JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ) The state auditor said in a report Monday that Missouri’s budget surplus could be depleted within a couple of years if changes aren’t made quickly. Missouri State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick reported in an analysis of the state’s general revenue fund that a $6 billion deficit in fiscal 2023 will be gone
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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ) The Missouri Attorney General’s Office has agreed to resume publishing the “disparity index” with its annual vehicle stops report after reaching a settlement with the state NAACP. The NAACP sued the attorney general’s office in May, alleging the office broke the law by not publishing the index in the yearly reports.
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The ACLU of Missouri sued the Missouri Attorney General and Secretary of State on Tuesday, claiming they have evaded the state constitution’s rules on the referendum process. The group, representing two Kansas City voters, is asking the Cole County courts to suspend House Bill 1, a bill passed during a special session
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Columbia state representative on Monday prefiled a bill for the upcoming legislative session that aims to expand rules on dog-breeding facilities. Rep. David Tyson Smith (D-Columbia) prefiled the “Animal Care Facilities Act,” which would expand violations pertaining to commercial and noncommercial breeders. Provisions include requiring adequate food, water and housing for
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The Kansas Coordinating Council on Monday unanimously approved bonds and a bond district for a new stadium to support the Kansas City Chiefs. The council approved the measure during a session on Monday. State officials later appeared with Chiefs ownership at a Topeka, Kansas, news conference to announce the team’s move. Talk
Continue Reading COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Missouri state lawmaker is pursuing legislation aimed at limiting superintendent payouts and protecting taxpayers, building on a proposal originally put forward by Columbia Public Schools. State Rep. John Martin (R-Boone County) was in attendance for a November Columbia Board of Education meeting when he first heard that it was a legislative
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) David Williams, who spent more than three decades with the Jefferson City Police Department and recently retired as a captain, was appointed by Gov. Mike Kehoe to the Board of Probation and Parole, according to a Friday press release from Kehoe’s office. JCPD announced Williams’ retirement in a public social media post
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The Boone County Commission on Thursdays approved the finalized budget for the 2026 fiscal year. Including money being using from the American Rescue Plan Act, expenditures for the new fiscal year are expected to total $156 million. Officials say the budget will allow for pay raises for some county employees. Presiding Commissioner
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Missouri’s general revenue collection is expected to drop in fiscal 2026 compared to the previous year, according to a revenue estimate released by Gov. Mike Kehoe’s office on Wednesday. The estimate projects a 2.1% decrease in general revenue collection compared to the previous fiscal year. Missouri’s current fiscal year ends June 30.
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The state is asking a federal judge to reopen a dismissed redistricting lawsuit after dueling arguments made in public about when a new, legislature-approved congressional map takes effect. The state says the map is in effect now while Secretary of State Denny Hoskins verifies the referendum to put the map on the
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The U.S. Senate unanimously passed a bill on Tuesday that aims to make the National Churchill Museum in Fulton a national landmark. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) made the announcement of the bill’s passage in a post on X. The museum is located on Westminster College’s campus, which was the site of Churchill’s
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The City of Columbia on Friday held its first legislative priorities session, bringing together local leaders and state lawmakers at City Hall to align ahead of the 2026 legislative session. Columbia Mayor Barbra Buffaloe said the session was about ensuring Columbia’s priorities are heard in Jefferson City. “There’s a lot of priorities
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The state is working with stakeholders to figure out how to implement restrictions to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the Missouri Department of Social Services said Friday. The state was approved to adjust the SNAP program to exclude items like sodas, candy, packaged and prepared desserts and juice with less than 50%
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The judge in a lawsuit surrounding Missouri’s new redistricting proposal has opted to not rule on the case until collected signatures are verified. Cole County Judge Christopher Limbaugh wrote in a Friday decision that People Not Politicians had submitted more than 300,000 signatures to Secretary of State Denny Hoskins to certify in
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Conservative political group Americans for Prosperity told ABC 17 News this week that Gov. Mike Kehoe is working with them on a plan that would phase out Missouri’s income tax. Kehoe has been a vocal supporter of the idea for some time, telling ABC 17 shortly after his election that he supports getting rid of
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EDITOR’S NOTE: A statistic about income taxes paid by the top 1% of earners has been corrected. COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Gov. Mike Kehoe might be looking to phase out income tax in 2026, but to do that, the state would have to expand the sales tax base to include services, according to conservative group Americans
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) Missouri’s new congressional maps are now state law. That is, according to the Missouri attorney general and secretary of state. However, the group fighting the maps says that’s not true, and that the map was suspended from going into effect when they submitted more than 300,000 signatures on a petition to override it. In a
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The USDA said Wednesday that it had approved Missouri’s request for a waiver from Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program rules, allowing the state to exclude sugary food and drinks from the program. SNAP helps low-income Missourians pay for food. Starting next year, they won’t be able to use SNAP funds to buy prepackaged sweets, candy, soda,
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MO Healthy SNAP Waiver – Oct 22 2025_0Download COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) The USDA said Wednesday that it had approved Missouri’s waiver seeking to exclude candy, soda and other junk food from purchase with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program funding. Missouri was one of six states receiving a waiver Wednesday, including Hawaii, North Dakota, South Carolina, Virginia
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) A Cole County judge has ruled in favor of the state in a lawsuit challenging the newly drawn congressional maps under House Bill 1. A group of voters sued the Secretary of State Denny Hoskins in September, arguing redistricting can only occur after a census. A bench trial was held on Nov.
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