Gov. Mike Kehoe signed off on a number of broadly supported education bills Wednesday

By:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/ahanshaw/">Annelise Hanshaw</a><br><a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-senate-committee-advances-bill-to-ban-texting-while-driving/"><i>Missouri Independent</i></a>

There could be more retired teachers returning as substitutes and more home-schooled students will be able to participate in sports and other school activities, thanks to a stack of bipartisan education bills signed Wednesday by Gov. Mike Kehoe.

Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe signed 13 bills Wednesday, including numerous education provisions passed in a handful of bipartisan bills. Several more bill signings are planned before all work on legislation from the 2025 session hits a Monday deadline.

State lawmakers this year debated a number of controversial proposals, like opening up school district enrollment boundaries or allowing for alternative methods of school accreditation. But the majority of education legislation that made it to the governor was widely supported on both sides of the aisle.

“From implementing distraction-free classrooms to expanding school safety efforts, the legislation signed into law this afternoon impacts both K-12 students and Missourians pursuing higher and career technical education,” Kehoe said in a news release.

Here are some of the provisions Kehoe signed into law:

Encouraging retired educators to substitute teach

Retired&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/06/09/retired-educators-to-continue-substitute-teaching-in-missouri-without-losing-benefits/">teachers may continue to fill in as substitutes</a>&nbsp;on a part-time or temporary basis until 2030 without losing their benefit from the Public School Retirement System.

The legislation is an extension of a 2022 law that was due to sunset this year. Three years ago, lawmakers saw a need to bring retirees into classrooms as COVID-19 reduced the teacher workforce and put a 2025 expiration on the provision.

But the need for substitutes still exists.

In the 2023-24 school year, 4,500 retired educators served as substitutes, according to data from the Public School and Education Employee Retirement Systems of Missouri.

State Rep. Ed Lewis, a Moberly Republican and House Education Committee chair, told The Independent last month that the law helps keep trained teachers in front of students.

“There would be open positions that would not get filled around the state (if the provision didn’t pass),” he said. “Many of them we would have completely unqualified people in those positions, when you have perfectly qualified people who might be a little bit older but have tons of experience.”

This legislation applies to part-time and temporary substitutes. A different&nbsp;<a href="https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=169.331&amp;bid=54133&amp;hl=" target="_blank">statute allows a handful of retirees to work full-time</a>. Since 2003, retired teachers have been able to return full-time for two years, which lawmakers increased to four years in 2023.

School districts will be required to establish policies for the upcoming school year&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-lawmakers-pass-ban-on-cell-phones-in-public-school-classrooms/">that restrict cell-phone usage during the school day</a>&nbsp;with few exceptions.

Students with a disability that requires use of a mobile device are exempted, and cell phones are allowed during safety emergencies. Otherwise, including during lunch and between classes, students will be expected to keep their cell phones stowed unless told otherwise by a teacher.

Roughly 53% of school leaders believe that cell-phone usage has hurt students’ learning abilities and 72% say it has negatively impacted mental health, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://nces.ed.gov/whatsnew/press_releases/2_19_2025.asp" target="_blank">the National Center for Education Statistics</a>. A St. Louis University/YouGov poll&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/03/18/poll-shows-high-satisfaction-with-trump-in-missouri-mixed-views-on-his-policies/">earlier this year</a>&nbsp;found 76% of Missourians favor restrictions for elementary students, 75% for middle school and 70% for high school.

State Rep. Kathy Steinhoff, a Democrat from Columbia, filed the bill this session with a proposal only to ban cell phone use during instructional time. Lawmakers ultimately passed a more restrictive policy, and Steinhoff believes kids will benefit.

“The statistics really do hold that if we do the (full day), bell to bell,” Steinhoff told The Independent in May. “That’s going to have the biggest turnaround.”

Homeschoolers in extracurricular activities

Home-educated students will be able to join public schools’ extracurricular activities in the upcoming school year.

The legislation,&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/05/30/homeschool-athletes-await-missouri-governors-decision-on-access-to-public-school-sports/">proposed for over a decade in Missouri</a>, will require public schools to allow homeschooled students to try out for sports teams and join clubs beginning in August.

Previously, the Missouri State High School Activities Association allowed homeschoolers to join public-school teams if they were enrolled in two classes at the school. Districts could have more restrictive policies, with many denying access to those who weren’t publicly educated full-time.

For years, families with young athletes and performers have testified at the State Capitol for access to extracurricular activities. Some lawmakers worried about homeschooled students having separate academic and attendance standards, saying their participation could be unfair.

But ultimately, it passed the Senate 30-3 and the House 94-44.

A new law will allow school districts to hire chaplains or accept them as volunteers.

The bill was not as widely accepted as some other education provisions passed this year and drew criticism from lawmakers who worry chaplains would use the opportunity to evangelize students instead of comforting those who already share their faith.

The bill’s sponsor state Sen. Rusty Black, a Chillicothe Republican and former educator, said he filed the bill to help students’ and teachers’ wellbeing.

“Allowing a school district to employ or have a chaplain as a volunteer would benefit students and faculty who are struggling mentally and spiritually,” he said in the Senate’s discussion of the legislation in February.

During the bill’s hearing in the Senate Education Committee, a minister with the Satanic Temple of Missouri Virgil Ovid said he would welcome the opportunity to become a school chaplain.

Lawmakers then added language that would limit chaplains to those that are members “of a Department of Defense listed religious-endorsing organization recognized by the Armed Forces Chaplains Board,” which excludes satanic ministers.

Legislation also signed Wednesday will ban hair discrimination in educational settings. Dubbed the “CROWN Act,” which stands for Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair, the law is part of a national movement to protect textured hair.

