Instead of focusing on esoteric and special or personal interests, there are many areas that need to be addressed in the new legislative session that begins on Jan. 8 that could improve the lives of many Missourians. What will the policy priorities be of the new legislature? If you scanned the hundreds of pre-filed bills, […]
Crouched behind a dumpster in a St. Louis alley, Officer Steven Pinkerton heard gunshots. It was after midnight on Aug. 10, 2013, in the Dutchtown neighborhood and an argument that had been building for hours among a group of young men had escalated into a shootout. Pinkerton said he saw two men rush by the […]
LaDonna Prince’s new reproductive care clinic in Illinois was supposed to be open more than a year ago. Prince and her staff were prepared for Indiana to ban abortion, and started trying to move operations to Danville, Illinois, in 2023. It’s about 90 minutes across the border from her old clinic in Indianapolis, which provided […]
WASHINGTON — Former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was injured while on an official trip to Luxembourg to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge and admitted to a hospital, her office said Friday. “Speaker Emerita Pelosi is currently receiving excellent treatment from doctors and medical professionals,” spokesperson Ian Krager wrote in […]
A rise in food prices makes for a less than merry holiday season. Grocery prices rose 0.4% in November, according to the Consumer Price Index, released this week by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Eggs made one of the biggest jumps at 8.2% over the month, and 37.5% over the past year, providing challenges for people […]
Every day, Missourians pay a small tax with each purchase they make that’s been supporting conservation efforts in the state. And now that Missouri is in a drought alert, those dollars are helping farmers prepare. Since 1984, Missourians have approved the tax, which is one-tenth of a percent on every purchase, every 10 years. In […]
Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas initially denied knowing who paid for a poll seemingly designed to sink North Kansas City’s chances of landing a new Royals baseball stadium. But newly obtained documents show the poll was commissioned by Lucas’ own re-election campaign. The poll was released in August 2023 and showed 70% of Clay County […]
Many college basketball fans in Kansas and Missouri will remember Sunday’s game between the Jayhawks and Tigers in Columbia for years. There was history to digest from Mizzou’s 76-67 win. First, there was KU’s dropping two games as the national No. 1 in one week to unranked opponents. That hasn’t happened to any team since 2003. Years […]
If the U.S. House of Representatives tries to include a slimmed-down version of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, or RECA, in Congress’ end of year funding bill, it faces a roadblock in the form of Missouri Republican Sen. Josh Hawley. Hawley on Tuesday criticized rumors that House leadership was working to include a Utah-only expansion […]
Kansas City could shrink by about 80 acres if a request succeeds in shifting city boundaries to make some Park University property part of Parkville. The proposal calls for Kansas City to let go of three parcels of undeveloped land the university owns, connected to the rest of its main campus. The area lies north […]
WASHINGTON — The form to apply for federal financial student aid must roll out by Oct. 1 annually after President Joe Biden signed a bill into law Wednesday that ensures an earlier processing cycle. Though the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, typically launches in October each year, the U.S. Department of Education legally had […]
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden Thursday commuted the sentences of roughly 1,500 people who were placed in home confinement during the coronavirus pandemic, and granted pardons for 39 individuals with convictions for nonviolent crimes. “America was built on the promise of possibility and second chances,” Biden said in a statement. He noted many of the 1,500 were […]
The $20,000 salary increase for wildland firefighters in the 2021 infrastructure law could be coming to an end next week if Congress doesn’t act. The infrastructure law included $600 million to boost salaries for the nearly 11,200 wildland firefighters for two years, giving the Interior Department or Forest Service employees a raise of either $20,000 […]
The Missouri Conservation Department received confirmation Wednesday morning of something it feared — three dead snow geese found by state wildlife refuge staff were likely infected with bird flu. Samples from the birds — two recovered in Henry County and one in Vernon County — were reported as “non-negative” for avian influenza after testing at […]
WASHINGTON — U.S. Capitol Police Chief Thomas Manger testified Wednesday that more than 700 threats against members of Congress were made during the last month alone, with at least 50 cases of people making false 911 calls in an attempt to get police teams to respond to lawmakers’ homes, often called “swatting.” Manger, who took […]
Missouri is heading toward its first fiscal year with declining revenue in more than a decade — and the first in living memory during a growing economy — according to the latest estimate of state tax revenue. General revenue for the fiscal year that ends June 30 will total $13.35 billion, a decrease of about […]
A Cole County judge on Wednesday dismissed a whistleblower lawsuit against the Missouri House and its Republican leader alleging harassment and intimidation of a top staffer. The lawsuit was filed in May by House Chief Clerk Dana Miller accusing outgoing House Speaker Dean Plocher and his former chief of staff, Rod Jetton, of retaliating against […]
WASHINGTON — Jose Cabrera took off work from his landscaping job to join three Latino Democratic senators for a Wednesday press conference urging the Biden administration to renew protected statuses, like his, before the return of President-elect Donald Trump to the White House. Cabrera, of Montgomery County, Maryland, has lived in the U.S. for more than […]
Six Republicans in the Missouri Senate want to start the debate over whether to eliminate the state income tax with a move to a 4% flat tax. Among the bills filed in advance of the 2025 legislative session are identical proposals to move to a flat tax that also include provisions that would slowly reduce […]
Between the whooshing of freezing winds and the sounds of passing highway traffic Tuesday morning, a ribbon-cutting ceremony marked the completion of the new eastbound Rocheport Bridge. The event was purely ceremonial because the bridge still needs some finishing touches, like road stripes, before it is complete and ready to accommodate traffic by the end […]
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