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Of the 20 states that have failed to raise the minimum wage above the federal $7.25 an hour standard, 16 have more than 12% of their children living in poverty, according to a States Newsroom analysis of wage and poverty data. Anti-poverty advocates say that’s a sign that there’s an urgent need for lawmakers to […]

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Missouri will be required to provide year-long, continuous coverage for anyone under age 19 enrolled in Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program, as part of a $1.7 trillion spending package approved by Congress Friday.  In a move advocates have long pushed for as a way to avoid unnecessarily forcing children off the rolls, all […]

The post Federal spending bill ensures one year continuous coverage for Missouri kids in Medicaid, CHIP appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate passed a massive $1.7 trillion funding package Thursday that carries emergency aid for natural disaster recovery and the Ukrainian war effort, pushing past disputes over immigration policy and barely meeting a Friday deadline when current funding runs out. The bill, supported by both Democrats and Republicans, now goes to the U.S. House, […]

The post Huge $1.7 trillion spending package passes in U.S. Senate, backed by both parties appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Federal environmental enforcement, as measured by Environmental Protection Agency civil cases closed against polluters, hit a two-decade low in 2022, per a report released last week by a national environmental group that blames budget cuts, staff shortages and the U.S. Senate’s failure to confirm key leaders. The Environmental Integrity Project said the 72 civil enforcement […]

The post Environmental enforcement has fallen off under Biden, report says appeared first on Missouri Independent.

St. Louis Judge David Mason was exasperated — again. “There’s so many documents here,” he said last week to Assistant Missouri Attorney General Miranda Loesch, pointing to the stack of evidence files in front of him.  “You will almost have to be saying that they’re all fake documents in order to get anywhere,” he said, […]

The post Missouri AG takes outsized role opposing prosecutors in wrongful conviction cases appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Less than two weeks after gunfire damaged two Duke Energy substations in Moore County, N.C., knocking out power to about 45,000 people, federal regulators ordered a review of security standards at electric transmission facilities and control centers. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission recently ordered the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) — which sets and enforces reliability […]

The post After electrical substation shooting, federal regulator orders review of security standards appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — President Volodymyr Zelenskyy evoked images of the “great American soldiers” of World War II as he appealed to Congress Wednesday night to continue U.S. assistance in defending Ukraine from deadly Russian shelling and targeting of civilian infrastructure. The historic and surprise visit to the United States by the wartime Ukrainian leader marked his […]

The post Zelenskyy pledges a fight for ‘common victory’ against Russian tyranny in visit to U.S. appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Stewart Rhodes, founder of the Oath Keepers, testified to an Alaskan judge on Tuesday that efforts to postpone the certification of the 2020 presidential election were a “counter-revolution,” not an insurrection. “My perspective is that we’re preserving the Constitution, and it’s — I wouldn’t even call it insurrection, I would call it a counter-revolution against […]

The post Oath Keepers founder testifies his group was acting in ‘counter-revolution’ appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Agape Boarding School’s longtime director once again won a court order Wednesday keeping his name off Missouri’s central registry for child abuse and neglect.  Cole County Circuit Court Judge Brian Stumpe granted Bryan Clemensen’s request for a preliminary injunction against Missouri’s Department of Social Services on Wednesday morning, the second time Clemensen has won a […]

The post Judge grants injunction keeping longtime Agape director off Missouri child abuse registry appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A ban on federal employees using TikTok on their government-issued phones is on track to become law after Congress included the provision in the year-end government funding bill released early Tuesday. U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley’s legislation barring the popular social media platform from federal devices was one of several bills attached to the spending measure, the last major action […]

The post TikTok ban for federal workers close to becoming law, following flurry of state bans appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Any last hopes of resurrecting the expanded child tax credit as part of Congress’ massive spending package were dashed early Tuesday when the 4,155-page bill was released without a mention of the tax benefit. The temporary expanded child tax credit, part of a COVID-19 relief deal in 2021, allowed more low-income families, including […]

The post Child tax credit expansion left out of congressional omnibus package appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Gov. Mike Parson has named Vivek Malek to serve as state treasurer, the first Indian American to hold a statewide office in Missouri.  Malek, 45, will replace Republican Scott Fitzpatrick, who was elected state auditor in November.  “We interviewed a lot of great candidates for state treasurer, all of which have promising and rewarding careers […]

The post Missouri governor taps political newcomer to serve as next state treasurer appeared first on Missouri Independent.

TC Energy has established a no-fly zone over the Kansas site where its Keystone pipeline spilled 14,000 barrels of oil following drone footage of the disaster. The Canadian company said in a statement that it did so for safety reasons. But drone footage of the spill — the largest in the pipeline’s history — was among the only means of seeing […]

The post Drone no-fly zone issued over Keystone oil spill site in Kansas appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Two death row prisoners were exonerated in 2022 as society’s ultimate sanction became more geographically isolated, with only a handful of states carrying out executions in the last year, according to a new report. The number of botched executions also reached an “astonishing” level, according to the research by the Death Penalty Information Center, a Washington […]

The post Botched executions reached ‘astonishing’ high in 2022, report finds appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The U.S. House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol in a historic vote agreed unanimously Monday to refer former President Donald Trump and others to the Justice Department for potential criminal charges, including inciting or aiding an insurrection. Trump associates, including attorneys John Eastman and Kenneth Chesebro and White House Chief […]

The post U.S. House Jan. 6 panel refers Trump for criminal charges, including inciting insurrection appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Over a quarter of Missouri school districts learn on a four-day schedule. And up until last week, they were small, rural districts – some with as few as 50 students. That changed when Independence School District voted to implement the schedule for its 14,000 students next fall. Missouri policymakers are taking notice, with varying ideas […]

The post Another symptom of Missouri teacher shortage: Growing number of 4-day school weeks appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The election of Republican Scott Fitzpatrick as Missouri State Auditor on a campaign to investigate public school curricula reminded me of prior state auditors who expanded the role of the auditor’s office. Elected in 1974, Democrat George Lehr was the first auditor I covered who fundamentally expanded the scope of the auditor’s role. Prior auditors […]

The post Capitol Perspectives: Performance audits appeared first on Missouri Independent.

This story was originally published by Kaiser Health News. EAST ST. LOUIS, Illinois — As a child, Mykael Ash enjoyed picking up seashells near the Mississippi Gulf Coast. His grandfather lives there, so trips to the beach were a regular part of life. “It’s peaceful energy,” Ash said. “Especially when you put that seashell to […]

The post To combat gun violence, this artist turns ammunition into art appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Voters in Colorado approved a statewide affordable housing initiative in November; while voters in nine cities across the country OK’d measures to finance the construction of affordable housing, preserve existing rental properties and support renters. But as housing costs soar, analysts and advocates say more needs to be done and argue that federal action is needed. Robert […]

The post Voters embraced affordable housing initiatives. Advocates say Congress should do the same appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The homicide detective who led the investigation of the 1994 murder that landed Lamar Johnson in prison told a St. Louis courtroom that he had no evidence connecting Johnson to the murder, echoing what the prosecutor in the case said earlier in the week. Joseph Nickerson, who retired from the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department […]

The post Homicide detective in Lamar Johnson’s case says he had no evidence appeared first on Missouri Independent.