The cities of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.stlouis-mo.gov/government/departments/mayor/news/mayor-jones-signs-crown-act-into-law.cfm" target="_blank">St. Louis</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kcmo.gov/city-hall/city-officials/mayor-quinton-lucas/mayor-lucas-press/press-releases/mayor-lucas-applauds-passage-of-crown-act-will-hold-signing-ceremony" target="_blank">Kansas City</a>&nbsp;have protections for natural hair textures, and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thecrownact.com/about" target="_blank">at least 27 states</a>&nbsp;have enshrined the CROWN Act.

The bill’s sponsor state Sen. Barbara Washington, a Democrat from Kansas City, told the Senate in May that she has seen people treat her and loved ones differently based on hair texture. She hopes students can be free from the pressure to change their hair and should not lose out on opportunities “simply because they chose to wear their hair in braids or an afro or dreadlocks.”

The legislation bars educational institutions receiving state funds from placing restrictions on natural styles “commonly associated with a particular race or origin.”&nbsp;

Safety measures, like requiring hair nets, are permitted.

Missouri State University may offer PhD programs

Lawmakers chipped away at the University of Missouri System’s exclusive rights to certain degrees, opening the doors for Missouri State University to offer doctoral degrees.

State law has historically limited certain degree programs in public universities, giving the University of Missouri System dominance over PhD programs and research doctorates. But the changes will let Missouri State offer doctorate of philosophy degrees in subjects other than engineering.

“This legislation marks a significant milestone for Missouri State University,” Missouri State President Richard B. Williams said in a May&nbsp;<a href="https://news.missouristate.edu/2025/05/12/missouri-legislature-approves-bills-allowing-missouri-state-to-offer-doctoral-degrees/" target="_blank">press release</a>. “The ability to independently offer doctoral programs will help us better meet regional workforce needs across southwest Missouri and the state.”

Missouri high school graduates will be able to attend&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-lawmakers-create-pathway-for-free-career-tech-education/">career-tech programs using a grant mirrored after the state’s A+ Program</a>&nbsp;beginning in the 2026-27 school year.

Legislation sponsored by state Rep. Ann Kelley, a Republican from Lamar, will use state funds to help students pursue careers in fields like agriculture, nursing, cosmetology and other areas with career-certificate programs.

“This will increase (the workforce) astronomically,” Kelley told The Independent. “And it’s great for the kids who are in those career-tech programs. It gives them another avenue to make themselves better.”

To qualify, students will need to graduate high school with at least a 2.5 GPA, at least 95% attendance rate, 50 hours of unpaid tutoring and achieve proficiency in the Algebra I end-of-course exam. Students with&nbsp;<a href="https://dese.mo.gov/college-career-readiness/career-education/career-and-technical-education-certificate" target="_blank">high school career-tech certificates</a>&nbsp;will also be eligible.

Universally transferable associate’s degrees

State-funded colleges will expand the number of courses universally transferable in Missouri with a&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/06/20/missouri-lawmakers-push-state-colleges-to-create-60-credit-hour-transferable-degree-programs/">charge from lawmakers to collaborate on five 60-credit-hour degree programs</a>.

Since the 2018-19 school year, students&nbsp;<a href="https://dhewd.mo.gov/higher-education/academic-affairs/core-42" target="_blank">have been able to transfer 42 credit hours between community colleges and universities</a>&nbsp;that receive state funding. The new law will add 18 more transferable credit hours in the programs of business, biology, elementary education, psychology and nursing.

Community colleges spoke in favor of the legislation in a House hearing, while representatives from four-year institutions said they hoped existing articulation agreements could stand.

Colleges must have the degree programs negotiated and ready by the 2028-29 school year.

“If you go to a community college in southeast Missouri and you transfer to a four year school in northwest Missouri, we want it to be a seamless transition across the state,” the bill’s sponsor, Republican state Rep. Cameron Parker of Campbell, told The Independent. “So if you go to any community college, you will know what any of the four-year schools are going to take.”

