News

Egypt's prosecution of four Al Jazeera journalists has spotlighted the country's worsening press climate since the military overthrew former president Mohammed Morsi in July. As tension builds ahead of upcoming presidential elections, press freedoms and democratic rights are disappearing amidst a crackdown on Islamists.

For the first time in 10 years, Moberly's Safe Passage Domestic Violence Center did not receive a grant from the Missouri Housing Development Commission. 

The center has been using these funds to pay half of the operation expenses, such as utilities, internet and phone. Co-director of the Moberly center Kelly Pedigo says she is not sure why the grant was rejected.

“We really don’t have any information as to why we were cut,” she says.

Wal-Mart doesn't want Missouri's largest electric customer to get a lower utility bill from Ameren Missouri.

Noranda Aluminum Holding Corp. is seeking about a 25 percent reduction in the rate Ameren charges at its aluminum smelter in the southeastern Missouri town of New Madrid.

Wal-Mart filed a motion opposing the reduction Friday with the Missouri Public Service Commission, which regulates utilities.

Food terrorism, part 1: A terror attack on the U.S. food supply could be a disaster for the country and its economy. Regulators are proposing new rules designed to mitigate the chance of an attack, but with few documented incidents of malicious food contamination, is food terrorism fact or fiction?

The Missouri Senate panel met Friday and reviewed legislation that would require all of Missouri’s students who live in student housing to be vaccinated for meningitis as of July 2015. The disease is transferred through saliva and is commonly contracted when living in close quarters with others who are infected.

Andrea Waner from Columbia’s Public Health and Human Services says the University of Missouri already has a similar policy in place, and she supports legislation that will enforce the vaccine for all of Missouri.

Health care advocates are making an extra push to get people signed up for insurance through a federal website before a March 31 deadline.

The Cover Missouri Coalition says about 40 enrollment events are planned Saturday around the state, including some featuring live music, free food and advice from tax preparers. Dozens of additional events are planned in the coming days.

The coalition also will be running new online and radio advertisements between now and the end of the month.

The Missouri House has passed legislation to create tax incentives to lure wealthy high-tech investors to the Show-Me State.

Most climate models paint a bleak picture for the Great Plains a century from now: It will likely be warmer and the air will be more rich with carbon dioxide. Though scientists don’t yet know how exactly the climate will change, new studies show it could be a boon to some invasive plant species.  

A growing problem