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MoInd šŸ“°

Missouri Realtors spend $2 million to fight Amendment 4 limits on citizen initiative petitions

2 weeks 2 days ago
The Missouri Association of Realtors donated $2 million Monday to defeat Amendment 4, pouring new money into a fight over citizen-led ballot initiatives just days after spending nearly the same amount to oppose a separate tax overhaul on Missouri’s Aug. 4 ballot. Together, the two contributions put one of the state’s most powerful trade groups […]
Jason Hancock

Kansas City hospitals are ready for the World Cup. The world may not be ready for U.S. healthcare

2 weeks 2 days ago
Kansas City hospitals said they are prepared for the influx of international patients expected this summer during the World Cup. But they worry that the patients may not be ready for America’s labyrinthine healthcare system. In addition to bulking up translation services and scheduling more doctors and nurses for shifts during the monthlong tournament, hospitals […]
Suzanne King

After nursing home crises, states target private equity’s role

2 weeks 2 days ago
Nearly 200 residents at the St. Joseph’s Center nursing home in the affluent Connecticut suburb of Trumbull were evacuated last year after Legionella bacteria was found in the facility’s water system. Two months later, they were evacuated again over critical failures in the building’s fire safety systems. Three years earlier, residents at another Connecticut nursing […]
Anna Claire Vollers

States face more budget pressures amid rising costs, slow growth

2 weeks 2 days ago
The most recent budgets proposed by governors across the country reflect ongoing financial pressures for states as they expect modest revenue growth, rising prices and federal policy changes. Most governors recommended state budgets for fiscal year 2027 that would essentially keep spending flat from the general funds that pay for most state services. That’s according […]
Kevin Hardy

What is the Missouri Public Charter School Commission doing with the 1.5%?

2 weeks 2 days ago
There is something deeply dishonest about demanding extraordinary performance from institutions you have no intention of stabilizing. For years, charter schools across Missouri have operated under a system requiring them to surrender 1.5% of their funding to the Missouri Public Charter School Commission for oversight and sponsorship. The fee is justified as necessary for accountability, […]
Jazzmine Nolan-Echols

DoD tweaks organized religion list after complaints of Latter-day Saints snub

2 weeks 2 days ago
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon changed course Monday after its removal of dozens of religious denominations from a list of recognized faiths drew intense criticism over the weekend from Utah Republicans incensed by the failure to classify the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as a Christian denomination. U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, a member of […]
Ashley Murray

Missouri delays SNAP restrictions on candy, sugary drinks until 2027

2 weeks 3 days ago
Missouri is postponing its plan to prohibit the use of federal food aid to purchase candy, prepared desserts and sugary drinks until Feb. 15, 2027, after grocers warned they needed clearer guidance to enforce the new restrictions at the checkout. The delay will allow the Missouri Department of Social Services to develop educational materials to […]
Steph Quinn

Minority-owned businesses surge in Kansas City despite headwinds

2 weeks 3 days ago
Casie Murff has had the entrepreneurial bug for as long as he can remember. He tried his hand in insurance, in real estate and with an online storefront. Murff worked jobs that paid the bills but didn’t find them fulfilling. So, after some planning, he returned full-time to one of the first side hustles from […]
Thomas White

Trump’s proposed $1.7 billion slush fund revives national discussion over reparations

2 weeks 3 days ago
When President Trump floated the idea of a nearly $2 billion ā€œAnti-Weaponization Fundā€ for people ā€œhorribly treatedā€ by the federal government, he inadvertently reopened the debate about reparations for Black Americans. Suddenly,Ā in aĀ gallingĀ case of white grievanceĀ envy,Ā it’sĀ notĀ suchĀ a far-fetched idea. Trump, who has since backed off the measure, created the fund as a means of providing a […]
Mark McCormick

Missouri appeals court keeps tax overhaul on Aug. 4 ballot with revised summary

2 weeks 5 days ago
The proposal directing lawmakers to eliminate the state income tax by expanding or increasing sales taxes will remain on the Aug. 4 ballot but the summary voters will see must be changed, the Missouri Western District Court of Appeals ruled Friday. The decision, which is subject to appeal to the Missouri Supreme Court, upholds the […]
Rudi Keller

US Senate blocks Trump’s SAVE America Act, thwarting restrictions on voting

2 weeks 5 days ago
The U.S. Senate rejected the SAVE America Act on Thursday, dealing a blow to President Donald Trump’s efforts to impose voting restrictions ahead of the November midterm elections. Senators votedĀ 48-50 against advancing an amendment that would have incorporated Trump’s top legislative priority into anĀ immigration-focused spending bill. The vote offered the clearest sign yet that despite […]
Jonathan Shorman

Trump administration processing freeze on asylum seekers violated law, judge rules

2 weeks 5 days ago
WASHINGTON — A federal judge in Rhode Island Friday struck down several Trump administration policies that halted processing for asylum seekers following a shooting in Washington, D.C., that left one West Virginia National Guard member dead and another seriously injured. In a searing opinion,Ā Judge John J. McConnell Jr. said the Trump administration ā€œthrew the lives […]
Ariana Figueroa

ā€˜They’re already here’: Regulating data centers stalls in Missouri

2 weeks 6 days ago
The rapid expansion of hyperscale data centers is far outstripping efforts to regulate them in Missouri and other states. As a result, communities are left with failed legislation, hastily called moratoriums and divisive local elections to address the massive industrial facilities popping up across rural America. ā€œLegislation traditionally lags very far behind technology, and that […]
Sterling Sewell, Max Quinn

Republicans push $70B for immigration enforcement through US Senate, with no limits on ICE

2 weeks 6 days ago
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate approved a nearly $70 billion package early Friday, moving Republicans one step closer to funding immigration and deportation activities for the next three years without negotiating new constraints on federal agents with Democrats.  The 52-47 mostly party-line vote sends the measure to the House, where GOP lawmakers could send it to […]
Jennifer Shutt

Trump to pump $700M into coal power in the states, blasts renewable energy

2 weeks 6 days ago
The federal government will spend $700 million on building or refurbishing coal power infrastructure across the country in a boost to ā€œclean, beautiful coal,ā€ President Donald Trump said Thursday in the Oval Office. Trump said he was invoking the Cold War-era Defense Production Act, which gives the president authority over domestic industry, to save 13 […]
Jacob Fischler