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/7/1752151571645.png" alt="Photo courtesy&nbsp; Governor's officd" />
                        <figcaption>Photo courtesy&nbsp; Governor's officd</figcaption>
                    </figure><h2>Gov. Mike Kehoe signed off on a number of broadly supported education bills Wednesday</h2><p>By:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/ahanshaw/">Annelise Hanshaw</a><br><a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-senate-committee-advances-bill-to-ban-texting-while-driving/"><i>Missouri Independent</i></a></p><p>There could be more retired teachers returning as substitutes and more home-schooled students will be able to participate in sports and other school activities, thanks to a stack of bipartisan education bills signed Wednesday by Gov. Mike Kehoe.</p><p>Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe signed 13 bills Wednesday, including numerous education provisions passed in a handful of bipartisan bills. Several more bill signings are planned before all work on legislation from the 2025 session hits a Monday deadline.</p><p>State lawmakers this year debated a number of controversial proposals, like opening up school district enrollment boundaries or allowing for alternative methods of school accreditation. But the majority of education legislation that made it to the governor was widely supported on both sides of the aisle.</p><p>“From implementing distraction-free classrooms to expanding school safety efforts, the legislation signed into law this afternoon impacts both K-12 students and Missourians pursuing higher and career technical education,” Kehoe said in a news release.</p><p>Here are some of the provisions Kehoe signed into law:</p><h2>Encouraging retired educators to substitute teach</h2><p>Retired&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/06/09/retired-educators-to-continue-substitute-teaching-in-missouri-without-losing-benefits/">teachers may continue to fill in as substitutes</a>&nbsp;on a part-time or temporary basis until 2030 without losing their benefit from the Public School Retirement System.</p><p>The legislation is an extension of a 2022 law that was due to sunset this year. Three years ago, lawmakers saw a need to bring retirees into classrooms as COVID-19 reduced the teacher workforce and put a 2025 expiration on the provision.</p><p>But the need for substitutes still exists.</p><p>In the 2023-24 school year, 4,500 retired educators served as substitutes, according to data from the Public School and Education Employee Retirement Systems of Missouri.</p><p>State Rep. Ed Lewis, a Moberly Republican and House Education Committee chair, told The Independent last month that the law helps keep trained teachers in front of students.</p><p>“There would be open positions that would not get filled around the state (if the provision didn’t pass),” he said. “Many of them we would have completely unqualified people in those positions, when you have perfectly qualified people who might be a little bit older but have tons of experience.”</p><p>This legislation applies to part-time and temporary substitutes. A different&nbsp;<a href="https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=169.331&amp;bid=54133&amp;hl=" target="_blank">statute allows a handful of retirees to work full-time</a>. Since 2003, retired teachers have been able to return full-time for two years, which lawmakers increased to four years in 2023.</p><h2>Cell phone limitations</h2><p>School districts will be required to establish policies for the upcoming school year&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-lawmakers-pass-ban-on-cell-phones-in-public-school-classrooms/">that restrict cell-phone usage during the school day</a>&nbsp;with few exceptions.</p><p>Students with a disability that requires use of a mobile device are exempted, and cell phones are allowed during safety emergencies. Otherwise, including during lunch and between classes, students will be expected to keep their cell phones stowed unless told otherwise by a teacher.</p><p>Roughly 53% of school leaders believe that cell-phone usage has hurt students’ learning abilities and 72% say it has negatively impacted mental health, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://nces.ed.gov/whatsnew/press_releases/2_19_2025.asp" target="_blank">the National Center for Education Statistics</a>. A St. Louis University/YouGov poll&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/03/18/poll-shows-high-satisfaction-with-trump-in-missouri-mixed-views-on-his-policies/">earlier this year</a>&nbsp;found 76% of Missourians favor restrictions for elementary students, 75% for middle school and 70% for high school.</p><p>State Rep. Kathy Steinhoff, a Democrat from Columbia, filed the bill this session with a proposal only to ban cell phone use during instructional time. Lawmakers ultimately passed a more restrictive policy, and Steinhoff believes kids will benefit.</p><p>“The statistics really do hold that if we do the (full day), bell to bell,” Steinhoff told The Independent in May. “That’s going to have the biggest turnaround.”</p><h2>Homeschoolers in extracurricular activities</h2><p>Home-educated students will be able to join public schools’ extracurricular activities in the upcoming school year.</p><p>The legislation,&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/05/30/homeschool-athletes-await-missouri-governors-decision-on-access-to-public-school-sports/">proposed for over a decade in Missouri</a>, will require public schools to allow homeschooled students to try out for sports teams and join clubs beginning in August.</p><p>Previously, the Missouri State High School Activities Association allowed homeschoolers to join public-school teams if they were enrolled in two classes at the school. Districts could have more restrictive policies, with many denying access to those who weren’t publicly educated full-time.</p><p>For years, families with young athletes and performers have testified at the State Capitol for access to extracurricular activities. Some lawmakers worried about homeschooled students having separate academic and attendance standards, saying their participation could be unfair.</p><p>But ultimately, it passed the Senate 30-3 and the House 94-44.</p><h2>School chaplains</h2><p>A new law will allow school districts to hire chaplains or accept them as volunteers.</p><p>The bill was not as widely accepted as some other education provisions passed this year and drew criticism from lawmakers who worry chaplains would use the opportunity to evangelize students instead of comforting those who already share their faith.</p><p>The bill’s sponsor state Sen. Rusty Black, a Chillicothe Republican and former educator, said he filed the bill to help students’ and teachers’ wellbeing.</p><p>“Allowing a school district to employ or have a chaplain as a volunteer would benefit students and faculty who are struggling mentally and spiritually,” he said in the Senate’s discussion of the legislation in February.</p><p>During the bill’s hearing in the Senate Education Committee, a minister with the Satanic Temple of Missouri Virgil Ovid said he would welcome the opportunity to become a school chaplain.</p><p>Lawmakers then added language that would limit chaplains to those that are members “of a Department of Defense listed religious-endorsing organization recognized by the Armed Forces Chaplains Board,” which excludes satanic ministers.</p><h2>CROWN Act</h2><p>Legislation also signed Wednesday will ban hair discrimination in educational settings. Dubbed the “CROWN Act,” which stands for Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair, the law is part of a national movement to protect textured hair.</p><p>The cities of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.stlouis-mo.gov/government/departments/mayor/news/mayor-jones-signs-crown-act-into-law.cfm" target="_blank">St. Louis</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kcmo.gov/city-hall/city-officials/mayor-quinton-lucas/mayor-lucas-press/press-releases/mayor-lucas-applauds-passage-of-crown-act-will-hold-signing-ceremony" target="_blank">Kansas City</a>&nbsp;have protections for natural hair textures, and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thecrownact.com/about" target="_blank">at least 27 states</a>&nbsp;have enshrined the CROWN Act.</p><p>The bill’s sponsor state Sen. Barbara Washington, a Democrat from Kansas City, told the Senate in May that she has seen people treat her and loved ones differently based on hair texture. She hopes students can be free from the pressure to change their hair and should not lose out on opportunities “simply because they chose to wear their hair in braids or an afro or dreadlocks.”</p><p>The legislation bars educational institutions receiving state funds from placing restrictions on natural styles “commonly associated with a particular race or origin.”&nbsp;</p><p>Safety measures, like requiring hair nets, are permitted.</p><h2>Missouri State University may offer PhD programs</h2><p>Lawmakers chipped away at the University of Missouri System’s exclusive rights to certain degrees, opening the doors for Missouri State University to offer doctoral degrees.</p><p>State law has historically limited certain degree programs in public universities, giving the University of Missouri System dominance over PhD programs and research doctorates. But the changes will let Missouri State offer doctorate of philosophy degrees in subjects other than engineering.</p><p>“This legislation marks a significant milestone for Missouri State University,” Missouri State President Richard B. Williams said in a May&nbsp;<a href="https://news.missouristate.edu/2025/05/12/missouri-legislature-approves-bills-allowing-missouri-state-to-offer-doctoral-degrees/" target="_blank">press release</a>. “The ability to independently offer doctoral programs will help us better meet regional workforce needs across southwest Missouri and the state.”</p><h2>Career-technical education scholarships</h2><p>Missouri high school graduates will be able to attend&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-lawmakers-create-pathway-for-free-career-tech-education/">career-tech programs using a grant mirrored after the state’s A+ Program</a>&nbsp;beginning in the 2026-27 school year.</p><p>Legislation sponsored by state Rep. Ann Kelley, a Republican from Lamar, will use state funds to help students pursue careers in fields like agriculture, nursing, cosmetology and other areas with career-certificate programs.</p><p>“This will increase (the workforce) astronomically,” Kelley told The Independent. “And it’s great for the kids who are in those career-tech programs. It gives them another avenue to make themselves better.”</p><p>To qualify, students will need to graduate high school with at least a 2.5 GPA, at least 95% attendance rate, 50 hours of unpaid tutoring and achieve proficiency in the Algebra I end-of-course exam. Students with&nbsp;<a href="https://dese.mo.gov/college-career-readiness/career-education/career-and-technical-education-certificate" target="_blank">high school career-tech certificates</a>&nbsp;will also be eligible.</p><h2>Universally transferable associate’s degrees</h2><p>State-funded colleges will expand the number of courses universally transferable in Missouri with a&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2025/06/20/missouri-lawmakers-push-state-colleges-to-create-60-credit-hour-transferable-degree-programs/">charge from lawmakers to collaborate on five 60-credit-hour degree programs</a>.</p><p>Since the 2018-19 school year, students&nbsp;<a href="https://dhewd.mo.gov/higher-education/academic-affairs/core-42" target="_blank">have been able to transfer 42 credit hours between community colleges and universities</a>&nbsp;that receive state funding. The new law will add 18 more transferable credit hours in the programs of business, biology, elementary education, psychology and nursing.</p><p>Community colleges spoke in favor of the legislation in a House hearing, while representatives from four-year institutions said they hoped existing articulation agreements could stand.</p><p>Colleges must have the degree programs negotiated and ready by the 2028-29 school year.</p><p>“If you go to a community college in southeast Missouri and you transfer to a four year school in northwest Missouri, we want it to be a seamless transition across the state,” the bill’s sponsor, Republican state Rep. Cameron Parker of Campbell, told The Independent. “So if you go to any community college, you will know what any of the four-year schools are going to take.”</p>

