculture and […]

The post USDA to use outdoors recreation to boost economy around national forests, grasslands appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The magic in “magic mushrooms” may be the ability to defeat post-traumatic stress disorder, and a St. Charles County Republican lawmaker wants to make them legal in a treatment setting. State Rep. Tony Lovasco of O’Fallon isn’t a hippie. He says he’s never taken psilocybin mushrooms or smoked a joint. “I’ve never even smoked a […]

The post Missouri Republican pushes to legalize ‘magic mushrooms’ to treat depression, PTSD appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Karen Judith Briseno Ortiz mailed in her application for a program meant to protect undocumented children from deportation, one day after her twin sister’s application. Her sister was accepted into the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, but Briseno Ortiz, who grew up in Dallas, was not. Now her application is in limbo […]

The post Lengthy timeline for DACA legal fight puts lives on hold for years appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The push to allow Missouri students to transfer out of their home district and direct tax money toward their new school of choice is picking up momentum, with a state Senate committee set to approve a pair of bills this week. The bills — one that would allow public districts and charter schools to open […]

The post Push for open enrollment picks up steam as Missouri GOP focuses on education bills appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The 50-year golden anniversary of Missouri’s Sunshine Law has led me to reflect on what could be done to restore the vision of Missouri’s original Sunshine Law sponsors. Recent news stories and editorials of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the Kansas City Star concluded the Sunshine Law needs an “overhaul.” I could not agree more […]

The post Capitol Perspectives: Improving Missouri’s Sunshine Law appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The White House on Friday announced plans to speed up the use of infrastructure law funds to replace lead pipes in underserved communities, with a focus on Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin beginning this year. The four states, each led by Democratic governors, will be part of what’s called the Lead Service […]

The post White House launches new push to help states remove lead pipes that carry drinking water appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Following a Missouri judge’s determination that the attorney general’s office “knowingly and purposefully” violated the state’s open records law while it was being run by now-U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley, plaintiffs in the case say they are owed more than $300,000 in legal fees.  In November, Cole County Judge Jon Beetem determined the attorney general’s office […]

The post Sunshine Law violations by AG’s office under Josh Hawley could cost Missouri $300K appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON – A panel of policymakers and educators, including author Dave Eggers and former U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, gathered at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday to promote the American Teacher Act. The bill, if passed, would authorize the federal government to create four-year grants for states to enact and enforce minimum school teacher […]

The post Teachers would get $60K minimum salary under bill in Congress making grants to states appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Nearly 80 Democratic members of Congress sent a letter to the White House expressing their “great concern” that the Biden administration is walking back on its promise to restore migrants’ access to asylum. In the letter, they also condemned the administration’s expansion of a controversial policy that immediately turns away migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border, […]

The post Democrats in Congress condemn Biden administration expansion of Title 42 appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Growing up in West Texas, our family tells a story about a lightning strike that either hit, or nearly hit, a billboard in our neighborhood. It said: “Gas Cooks Better Than Electricity.” In our contemporary era where anything can be an outrage, our latest political spat happens to be about whether or not Biden is […]

The post A lot of hot air from the gas stove debate appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A Missouri House committee approved four versions of proposals to overhaul the initiative petition process Thursday on party-line votes, despite warnings of well-funded opposition if lawmakers put one on the ballot. The differences among the competing proposals were enough that House Elections Committee Chairwoman Peggy McGaugh, R-Carrollton, said she didn’t feel comfortable combining them. “I […]

The post Four bills making initiative petition process harder passed by Missouri House committee appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The director of Missouri’s child welfare agency told lawmakers this week that the state has “effectively legally orphanized” around 1,500 children. Those children have had their legal ties to their biological parents severed — by a court, in what’s called termination of parental rights — but the social services agency had no adoptive parents ready […]

The post Missouri child welfare agency pitches plan to ‘rebuild’ overburdened foster care system appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A Cole County judge has concluded that a rule implemented by the Missouri House in 2019 allowing lawmakers to withhold certain information from public records does not violate the state constitution.  The lawsuit was filed by Mark Pedroli, founder of the Sunshine and Government Accountability Project. He challenged a rule adopted by the Missouri House […]

The post Judge says Missouri House rule limiting access to public records is constitutional appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — New Hampshire and Georgia will have a bit longer to implement key changes to when and how they hold Democratic presidential primaries, under an extension a Democratic National Committee panel approved Wednesday. Election officials will have until June 3 to move New Hampshire’s 2024 Democratic presidential primary to Feb. 13 and Georgia’s to […]

The post National Dems give New Hampshire, Georgia more time to change 2024 primary dates appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — On a June 2020 morning, Amy Neville entered her son’s bedroom to wake him for an orthodontist appointment. Fourteen-year-old Alex didn’t wake up. He died of fentanyl poisoning after taking a counterfeit pill he bought from someone he met on Snapchat, Neville told GOP lawmakers Wednesday during a roundtable discussion of the role […]

The post U.S. House GOP takes aim at fake pills containing deadly fentanyl sold on social media appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Kansas City is the only major city in the country where the city’s elected leaders don’t control the local police department — a state-appointed police board does. Up until 2013, St. Louis was in the same boat.  However, the city gained local control of its police department after a 2012 statewide referendum.  Now 10 years […]

The post Missouri Republicans push for state to take over control of St. Louis police department appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The Neiss family drove from St. Louis to Jefferson City on Tuesday, a trip they’ve made many times over the past four years. The reason is always the same: Legislation they fear will harm their transgender son. On the agenda Tuesday night in the House General Laws Committee were a litany of bills aimed at […]

The post Missouri committee debates transgender sports, healthcare, drag shows for nine hours appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Requiring business owners to install electric vehicle chargers is an infringement on their freedoms and a mandate they can’t afford, members of a Missouri House committee argued Wednesday.  Primarily Republican lawmakers voiced support during a committee hearing on legislation that would require cities and counties to pay for electric vehicle chargers in order to mandate […]

The post GOP renews push to block Missouri cities, counties from mandating EV charging stations appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Following a mass shooting on the eve of Lunar New Year in which 11 people in a predominantly Asian neighborhood in California were killed, President Joe Biden again urged Congress to pass legislation banning assault weapons. Communities across America “have been struck by tragedy after tragedy, including mass shootings from Colorado Springs to […]

The post Wave of mass shootings prompts Biden to call yet again for assault weapons ban appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The Missouri Association of Realtors, an organization that spent millions in recent years on two successful initiative petition campaigns, is warning lawmakers it will oppose anything more than tinkering with the way the constitution is amended by voters. During testimony Tuesday before the House Elections and Elected Officials Committee, Sam Licklider, lobbyist for the realtors, […]

The post Missouri realtors vow to fight GOP push to make it harder to amend state constitution appeared first on Missouri Independent.