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The University of Missouri rolled out its first all-electric, autonomous tractor Tuesday, calling it a “revolutionary piece of technology” that could pioneer new agricultural practices and make farming more efficient and sustainable. The Monarch MK-V tractor, bought with grant funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is the Midwest’s first fully autonomous tractor, according to […]

The post First fully electric, autonomous tractor in the Midwest unveiled in Missouri appeared first on Missouri Independent.

U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona made stops in Kansas and Missouri Tuesday as part of a multi-state tour, labeling internet access “the new pencil” as he discussed the government’s efforts to expand broadband connectivity. During events in Overland Park, Kansas, and Kansas City, Missouri, Cardona discussed a program that subsidizes internet access and community engagement. […]

The post Education secretary calls digital divide ‘equity issue of our moment’ during KC visit appeared first on Missouri Independent.

When Jacob Riis came to Emporia in 1902 to give a lecture, audiences knew what they could expect. Twelve years earlier, he had published “How the Other Half Lives,” which exposed through candid photographs the living conditions of the poor in the slums of New York City. The Danish-American muckraker’s subject for his Kansas audience […]

The post After a century, states are loosening child labor laws. Where’s the outrage? appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A new Stateline analysis shows that U.S. residents under 40 were relatively unscathed by COVID-19 in the pandemic but fell victim to another killer: accidental drug overdose deaths. Death rates in the age group were up by nearly a third in 2021 over 2018, and last year were still 21% higher. COVID-19 was a small […]

The post Death rates for people under 40 have skyrocketed. Blame fentanyl appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Six initiative petitions filed last week seeking to add rape and incest exceptions to Missouri’s abortion ban are facing pushback from both sides of the issue, pilloried as either an anti-abortion wolf in sheep’s clothing or a clandestine push to allow abortion on demand. Filed by Republican political operative Jamie Corley with assistance from Democratic […]

The post New initiative petitions draw criticism from both sides of Missouri abortion debate appeared first on Missouri Independent.

As a 5th generation Missouri farmer, I know what the stakes are. As independent family farmers, we are responsible for our animals and the land 365 days a year, through every type of weather, year in and year out. We carry the majority of the risk, and then we watch corporate meatpackers take the majority […]

The post History of the hog industry shows how to save the cattle industry appeared first on Missouri Independent.

ROLLA – A story that began with a small-town traffic stop will end with a judge deciding whether government officials tried to silence a critic by banning her from city hall. Rebecca Varney already won one round in her lawsuit accusing the city of Edgar Springs of repeated violations of Missouri’s Sunshine Law. On Friday […]

The post Phelps County woman awaits ruling in battle against her ban from Missouri city hall appeared first on Missouri Independent.

As we pause to pay tribute to the achievements and contributions of workers to our economy and their struggle to improve working conditions, the role that employers have played and continue to play — for good or ill — is inescapable. How are employers measuring up in caring out their responsibilities to employees? A recent […]

The post Each taxpayer is an employer. What kind of employer are you? appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Republican lawmakers are concerned that the Biden administration is interpreting last year’s bipartisan gun safety law to cut funding for school archery and hunting programs, though programs themselves say they haven’t been affected. A provision in the law – a bipartisan effort to curb gun violence that established new criminal offenses, and expanded background […]

The post Gun law raises funding concerns for school hunting programs appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Select U.S. restaurants have begun serving laboratory-grown chicken, spurring long wait times for reservations by diners curious to taste it. In June, the U.S. Department of Agriculture gave final approval for a few California-based companies to begin selling lab-produced chicken across the country. While it may be years before lab-grown meat is available at grocery […]

The post Was that chicken cutlet grown in a lab? These states want you to know appeared first on Missouri Independent.

There’s no question what motivated state Rep. Kelly Moller to push for changes in Minnesota law on concert ticket sales. “Really, it was the Taylor Swift debacle for me,” she said. A self-professed Swiftie, the Democrat found herself among millions of other Americans unable to buy tickets last year to Swift’s Eras Tour. She preregistered […]

The post Seeing ‘Red’ after Taylor Swift debacle, states weigh concert ticket rules appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Kansas City police arrested at least four people on invalid warrants in 2021 following its transition from one tracking software program to another, The Missouri Independent has learned.  It’s unclear from the records obtained by The Independent how many individuals were mistakenly arrested. The department had been warned of possible technical issues that could lead […]

The post Kansas City police made arrests based on rescinded warrants, records show appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The Missouri Department of Natural Resources is barred from moving forward with a permit for an animal waste lagoon north of Columbia following a judge’s ruling Thursday. Cole County Circuit Judge Daniel Green issued a writ of prohibition in a case Randolph County residents filed against the state. The department can’t take further action without […]

The post Judge bars Missouri from moving ahead on Randolph County waste lagoon permit appeared first on Missouri Independent.

In recent years, some states have invested in air quality monitoring, applied extra scrutiny to permitting decisions and steered cleanup funding to minority communities that have borne the brunt of pollution for decades. Now, in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision striking down race-conscious college admissions policies, state lawmakers are facing a […]

The post It may have just gotten harder to protect minority communities from pollution appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Nearly 40 years ago, Victoria McMullen and her husband traveled from St. Louis to Sikeston to adopt a six-year-old boy with severe developmental disabilities named Ron.  Now 44, Ron has cerebral palsy, autism and intellectual disabilities. He’s unable to live independently and for the last 23 years his parents have relied on a state service […]

The post Missouri advocates decry proposed change to at-home disability care funding appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A federal judge has thrown out a lawsuit that sought to shut down Torch Electronics, owner of thousands of video games offering cash prizes in retail locations throughout Missouri. U.S. District Judge Brian Wimes, in a decision issued last week, decided that the seven plaintiffs lacked standing under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations […]

The post Federal racketeering suit against Missouri gaming company dismissed over lack of standing appeared first on Missouri Independent.

TOPEKA, Kansas — Police Chief Gideon Cody arrived at the Marion County Record and handed a copy of a search warrant to Deb Gruver, the veteran reporter who had questioned him about alleged misconduct at his previous job. As Gruver read the search warrant, she told Cody she needed to call her publisher and editor, Eric […]

The post Kansas reporter sues Marion police chief, alleging retaliation in newsroom raid appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A federal rule limiting agencies’ power to regulate water pollution will severely restrict protections for waters and wetlands throughout the country, but could also be subject to challenges from conservative groups that maintain the new rule exerts more federal jurisdiction than the U.S. Supreme Court intended in a May decision. With the rule published Tuesday to redefine […]

The post New federal water pollution rule draws mixed reaction appeared first on Missouri Independent.

State education officials continue to cautiously move ahead with a plan to implement social-emotional learning standards for all Missouri students, though concerns about possible political blowback hang over the process. The Missouri State Board of Education agreed earlier this month that K-12 social-emotional-learning standards are an essential part of the school day. But members were […]

The post Missouri education board moves forward with social-emotional learning standards appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Six new initiative petitions were filed with the Missouri Secretary of State’s office Wednesday seeking to add exceptions to the state’s abortion ban for rape, incest, fatal fetal abnormalities and the health and safety of the mother.  Three of the six initiative petitions would also legalize abortion in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. Each […]

The post New initiative petitions seek to add rape, incest exceptions to Missouri abortion law appeared first on Missouri Independent.