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The state Senate’s top leader delivered a stern warning Wednesday to the governor’s nominees for the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission, saying lawmakers have “no confidence” in the transportation department’s leadership and that could stall plans for major highway investments. The warning came during the Senate Gubernatorial Appointments Committee hearing for Brian Treece, a former […]

The post Missouri lawmakers warn lack of confidence in MoDOT could stall funding for major projects appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Legislation to make it harder for voters to amend the state constitution through the initiative petition process won initial approval in the Missouri House on Wednesday.  After more than two hours of debate, the legislation sponsored by House Speaker Pro Tem Mike Henderson was approved 106-50. It will need to be approved one more time […]

The post Missouri House gives initial approval to raising bar for voters to amend the constitution appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A Missouri House committee heard a bill Wednesday that seeks to give school districts a way to recruit educators into “hard-to-staff” positions – though some worried it could have ill effects on teachers of popular subjects. State Rep. Ed Lewis, R-Moberly, told the Missouri House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee that his legislation has the […]

The post Lawmaker proposes tool to fill ‘hard-to-staff’ positions in Missouri school districts appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The top 10% of recipients of federal farm payments raked in more than 79% of total subsidies over the last 25 years — producing billions of dollars for a relatively small group of U.S. producers, according to a new analysis of federal data from an environmental group. In total, the federal government paid more […]

The post Billions in federal farm payments flow to a select group of producers, report shows appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON —  Members of Congress receive thousands of threats a year, though just a fraction of the people who call, mail or email will ever be prosecuted — a situation that’s of great concern to the police who guard members. Just 22 of the 7,501 threats lobbed at members during 2022 led to prosecution, the […]

The post Of more than 7,500 threats against members of Congress in 2022, just 22 prosecuted appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The incoming chairman of the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee wants to allow more mining and believes technology — not limitations on fossil fuel production — is the best way to address climate change. As part of their organization of the chamber they now control, U.S. House Republicans selected Arkansas’ Bruce Westerman to lead the […]

The post New U.S. House Natural Resources chair opposes limits on fossil fuel development appeared first on Missouri Independent.

With a single tweet, Missouri Senate President Pro Tem Caleb Rowden turned a local controversy over what Columbia Public Schools told parents about the drag entertainment at a city diversity breakfast into a state issue. At 8:44 p.m. on Jan. 19, Rowden wrote that his “office has been inundated with calls & emails re: grade […]

The post Missouri Senate leader’s tweet about drag performance helped kickstart controversy appeared first on Missouri Independent.

In the likely 2024 GOP showdown for the Missouri attorney general’s office, the fundraising race has already begun.  Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who was appointed to the office when his predecessor was elected to the U.S. Senate, began raising money through an independent political action committee even before officially launching his campaign last week.  Will […]

The post Missouri lobbyist vs. Federalist Society: AG rivals building 2024 campaign war chests appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — House Oversight and Accountability Committee Chair James Comer on Monday previewed his priorities for this Congress, which he says will include a heavy focus on the handling of classified documents, the origins of the COVID-19 virus, and what he described as possible “influence peddling” by Hunter Biden. The Kentucky Republican addressed reporters and […]

The post U.S. House Oversight chair’s agenda: Hunter Biden, COVID origins, classified documents appeared first on Missouri Independent.

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 […]

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