Missouri Governor signs bipartisan education legislation into law

KANSAS CITY —The owner of the Kansas City Chiefs is making a financial contribution toward the relief efforts following the deadly flooding in Texas.

In a statement released Wednesday through the MLS club the Hunt family owns, FC Dallas, Hunt said donations will be directed toward both immediate disaster response and long-term care.

On Sunday, Tavia Hunt, the wife of Chiefs owner Clark Hunt,&nbsp; reported on Instagram they were mourning the loss of lives, “including a precious little Hunt cousin, along with several friend’s little girls.”&nbsp;

More than 160 are still believed to be missing in hard-hit Kerr County, Texas. The floods are now the deadliest from inland flooding in the U.S. since 1976. The Hunt Family is originally from Texas.

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/7/1751903988970.jpeg" alt="Photo Texa National Guard" />
                        <figcaption>Photo Texa National Guard</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>KANSAS CITY —The owner of the Kansas City Chiefs is making a financial contribution toward the relief efforts following the deadly flooding in Texas.</p><p>In a statement released Wednesday through the MLS club the Hunt family owns, FC Dallas, Hunt said donations will be directed toward both immediate disaster response and long-term care.</p><div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Ffcdallas%2Fposts%2Fpfbid0puF6cMNNAbjg1JJo6yVXbFXYTQ9DiBBHWjd52rwxVnaeQmMiKyxeUo4MKKidLQ1El&show_text=true&width=500" width="500" height="692" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share"></iframe></div><p>On Sunday, Tavia Hunt, the wife of Chiefs owner Clark Hunt,&nbsp; reported on Instagram they were mourning the loss of lives, “including a precious little Hunt cousin, along with several friend’s little girls.”&nbsp;</p><div><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/DLvT-cIxSIx/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style=" background:#FFF; 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font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;">View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"><div> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"></div> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"></div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div> <div style=" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)"></div></div><div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style=" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"></div> <div style=" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"></div></div></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"></div></div></a><p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DLvT-cIxSIx/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;" target="_blank">A post shared by Tavia Hunt (@taviahunt)</a></p></div></blockquote>
<script async src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script></div><p>More than 160 are still believed to be missing in hard-hit Kerr County, Texas. The floods are now the deadliest from inland flooding in the U.S. since 1976. The Hunt Family is originally from Texas.</p>

Hunt family donates toward relief efforts after deadly Texas floods

The Kansas City Missouri Police Department is attempting two identify the&nbsp; suspects who were involved in an assault that occurred in the 7900 Block of Troost Avenue on June 29 at 6:31p.m., according to KCPD Police Sergeant Phil Dimartino.&nbsp; On Wednesday, police released security camera images of the suspects.

If you can identify the suspects please contact the Assault Squad at 816-234-5227 or the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS.

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/7/1752091957731.png" alt="photo KCPD" />
                        <figcaption>photo KCPD</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>The Kansas City Missouri Police Department is attempting two identify the&nbsp; suspects who were involved in an assault that occurred in the 7900 Block of Troost Avenue on June 29 at 6:31p.m., according to KCPD Police Sergeant Phil Dimartino.&nbsp; On Wednesday, police released security camera images of the suspects.</p><p>If you can identify the suspects please contact the Assault Squad at 816-234-5227 or the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS.</p>

KCPD asks for help to ID alleged assault suspects

GREENE COUNTY —One person died in an accident just after 1p.m. Wednesday in Greene County.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 2011 Chevy HHR driven by a 39-year-old Springfield woman was eastbound at the intersection of Republic Road and South Hemlock Avenue one mile ease of Republic.

