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Missouri is continuing to see record daily coronavirus infections, near-peak COVID-19 caseloads in hospitals and threats from Attorney General Eric Schmitt that he will sue school districts that require masks or send students home when they are infected or exposed to the virus. In a statement issued Tuesday morning, Schmitt said school mask rules and […]

The post Missouri attorney general renews threat to sue schools over mask, quarantine rules appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The Missouri House overwhelmingly rejected efforts Tuesday to draw a Congressional map that would have reconfigured a Democratic seat in Kansas City in the GOP’s favor, and instead gave initial approval to a map that maintains the current party divisions. By a vote of 84 to 60, House members gave initial approval to a map […]

The post Missouri House votes down 7-1 congressional map during redistricting debate appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Federal law enforcement was still seeking information as recently as last summer about medical marijuana licensing in Missouri and utility contracts in Independence that have attracted FBI scrutiny for years.  That’s according to sworn deposition testimony from a Kansas City-area businessman that surfaced publicly last week. The deposition of Joseph Campbell, owner of the real […]

The post Marijuana, utility contracts: Records shows continued FBI interest in Independence deals appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Marsha Keene-Frye grew up around guns, going hunting with her family from a young age near her home in Mississippi County. To this day, she still regularly carries a firearm and considers herself a supporter of the Second Amendment, just like most of her neighbors in southeastern Missouri. But for 27 years, Keene-Frye has worked […]

The post Bipartisan group of Missouri lawmakers hope to close domestic violence gun loophole appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A Republican lawmaker is seeking to undercut efforts by officials in the St. Louis area to build more electric vehicle charging infrastructure in preparation for the move away from gasoline-burning cars.  Both St. Louis and St. Louis County passed ordinances last year requiring businesses to prepare for electric vehicle charging. The city’s ordinance also has […]

The post Bill would block Missouri cities, counties from enacting EV charging station mandate appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Kansas and Missouri logged their warmest average December temperatures on record last month, according to data released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Average temperatures over the last half of 2021 were higher than they’ve ever been in either state — and across the country. Meanwhile, despite a devastating cold snap that forced power outages […]

The post December 2021 was the warmest on record in Missouri and Kansas — by a long shot appeared first on Missouri Independent.

In April of 1967, at the Riverside Church in New York City, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr spoke in profound grief about the way his position on the Vietnam War was interrogated even by some of his closest supporters. “I have called for radical departures from the destruction of Vietnam, many persons have […]

The post Reclaiming MLK Day | Opinion appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The University of Missouri’s Columbia campus will begin the spring semester as planned Tuesday with no option for online classes, masking or vaccination requirements, UM System President and campus Chancellor Mun Choi wrote to faculty leaders Friday. Choi’s response to concerns raised in a letter from the Executive Committee of the campus Faculty Council was […]

The post University of Missouri President Choi won’t ask curators to reconsider vote against mask rule appeared first on Missouri Independent.

A government transparency advocate argued Friday that the Missouri House of Representatives is defying the will of the voters by withholding information from the public when responding to open records requests. Whether the Missouri House has the authority to withhold information, including the addresses and phone numbers of constituents, was at the heart of a […]

The post Missouri judge hears arguments over whether legislative rule violates open records law appeared first on Missouri Independent.

U.S. Rep. Willard Duncan Vandiver coined Missouri’s  motto during an 1899 Philadelphia speech. “I come from a state that raises corn and cotton and cockleburs and Democrats,” he said, “and frothy eloquence neither convinces nor satisfies me. I am from Missouri. You have got to show me.” As a former state senator who still haunts […]

The post The U.S. Senate is broken. Missouri’s talking filibuster could fix it | Opinion appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The annual battle over what is and what is not an illegal gambling machine began Thursday with a Senate committee hearing on a bill to ban “pre-reveal” games that have proliferated throughout the state. While several prosecutions are pending and at least two have been resolved with guilty verdicts, many prosecutors are reluctant to file […]

The post Lawmakers renew debate on illegal gaming, sports wagering in Missouri appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday dealt a blow to the Biden administration’s fight against the pandemic, blocking a federal mandate that workers be vaccinated or regularly tested for COVID-19 — though the court allowed a separate rule requiring vaccinations for some health care workers. The two rulings represented a split victory for Republican attorneys general from Ohio, Missouri, […]

The post Supreme Court blocks Biden workplace vaccine rule, allows health care workers mandate appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Missouri has reported more cases of COVID-19 in the first 12 days of January than any full month of the pandemic so far. As a result of the massive spike of infections tied to the omicron variant, hospitalizations are also at record levels and schools in many communities are shutting their doors.  And the state […]

The post Missouri hits new monthly record for COVID cases as omicron variant spreads appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Proposals that would bar COVID-19 vaccine mandates and provide greater exemptions for vaccinations more broadly faced a wave of opposition from Missouri business groups Wednesday. Representatives for the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Associated Industries of Missouri, Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce and other business associations made clear to lawmakers that they’re against […]

The post Missouri businesses oppose ban on COVID vaccine mandates, argue it’s their choice appeared first on Missouri Independent.

After years of watching Missouri voters amend the state constitution to raise the minimum wage or legalize medical marijuana, Republican lawmakers are once again pushing to make the initiative petition process harder.  A measure sponsored by Rep. Mike Henderson, R-Bonne Terre, would ask voters to increase the number of signatures needed for initiative petitions to […]

The post Republicans renew push to make it harder for voters to amend Missouri constitution appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Ameren Missouri must stop dumping waste from two of its coal-fired power plants into nearby pits following a federal crackdown on coal ash that denied the electric utility an extension to comply with new regulations.  The move could force the utility to retire at least one of the facilities years ahead of schedule.  The Environmental […]

The post EPA denies extension for Ameren to stop dumping coal ash, gypsum at two power plants appeared first on Missouri Independent.

There are no “sick days” for constitutional rights, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled Tuesday as it overturned the results of a juvenile case partly held online because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The court issued rulings in three cases that test whether courts can have witnesses, defendants or both appear via remote link software when the […]

The post No ‘sick days’ for constitutional rights: Missouri Supreme Court rules against virtual trials appeared first on Missouri Independent.

The first education debate of the 2022 legislative session featured hours of discussion on Tuesday of a proposed “parents’ bill of rights” — and whether it would give parents more say in the classroom or instead have a chilling effect on how certain subjects are taught.  In a sign of where legislative priorities may fall, […]

The post Missouri education committee puts early focus on parental rights, critical race theory appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Republican leaders in the Missouri Senate took a step Monday night towards healing lingering tension with the chamber’s Democratic minority. But in doing so, they also likely exacerbated the festering intra-party divide that has plagued Senate Republicans for most of the last year.  On a 22-11 vote, all 10 Senate Democrats and 12 of the […]

The post GOP leaders, Democrats agree to make it harder to stop a filibuster in Missouri Senate appeared first on Missouri Independent.

Patrick recalled the horror he felt as a small child integrating a suburban school district. He rode the bus to school early in the school year with an armed law enforcement officer standing near his seat. He often stared at the officer’s holstered gun. Through his window, Patrick saw crowds of angry faces, signs declaring […]

The post Does CRT make white students feel bad? Try being a Black student | Opinion appeared first on Missouri Independent.