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A law enacted last year aimed at helping individuals transition out of public assistance programs remains in limbo, with Missouri’s social services agency saying it can’t implement the change without a huge infusion of state funding.  The impasse is, in many ways, unsurprising. The legislation, which was approved with bipartisan support, came with a fiscal […]

The post State still hasn’t implemented law aimed at helping Missourians transition off public benefits appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A pop icon falling for one of the NFL’s preeminent superstars may seem like a slice of Americana — a scene from a small-town high school magnified by a factor of 10 million. But this is America in 2024 so, of course, nothing magical stays that way. To be clear, public opinion data suggests that most […]

The post The bizarre conspiracy theory that turned Taylor Swift into an antihero to the GOP appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court has been inundated with dozens of organizations seeking to weigh in on the future of the abortion pill by filing “friend of the court” briefs. The groups include governors, attorneys general, state lawmakers and members of Congress as well as medical organizations, civil rights groups and pharmaceutical companies — […]

The post Dozens of ‘friend of the court’ briefs backing abortion pill access arrive at Supreme Court appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Emmalyn Pratt has been surrounded by firefighters her whole life, growing up in Kearney, 30 miles northeast of Kansas City.  Her father is the local fire chief, and he’s part of a long line of firefighters in the family.  “I’ve lived the sacrifices that they make to be away from their families and put their […]

The post Naturopathic doctors could become licensed in Missouri under Republican-backed legislation appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Missouri’s Senate is heading into uncharted territory that could disrupt the legislative process for the remaining months of this year’s session. It involves a deep split among Senate Republicans by members of a new national conservative organization who are challenging Missouri GOP Senate leaders. That national organization, State Freedom Caucus, proclaims on its website: “We […]

The post Capitol Perspectives: An uncharted path for Missouri’s legislature appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The Missouri Supreme Court must now decide if a directive in the state’s redistricting law that says cities and counties must be split as little as possible in legislative district maps allows them to be split at all. In the first case testing provisions added to the Missouri Constitution in 2020, the court on Thursday […]

The post Missouri Supreme Court hears challenge to state Senate district map appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Gov. Mike Parson’s plan to study improvements on Interstate 44 using interest earned on funds set aside for rebuilding Interstate 70 faced bipartisan questioning Wednesday, with House budget writers asking why the money isn’t being deposited in general revenue. Democratic state Rep. Deb Lavender of Manchester, and Republican Rep.  Dirk Deaton of Noel grilled State […]

The post Missouri lawmakers grill treasurer over interest earned on I-70 funds appeared first on Missouri Independent.

As climate change and groundwater pumping leave arid western states hurting for water, Missouri lawmakers are considering legislation to keep the state’s water from being shipped outside its borders.  “You may hear about states like California and Kansas in the news having water shortages,” said state Sen. Jason Bean, a Republican from Holcomb. “We don’t […]

The post Lawmakers hope to block Missouri water from being exported to other states appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Members of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee castigated executives at leading social media companies Wednesday, calling for more to be done to shield children from sexual exploitation, drug dealing, self-harm encouragement and other damaging content. In one tense exchange, Missouri Republican Sen. Josh Hawley demanded to know if Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, had […]

The post ‘A product that’s killing people’: Lawmakers chastise social media giants for harm to kids appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to approve a $78 billion tax package that would expand the child tax credit and reinstate some tax incentives for businesses. The 357-70 vote sends the bill, dubbed the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act of 2024, to the U.S. Senate, where lawmakers are expected to […]

The post Child tax credit expanded, business tax breaks get new life in bill passed by U.S. House appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Missouri lawmakers are considering a handful of bills in both the House and Senate that would change the way the state measures school performance and accreditation. The House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee debated two bills Wednesday seeking to scrap systems developed by the state’s education department to assess schools. A Senate committee held a […]

The post Missouri lawmakers seek to reenvision school accountability and accreditation appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Gabriel Henao fled Colombia to escape a guerrilla group who, he said, twice threatened to kill him. After some time in Mexico, he arrived in Colorado in July 2022, settling in Fort Collins. His severe stomach pain started when he was in Mexico, he said. It was debilitating and left him bedridden for days at […]

The post More states offer health care coverage for certain immigrants, noncitizens appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security early Wednesday voted 18-15 along party lines to send articles of impeachment against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to the House floor. Republicans argue the charges are legitimate. Members of the full House could vote as soon as next week to impeach Mayorkas, who is […]

The post U.S. House committee advances impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas to floor appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating how Missouri Democratic Rep. Cori Bush spends campaign funds, according to a statement the congresswoman released Tuesday. “Since before I was sworn into office, I have endured relentless threats to my physical safety and life,” Bush said. “As a rank-and-file member of Congress I am not […]

The post Missouri Rep. Cori Bush denies using tax dollars for personal security as DOJ investigates appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Missouri Republican Senate leaders on Tuesday won confirmation for all of Gov. Mike Parson’s pending appointees to state office as members of the Freedom Caucus backed down from a demand that the upper chamber approve initiative petition changes as the price for confirmation. For almost 16 hours, members of the caucus and their allies held […]

The post Deal on initiative changes, Parson appointees ends overnight Missouri Senate filibuster appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A bill that would allow students to enroll in neighboring school districts won initial approval in the Missouri House for the fourth year in a row Tuesday on an 83-69 vote.  It is the first bill to be debated by the full House this legislative session. It must be approved one more time by the […]

The post Open enrollment legislation wins initial approval in Missouri House appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The United States needs an estimated 7 million more homes to house everyone who needs shelter. But to build all those homes, experts say, America would need many more construction workers. “The biggest challenge that the construction industry is facing, to put it tongue in cheek, is that people don’t want their babies to grow up to […]

The post The US needs homes. But first, it needs the workers to build them appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Republican lawmakers are once again pushing legislation that would require Missouri to conduct a clinical study on using psilocybin, more commonly referred to  as “magic mushrooms,” to treat depression, substance use or as part end-of-life care.  Last year, the House overwhelmingly approved the measure. But it never made it to a final House vote. Hearings […]

The post Debate over psychedelic therapy returns to Missouri General Assembly appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A bipartisan bill debated in a state Senate committee Monday would ban child marriage in Missouri.  Under current law, 16 and 17-year-olds are allowed to get married with parental consent. Marriage between a minor and anyone 21 or older is prohibited. The legislation discussed Monday afternoon would prohibit issuing marriage licenses to anyone under the […]

The post Missouri lawmakers seek to ban child marriage without exception appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House Homeland Security Committee is gearing up for only the second impeachment in U.S. history of a Cabinet member. The Republican-led committee on Tuesday will mark up articles of impeachment against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, for what Democrats say is no more than a difference in immigration policy […]

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