The driver failed to yield and turned in front of a westbound2014&nbsp; Kawasaki Ninja driven by a 25-year-old Springfield man, as they were traveling at a high rate of speed through the intersection. EMS transported both drivers to Cox South where the motorcyclists was pronounced deceased. He was wearing a helmet, according to the MSHP. The Patrol no longer releases names of accident victims.

<p>GREENE COUNTY —One person died in an accident just after 1p.m. Wednesday in Greene County.</p><p>The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 2011 Chevy HHR driven by a 39-year-old Springfield woman was eastbound at the intersection of Republic Road and South Hemlock Avenue one mile ease of Republic.</p><p>The driver failed to yield and turned in front of a westbound2014&nbsp; Kawasaki Ninja driven by a 25-year-old Springfield man, as they were traveling at a high rate of speed through the intersection. EMS transported both drivers to Cox South where the motorcyclists was pronounced deceased. He was wearing a helmet, according to the MSHP. The Patrol no longer releases names of accident victims.</p>

Mo motorcyclists dies after crash with an SUV

By:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/danielle-j-brown/">Danielle J. Brown</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/sam-gauntt/">Sam Gauntt</a>

The U.S. Supreme Court late Tuesday lifted lower court injunctions that had blocked attempts by President Donald Trump and his DOGE Service to restructure the federal government.

Labor unions, advocates and local governments that sued to block the cuts said the president exceeded his authority with the executive order by moving to dismantle the federal government without congressional approval.

A U.S. District Court judge in Northern California agreed and issued a preliminary injunction to stall the executive order while the case was heard. A divided 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that decision.

But the White House pressed an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court, arguing that Trump’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/executive-order-14210-implementing-the-presidents-department-government-efficiency" target="_blank">executive order</a>&nbsp;did not restructure the government but merely called for reductions in force, which it said is within the president’s power.

The Supreme Court agreed in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/24a1174_h3ci.pdf" target="_blank">a one-page order</a>&nbsp;Tuesday, saying the government was likely to prevail on its claim and the injunction should be stayed while the case proceeded.

In a sharp, 15-page dissent, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said the district court judge had determined that the administration plan would not just cut jobs but would “fundamentally restructure” the federal government. He made a “reasoned determination” that the order should be stayed while the case was heard, she wrote.

“But that temporary, practical, harm-reducing preservation of the status quo was no match for this Court’s demonstrated enthusiasm for greenlighting this President’s legally dubious actions in an emergency posture,” she wrote.

“At bottom, this case is about whether that action amounts to a structural overhaul that usurps Congress’s policymaking prerogatives — and it is hard to imagine deciding that question in any meaningful way after those changes have happened,” she wrote. “Yet, for some reason, this Court sees fit to step in now and release the President’s wrecking ball at the outset of this litigation.”

Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in a brief concurrence, said she agreed with Jackson that the president does not have the authority to remake government without congressional approval.&nbsp; But she said the executive order and an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/latest-memos/guidance-on-agency-rif-and-reorganization-plans-requested-by-implementing-the-president-s-department-of-government-efficiency-workforce-optimization-initiative.pdf" target="_blank">implementing memo</a>&nbsp;from the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Personnel Management call for the changes to be “consistent with applicable law,” and it’s for lower courts to determine if they are.

A White House spokesperson called the decision “another definitive victory” for the Trump administration.

“It clearly rebukes the continued assaults on the President’s constitutionally authorized executive powers by leftist judges who are trying to prevent the President from achieving government efficiency across the federal government,” the spokesperson, Harrison Fields, said in a written statement.

But labor unions, advocates and political leaders say that the decision undermines the value of federal employees, threatens the operation of federal services, and could even endanger American citizens.

In a statement Tuesday evening, the American Federation of Government Employees, along with the rest of the coalition of unions, nonprofits and municipalities bringing the suit against the administration, decried the Supreme Court’s decision as a “serious blow to our democracy.”

The coalition said the decision put “services that the American people rely on in grave jeopardy.”

“This decision does not change the simple and clear fact that reorganizing government functions and laying off federal workers en masse haphazardly without any congressional approval is not allowed by our Constitution,” the statement read. “While we are disappointed in this decision, we will continue to fight on behalf of the communities we represent and argue this case to protect critical public services that we rely on to stay

Gov. Wes Moore (D) said that as a state with a high concentration of federal workers, “any action against our federal employees is a direct strike against Maryland’s people and economy.”

“Today’s Supreme Court ruling on AFGE v. Trump will embolden President Trump in his mission to dismantle the federal government and threatens to upend the lives of countless public servants who wake up every day to deliver essential services and benefits that people rely on,” Moore said in a written statement. He noted that thousands of Maryland residents have already been laid off from federal agencies under the Trump administration.

In a post to X on Tuesday evening, U.S. Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-5th) wrote that Trump and OMB Director Russell Vought are continuing to “vilify and traumatize the patriots serving our nation, unconstitutionally reorganizing the federal government.”

“The Supreme Court’s decision today demonstrates that federal employees, their families and livelihoods, and the vital services they provide to the American people are of no concern to the Trump Administration,” Hoyer wrote. “I stand with our federal employees against these attacks.”

U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-8th) said in an&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/RepRaskin/status/1942722560413601828" target="_blank">X post</a>&nbsp;that the ruling “will give Trump’s wrecking crew more awful ideas about sacking critical federal workers,” referencing layoffs at the National Weather Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration who help notify state and local agencies about impending dangerous weather.

U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) added that layoffs could also put Americans at risk by “decimating essential public services” like food inspections and Social Security.

