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Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft has completed work on ballot summaries for six proposed amendments to Missouri’s constitution, writing that the petitions would either “allow no excuse abortions” for up to 12 weeks or “nullify Missouri laws protecting the right to life.” And Attorney General Andrew Bailey argued that if any of the amendments were […]

The post Ashcroft says initiatives seek to ‘nullify Missouri laws protecting the right to life’ appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Until eighth grade, Carter Bremer went to school on a standard five-day schedule. After moving to Harrisburg, he stopped going to class on Mondays. Now a senior at Harrisburg High School, Carter has spent just four days a week in school for the past five years, giving him more time to spend on sports, a […]

The post More school districts in Missouri are switching to a four-day week appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Nebraska GOP Rep. Don Bacon said his wife slept with a gun for protection after she received threatening phone calls demanding that her husband support Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan’s bid for U.S. House speaker. Bacon was among a handful of members who reported threats and the targeting of family members after opposing the […]

The post Members of U.S. House GOP describe threats sparked by votes against Jim Jordan for speaker appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — A resolution meant to temporarily allow U.S. House Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry of North Carolina to move critical legislation won’t be acted on and there is no new floor vote scheduled for speaker nominee Jim Jordan, House Republicans said following a tense, closed-door meeting on Thursday. “We made the pitch to members […]

The post U.S. House gripped by paralysis again after GOP punts proposal for speaker pro tem appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Over the summer, Attorney General Andrew Bailey joined in the effort to try to convince a federal court to move a lead-poisoning lawsuit against a St. Louis company out of Missouri.  The litigation in question was filed by thousands of people from Peru suing Doe Run Resources Corp. over alleged injuries caused by its lead […]

The post Donation to Missouri AG riles plaintiffs in lead-poisoning suit against St. Louis company appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The effects of immigration and crime on national parks took center stage Wednesday during a U.S. House hearing led by Republicans. Members of the U.S. House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations discussed trash accumulation, the destruction of wildlife habitats and the illegal marijuana growing operations tied to cartels as environmental consequences […]

The post U.S. House panel explores impact of immigration, crime on national parks appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Read more Stateline coverage of how communities across the country are trying to create more affordable housing. An unprecedented surge in the nationwide construction of new housing — mostly apartments — may finally be making a dent in fast-rising rents that have been making life harder for tenants. More than 1.65 million housing units were under […]

The post A historic housing construction boom may finally moderate rent hikes appeared first on Missouri Independent.

There is a new member of the legal team defending the ballot language Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft wrote for proposed initiatives that would add abortion rights to the Missouri Constitution – Ashcroft himself. Ashcroft, who was an engineer by trade until earning his law degree in 2008, rarely appeared in court on behalf of […]

The post Jay Ashcroft joins legal team defending his summary of Missouri abortion amendment appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Two St. Louis-area school districts will return to full local governance after years of state education officials overseeing their boards. The Missouri State Board of Education decided Tuesday that Riverview Gardens School District and Normandy Schools Collaborative had shown enough progress to return to traditional school-board elections. The state currently has appointed board members at […]

The post Missouri education board returns St. Louis-area school districts to local control appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden assured Israel that the U.S. will replenish defense stockpiles and also announced new humanitarian aid for Palestinians in Gaza during his historic visit Wednesday to the war-torn region where thousands have died in just a dozen days, including 31 Americans. Biden plans to ask Congress later this week for an […]

The post Biden in Tel Aviv pledges U.S. support for Israel, humanitarian aid for Gaza appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan in his second bid for U.S. House speaker on Wednesday failed to win enough support from his fellow Republicans, leaving the party deadlocked with no clear path to govern the chamber. Jordan’s 200 votes on a first ballot on Tuesday dropped Wednesday to 199, a signal from centrist Republicans […]

The post U.S. House stalled again after rejecting Jim Jordan as speaker a second time appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe and his backers are in the best financial position in the Republican race for Missouri governor, new reports show, while Democratic candidate Crystal Quade used the summer to build a bank balance for the fall 2024 race with the GOP winner. Kehoe raised more than $500,000 for his official campaign committee […]

The post Kehoe leads fundraising for Missouri governor in latest campaign filings appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Missouri’s proposed social-emotional-learning standards are being refined to focus on student behavior after the State Board of Education reviewed over 1,800 public comments on the program. Some board members referred to the current draft as a “beginning,” and the board decided not to vote on passing the standards during its meeting Tuesday. The public was […]

The post Missouri Board of Education seeks to clarify social-emotional learning appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate leaders called Tuesday for a bipartisan aid package for Israel’s counteroffensive against Hamas that also includes assistance for Ukraine and Taiwan, with possible border funding sought by Republicans, as President Joe Biden prepared to leave Tuesday evening for a trip to Israel. Meanwhile, an explosion killed hundreds Tuesday at al-Ahli Arab […]

The post Republicans push for border funding to be wrapped into Israel, Ukraine aid package appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — College athletic officials testified Tuesday in support of nationally standardized name, image and likeness regulations at a U.S. Senate hearing. The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing to discuss policies governing name, image and likeness, known as NIL, in college sports. The witnesses in attendance — such as National Collegiate Athletic Association […]

The post College athletes’ name, image and likeness rights debated by U.S. Senate committee appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House rejected Ohio’s Jim Jordan as a candidate for speaker on Tuesday, though he vowed to secure the votes needed in the days ahead. Jordan’s decision to try to rally roughly 20 holdouts to his side leaves the House frozen, unable to take up legislation to fund the government ahead of […]

The post Ohio’s Jim Jordan fails in bid for U.S. House speaker, leaving chamber paralyzed again appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A plan to build a silica mine in southeast Missouri suffered yet another setback on Tuesday when an appeals court ruled state regulators were within their authority to deny the project a permit.  The Missouri Court of Appeals for the Eastern District sided with the Missouri Mining Commission, which denied NexGen Silica a permit in […]

The post Proposed Missouri silica sand mine loses appeal of its denied permit appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Cleaning up Coldwater Creek and other radioactive waste sites in St. Louis County will cost more than twice what federal officials thought six years ago, a new federal report finds.  A report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office released Tuesday finds the government’s financial liability at the sites ballooned from $177 million in 2016 to […]

The post Cost of Coldwater Creek radioactive waste cleanup tops $400M, federal agency finds appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Marijuana prices rose in many parts of Missouri on Oct. 1 as new local taxes took effect. Lawsuits filed in Buchanan and St. Louis counties argue that some of those taxes are illegal. The constitutional amendment that legalized recreational cannabis  sales included a 6% statewide excise tax and authorized local governments to charge a sales […]

The post Pair of lawsuits challenge whether Missouri counties can ‘stack’ tax on marijuana sales appeared first on Missouri Independent.

WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan swayed several Republican opponents to his side Monday, moving the Ohio Republican closer to the speaker’s gavel ahead of a crucial Tuesday afternoon vote. Jordan, who has been a polarizing figure in American politics for much of his time in Congress, will need the backing of nearly all the […]

The post Jim Jordan gains support as vote nears for U.S. House speaker, but outcome still in doubt appeared first on Missouri Independent.