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The ability to obtain a drivers license has for a long time been a rite of passage and a doorway to freedom for young adults and parents alike. As we get closer to this time where a visit to the DMV will leave our children driving to and from school, church and sporting events, Black […]

The post More worry for Black parents in Missouri: ‘The talk’ for new drivers appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House Education and Workforce Committee on Tuesday passed several bills that are a rebuke of not only the Biden administration’s policies on immigration, child nutrition and health care, but regulations from the Obama era. The committee passed a resolution that condemns the use of public schools to shelter undocumented people, a […]

The post U.S. House committee approves bills on whole milk, condemns sheltering migrants in schools appeared first on Missouri Independent.

U.S. worker productivity has dropped significantly, including in key large states, leaving some economists alarmed by the decrease in a measure that could mean trillions of dollars to the economy. Labor productivity — the value of the goods and services produced on average by an hour’s work — ranged from $58.80 in Mississippi to $120.67 […]

The post Workers are less productive in key states. What it means for the economy appeared first on Missouri Independent.

After a blue ribbon commission spent much of 2022 crafting possible solutions for Missouri’s teacher shortage, education advocates entered the legislative session optimistic. And when Rep. Ed Lewis’ legislation raising the minimum teacher salary and creating a scholarship to incentivize teachers to work in hard-staff areas cleared the House in early April with only five […]

The post Lawmakers lament failure of bills aimed at addressing Missouri teacher shortage appeared first on Missouri Independent.

OVERLAND PARK, Kansas — When Joe Eldred was a child, he was sexually abused by three Catholic priests while attending Nativity of Mary Catholic Church and the accompanying elementary school in Independence, Missouri. Eldred told his story in “Procession,” a documentary directed by Robert Greene that tells the story of six men who were abused […]

The post ‘That’s when he raped me’: Survivors of clergy abuse in Missouri screen documentary appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Talking with a friend about the debt ceiling negotiations, I mentioned that there were incentives for centrists in Congress to cobble together a deal. My friend said, incredulously, “Do we actually have centrists in Congress?” Certainly, it is true that the country’s two major parties have sorted and separated over the last 50 years. The average Democrat […]

The post Approval of debt ceiling deal a triumph of the political center appeared first on Missouri Independent.

In the fall of 2016, the Connecticut Department of Children and Families began using a predictive analytics tool that promised to help identify kids in imminent danger. The tool used more than two dozen data points to compare open cases in Connecticut’s system against previous welfare cases with poor outcomes. Then each child received a […]

The post Artificial intelligence is used widely, but few states have set rules appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey overstepped his authority when he demanded changes to the cost estimate of an abortion-rights initiative petition, state Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick argued in a legal brief filed in Cole County Court last week.  Fitzpatrick, Bailey and Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, all Republicans, were sued last month by the Missouri ACLU over […]

The post Missouri AG had no authority to inflate cost of abortion amendment, auditor argues appeared first on Missouri Independent.

 As cities, states and our nation face many political, economic and social challenges, who we vote for in upcoming elections carries monumental importance. All we need to do is to look at the state of things to know that we need to change the direction and the unraveling trajectory we are on. Many state legislatures […]

The post It’s never too early for voters to get engaged appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Black motorists stopped by Missouri law enforcement are much more likely to end the encounter with a citation or in a jail cell than whites, according to the latest state report of racial data on traffic enforcement. The report also shows that Black drivers away from their home communities – or visiting the state – […]

The post Report shows Black drivers in Missouri more likely to be ticketed, arrested appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Wise parents the world over take pride in watching our late adolescents grow into adulthood, knowing the hormones, emotions, and impulses of youth will eventually give way to greater calm and steadiness as the brain matures. On June 22, 2000, 19 year old Michael Tisius was too young to drink alcohol legally. But he is […]

The post Missouri governor should halt executions of adolescent offenders appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The bipartisan debt limit bill is on its way to President Joe Biden after the U.S. Senate voted Thursday to clear the measure for his signature. The 63-36 vote followed several amendment votes, all of which were rejected. Biden is expected to quickly sign the package, preventing a default on the debt that otherwise would […]

The post U.S. Senate sends Biden debt limit legislation ahead of Monday default deadline appeared first on Missouri Independent.

From its earliest days, Route 66 has reflected the American culture of the moment. When the road connected Chicago to Los Angeles in 1926, it represented the possibility of the automobile. In the 1930s, it served as an east-to-west escape route from the Dust Bowl during the Great Depression. By the 1950s, the 2,400-mile highway […]

The post Route 66, America’s ‘Mother Road,’ readies for its centennial appeared first on Missouri Independent.

More than 500,000 people across 11 states have lost their Medicaid coverage since the unwinding of a policy that allowed people to stay in the program throughout the pandemic. The data, reported by the states and tracked by health policy researcher KFF, shows that of the five states providing data on people who lost Medicaid coverage […]

The post Half a million people in less than a dozen states have lost Medicaid coverage since April appeared first on Missouri Independent.

URBANDALE, Iowa — Former President Donald Trump said Thursday he was confident he will continue to hold his lead in Iowa. “There’s no way I can lose Iowa,” Trump told the crowd. “We’re going to have to do some really bad things to lose at this point.” Trump spoke to a packed room at the Iowa […]

The post Former President Donald Trump comes after DeSantis on Iowa campaign trail appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate on Thursday voted to overturn the Biden administration’s one-time student debt relief plan that is on hold due to a pending Supreme Court decision. President Joe Biden has vowed to veto the resolution, but the 52-46 vote forced vulnerable Senate Democrats up for reelection in 2024 to take a public stance on […]

The post U.S. Senate votes to block student loan relief, White House will veto appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The federal agency that oversees Medicaid is moving to close a loophole that likely is worth billions to prescription drug middlemen. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services last week proposed a new rule that it said would help ensure compliance with a requirement under federal law that Medicaid dollars be spent in “proper and […]

The post Federal authorities move to close mammoth drug-pricing loophole appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Anyone with a Missouri address can now request emergency contraception pills be shipped to them by mail, for free, under a pilot program launched Thursday by a health care nonprofit. Missouri Family Health Council Inc. launched the “Free EC” initiative using federal Title X funds for family planning programs. Missourians can request the pills through […]

The post Missouri nonprofit launches initiative to provide free emergency contraception by mail appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The decarbonized, electrified future envisioned by the Biden administration, state governments, automakers, utility companies and corporate sustainability goals depends to a huge degree on minerals and metals. Lots more lithium will be needed for car and truck batteries, as well as the big banks of batteries that are increasingly popping onto the electric grid to balance the […]

The post Decarbonization ambitions ignite debate over mining, permitting appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Ron DeSantis was railing on about illegal immigration while grilling pork chops at the annual picnic May 13 in deep-red Sioux Center, Iowa, hosted by U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra. The crowd cheered him on, knowing full well that immigrants cut the chops and work the dairy barns around Northwest Iowa. It’s an open secret that […]

The post Who cut your pork chop, Governor DeSantis? appeared first on Missouri Independent.