“As Justice Jackson put it in her dissent, ‘this was the wrong decision at the wrong moment, especially given what little this Court knows about what is actually happening on the ground,’” Van Hollen said in a statment. “She is right. The Court’s decision to allow this damage to be done before ruling on the merits shows how detached they are from the reality of the moment.”

Van Hollen said the administration’s plan “isn’t about efficiency, it’s about rigging the government to only benefit the wealthy and powerful special interests.”

“We are not done fighting in Congress, in the courts, and in our communities to defend the dedicated public servants who go to work on behalf of the American people day in and day out,” he said.

The Feb. 11 executive order directed federal agencies to prepeare for “large-scale reductions in force” and to work with members of the Department of Government Efficiency — the DOGE Service that was run at the time by billionaire Elon Musk — to develop a plan to reduce the size of the workforce. Military personnel were exempted, but virtually every other federal agency was affected.

The order was quickly challenged in court by labor unions, taxpayer and good government groups and by a half-dozen local governments: Harris County, Texas, Martin Luther King Jr. County, Washington, and San Francisco City and County, California; and the cities of Chicago, Baltimore, and Santa Rosa, California.

They argued that the goals of the executive order far exceeded the president’s authority to reduce the size of agencies. Under the DOGE plan, they argued to the Supreme Court, “functions across the federal government will be abolished, agencies will be radically downsized from what Congress authorized, critical government services will be lost, and hundreds of thousands of federal employees will lose their jobs.”

“There will be no way to unscramble that egg: If the courts ultimately deem the President to have overstepped his authority and intruded upon that of Congress, as a practical matter there will be no way to go back in time to restore those agencies, functions, and services,” their court filing said.

That was echoed by Jackson, who said the district court judge was in the best position to determine if the president’s order consisted of “minor workforce reductions” or whether it was a massive reorganization that overstepped executive authority.

“With scant justification, the majority permits the immediate and potentially devastating aggrandizement of one branch (the Executive) at the expense of another (Congress), and once again leaves the People paying the price for its reckless emergency-docket determinations,” she wrote.

This article was originally published by&nbsp;<a href="https://marylandmatters.org/" target="_blank">Maryland Matters</a>, a part of States Newsroom.

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2022/12/1672235865420.png" alt="Supreme Court Credit: Fred Schilling, Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States" />
                        <figcaption>Supreme Court Credit: Fred Schilling, Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>By:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/danielle-j-brown/">Danielle J. Brown</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/sam-gauntt/">Sam Gauntt</a></p><p>The U.S. Supreme Court late Tuesday lifted lower court injunctions that had blocked attempts by President Donald Trump and his DOGE Service to restructure the federal government.</p><p>Labor unions, advocates and local governments that sued to block the cuts said the president exceeded his authority with the executive order by moving to dismantle the federal government without congressional approval.</p><p>A U.S. District Court judge in Northern California agreed and issued a preliminary injunction to stall the executive order while the case was heard. A divided 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that decision.</p><p>But the White House pressed an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court, arguing that Trump’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/executive-order-14210-implementing-the-presidents-department-government-efficiency" target="_blank">executive order</a>&nbsp;did not restructure the government but merely called for reductions in force, which it said is within the president’s power.</p><p>The Supreme Court agreed in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/24a1174_h3ci.pdf" target="_blank">a one-page order</a>&nbsp;Tuesday, saying the government was likely to prevail on its claim and the injunction should be stayed while the case proceeded.</p><p>In a sharp, 15-page dissent, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said the district court judge had determined that the administration plan would not just cut jobs but would “fundamentally restructure” the federal government. He made a “reasoned determination” that the order should be stayed while the case was heard, she wrote.</p><p>“But that temporary, practical, harm-reducing preservation of the status quo was no match for this Court’s demonstrated enthusiasm for greenlighting this President’s legally dubious actions in an emergency posture,” she wrote.</p><p>“At bottom, this case is about whether that action amounts to a structural overhaul that usurps Congress’s policymaking prerogatives — and it is hard to imagine deciding that question in any meaningful way after those changes have happened,” she wrote. “Yet, for some reason, this Court sees fit to step in now and release the President’s wrecking ball at the outset of this litigation.”</p><p>Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in a brief concurrence, said she agreed with Jackson that the president does not have the authority to remake government without congressional approval.&nbsp; But she said the executive order and an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/latest-memos/guidance-on-agency-rif-and-reorganization-plans-requested-by-implementing-the-president-s-department-of-government-efficiency-workforce-optimization-initiative.pdf" target="_blank">implementing memo</a>&nbsp;from the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Personnel Management call for the changes to be “consistent with applicable law,” and it’s for lower courts to determine if they are.</p><p>A White House spokesperson called the decision “another definitive victory” for the Trump administration.</p><p>“It clearly rebukes the continued assaults on the President’s constitutionally authorized executive powers by leftist judges who are trying to prevent the President from achieving government efficiency across the federal government,” the spokesperson, Harrison Fields, said in a written statement.</p><p>But labor unions, advocates and political leaders say that the decision undermines the value of federal employees, threatens the operation of federal services, and could even endanger American citizens.</p><p>In a statement Tuesday evening, the American Federation of Government Employees, along with the rest of the coalition of unions, nonprofits and municipalities bringing the suit against the administration, decried the Supreme Court’s decision as a “serious blow to our democracy.”</p><p>The coalition said the decision put “services that the American people rely on in grave jeopardy.”</p><p>“This decision does not change the simple and clear fact that reorganizing government functions and laying off federal workers en masse haphazardly without any congressional approval is not allowed by our Constitution,” the statement read. “While we are disappointed in this decision, we will continue to fight on behalf of the communities we represent and argue this case to protect critical public services that we rely on to stay</p><p>Gov. Wes Moore (D) said that as a state with a high concentration of federal workers, “any action against our federal employees is a direct strike against Maryland’s people and economy.”</p><p>“Today’s Supreme Court ruling on AFGE v. Trump will embolden President Trump in his mission to dismantle the federal government and threatens to upend the lives of countless public servants who wake up every day to deliver essential services and benefits that people rely on,” Moore said in a written statement. He noted that thousands of Maryland residents have already been laid off from federal agencies under the Trump administration.</p><p>In a post to X on Tuesday evening, U.S. Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-5th) wrote that Trump and OMB Director Russell Vought are continuing to “vilify and traumatize the patriots serving our nation, unconstitutionally reorganizing the federal government.”</p><p>“The Supreme Court’s decision today demonstrates that federal employees, their families and livelihoods, and the vital services they provide to the American people are of no concern to the Trump Administration,” Hoyer wrote. “I stand with our federal employees against these attacks.”</p><p>U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-8th) said in an&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/RepRaskin/status/1942722560413601828" target="_blank">X post</a>&nbsp;that the ruling “will give Trump’s wrecking crew more awful ideas about sacking critical federal workers,” referencing layoffs at the National Weather Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration who help notify state and local agencies about impending dangerous weather.</p><p>U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) added that layoffs could also put Americans at risk by “decimating essential public services” like food inspections and Social Security.</p><p>“As Justice Jackson put it in her dissent, ‘this was the wrong decision at the wrong moment, especially given what little this Court knows about what is actually happening on the ground,’” Van Hollen said in a statment. “She is right. The Court’s decision to allow this damage to be done before ruling on the merits shows how detached they are from the reality of the moment.”</p><p>Van Hollen said the administration’s plan “isn’t about efficiency, it’s about rigging the government to only benefit the wealthy and powerful special interests.”</p><p>“We are not done fighting in Congress, in the courts, and in our communities to defend the dedicated public servants who go to work on behalf of the American people day in and day out,” he said.</p><p>The Feb. 11 executive order directed federal agencies to prepeare for “large-scale reductions in force” and to work with members of the Department of Government Efficiency — the DOGE Service that was run at the time by billionaire Elon Musk — to develop a plan to reduce the size of the workforce. Military personnel were exempted, but virtually every other federal agency was affected.</p><p>The order was quickly challenged in court by labor unions, taxpayer and good government groups and by a half-dozen local governments: Harris County, Texas, Martin Luther King Jr. County, Washington, and San Francisco City and County, California; and the cities of Chicago, Baltimore, and Santa Rosa, California.</p><p>They argued that the goals of the executive order far exceeded the president’s authority to reduce the size of agencies. Under the DOGE plan, they argued to the Supreme Court, “functions across the federal government will be abolished, agencies will be radically downsized from what Congress authorized, critical government services will be lost, and hundreds of thousands of federal employees will lose their jobs.”</p><p>“There will be no way to unscramble that egg: If the courts ultimately deem the President to have overstepped his authority and intruded upon that of Congress, as a practical matter there will be no way to go back in time to restore those agencies, functions, and services,” their court filing said.</p><p>That was echoed by Jackson, who said the district court judge was in the best position to determine if the president’s order consisted of “minor workforce reductions” or whether it was a massive reorganization that overstepped executive authority.</p><p>“With scant justification, the majority permits the immediate and potentially devastating aggrandizement of one branch (the Executive) at the expense of another (Congress), and once again leaves the People paying the price for its reckless emergency-docket determinations,” she wrote.</p><p>This article was originally published by&nbsp;<a href="https://marylandmatters.org/" target="_blank">Maryland Matters</a>, a part of States Newsroom.</p>

Supreme Court opens door to large-scale federal layoffs

<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">First, Talwani said the most important attribute for a judge is a &quot;deep and sincere&quot; &quot;fairness.&quot; Yet, in this case, she unambiguously undermined the integrity of her decision by issuing an unreasoned TRO (an emergency order halting action pending a hearing). <a href="https://t.co/VKHA4YuVAa">pic.twitter.com/VKHA4YuVAa</a></p>&mdash; Senator Eric Schmitt (@SenEricSchmitt) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenEricSchmitt/status/1942692469256118315?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">2. If judges want to play politics, Congress should pass laws that insulate executive decisions on sensitive matters like immigration from judicial second-guessing by partisan judges.</p>&mdash; Senator Eric Schmitt (@SenEricSchmitt) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenEricSchmitt/status/1942692493964738736?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

Mo. U.S. Senator rips judge who blocked spending cuts affecting Planned Parenthood

KANSAS CITY —Authorities are investigating a partial building collapse in downtown Kansas City.

Just before 8:30p.m. Tuesday, the Kansas City Fire Department crews&nbsp;responded to reports of a building collapse in the 1200 block of Wyandotte Street, according to Battalion Chief Riley Nolan.

Crews reported that parts of the brick facade and some of the parapet had separated from the building and fallen to the sidewalk and street below. An exclusion zone was established on the south and west sides of the building to keep pedestrians from getting near the building.

KCPD assisted by blocking Wyandotte Street in both directions. DRONE 1 was ordered for aerial views of the structure, as well as to provide an interior search, which came back all clear.  Dangerous Buildings was ordered and was on scene. Wyandotte Street will remain closed from 12th Street to 13th Street throughout the night. No injuries were reported at this incident.&nbsp;

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/7/1752057034367.png" alt="Photo KCFD" />
                        <figcaption>Photo KCFD</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>KANSAS CITY —Authorities are investigating a partial building collapse in downtown Kansas City.</p><p>Just before 8:30p.m. Tuesday, the Kansas City Fire Department crews&nbsp;responded to reports of a building collapse in the 1200 block of Wyandotte Street, according to Battalion Chief Riley Nolan.</p><figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/7/1752057051867.png" alt="Photos KCFD" />
                        <figcaption>Photos KCFD</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>Crews reported that parts of the brick facade and some of the parapet had separated from the building and fallen to the sidewalk and street below. An exclusion zone was established on the south and west sides of the building to keep pedestrians from getting near the building.</p><p>KCPD assisted by blocking Wyandotte Street in both directions. DRONE 1 was ordered for aerial views of the structure, as well as to provide an interior search, which came back all clear.  Dangerous Buildings was ordered and was on scene. Wyandotte Street will remain closed from 12th Street to 13th Street throughout the night. No injuries were reported at this incident.&nbsp;</p>

Crews respond to partial building collapse in downtown Kansas City 

KANSAS CITY —Two Kansas City Fire Department firefighters have deployed as part of Missouri Task Force 1 (MO-TF1), a specialized 50-member search and rescue team activated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), according to KCFD&nbsp;Battalion Chief Riley Nolan.

The team departed from Boone County Fire Protection District Headquarters in Columbia, Missouri July 7 and are traveling to Kerr County, Texas.

MO-TF1 is being deployed in response to widespread flooding in the region. Their mission will focus on swift water rescue operations and Human Remains Detection (HRD). Upon arrival, the team is expected to join Colorado Task Force 1 and begin operations later this afternoon. The deployment is anticipated to last up to 14 days.

Missouri Task Force 1 is an elite FEMA urban search and rescue team made up of firefighters, paramedics, physicians, structural engineers, canine handlers, and technical experts from across Missouri. These highly trained professionals are capable of deploying anywhere in the country at a moment’s notice to assist with disaster response, including floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, and man-made incidents. Equipped to operate in challenging and hazardous environments, the team provides capabilities in search, rescue, medical care, logistics, wide area search and incident management.

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/7/1752055247686.png" alt="Photo courtesy KCTV" />
                        <figcaption>Photo courtesy KCTV</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>KANSAS CITY —Two Kansas City Fire Department firefighters have deployed as part of Missouri Task Force 1 (MO-TF1), a specialized 50-member search and rescue team activated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), according to KCFD&nbsp;Battalion Chief Riley Nolan.</p><p>The team departed from Boone County Fire Protection District Headquarters in Columbia, Missouri July 7 and are traveling to Kerr County, Texas.</p><div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=476&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FBooneCountyFire%2Fvideos%2F1412065403415608%2F&show_text=false&width=267&t=0" width="267" height="476" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe></div><p>MO-TF1 is being deployed in response to widespread flooding in the region. Their mission will focus on swift water rescue operations and Human Remains Detection (HRD). Upon arrival, the team is expected to join Colorado Task Force 1 and begin operations later this afternoon. The deployment is anticipated to last up to 14 days.</p><p>Missouri Task Force 1 is an elite FEMA urban search and rescue team made up of firefighters, paramedics, physicians, structural engineers, canine handlers, and technical experts from across Missouri. These highly trained professionals are capable of deploying anywhere in the country at a moment’s notice to assist with disaster response, including floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, and man-made incidents. Equipped to operate in challenging and hazardous environments, the team provides capabilities in search, rescue, medical care, logistics, wide area search and incident management.</p>

KC first responders deploy to Texas following deadly floods

KANSAS CITY —A Kansas City man faces murder for the death of his brother over the past weekend.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.jacksoncountyprosecutor.com/DocumentCenter/View/2666/Ackerman-Redacted-Complaint-1">Jacob Ackerman</a>, 44,&nbsp;&nbsp;faces 2nd Degree Murder and Armed Criminal Action, according to&nbsp;Jackson County Prosecutor Melesa Johnson.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.jacksoncountyprosecutor.com/DocumentCenter/View/2667/Ackerman-Probable-Cause-1]">Click here to read the probable cause s</a>tatement in the case.

On July 5, Sugar Creek, Missouri officers were dispatched to the area of M-291 and 210 Highway on a welfare check and found the victim lying on his back on the bank of a pond. He had a wound on the back of his head.&nbsp;

Detectives received reports that the victim’s brother was responsible for his death. The defendant later admitted in an interview with detectives that he stood behind the victim and shot him in the head after they got into an argument.&nbsp;

The defendant is being held on a $300,000 cash-only bond.&nbsp;

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/7/1751925759476.png" alt="Ackerman photo Jackson County" />
                        <figcaption>Ackerman photo Jackson County</figcaption>
                    </figure><p>KANSAS CITY —A Kansas City man faces murder for the death of his brother over the past weekend.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.jacksoncountyprosecutor.com/DocumentCenter/View/2666/Ackerman-Redacted-Complaint-1">Jacob Ackerman</a>, 44,&nbsp;&nbsp;faces 2nd Degree Murder and Armed Criminal Action, according to&nbsp;Jackson County Prosecutor Melesa Johnson.&nbsp;</p><p><a href="https://www.jacksoncountyprosecutor.com/DocumentCenter/View/2667/Ackerman-Probable-Cause-1]">Click here to read the probable cause s</a>tatement in the case.</p><p>On July 5, Sugar Creek, Missouri officers were dispatched to the area of M-291 and 210 Highway on a welfare check and found the victim lying on his back on the bank of a pond. He had a wound on the back of his head.&nbsp;</p><p>Detectives received reports that the victim’s brother was responsible for his death. The defendant later admitted in an interview with detectives that he stood behind the victim and shot him in the head after they got into an argument.&nbsp;</p><p>The defendant is being held on a $300,000 cash-only bond.&nbsp;</p>

Read the probable cause statement: KC man shot his brother in the head

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/1/1704330351229.png" alt="Jeffrey Epstein New York Sex Offender Registry" />
                        <figcaption>Jeffrey Epstein New York Sex Offender Registry</figcaption>
                    </figure><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">President Trump: &quot;Are you still talking about Jeffrey Epstein?!?...I can&#39;t believe you&#39;re asking a question on Epstein at a time like this where we&#39;re having some of the greatest success and also tragedy with what happened in Texas. It just seems like a desecration.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/VlTGeEAfmC">pic.twitter.com/VlTGeEAfmC</a></p>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1942623670423158984?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

🎥President Trump goes off on reporter for asking about Jeffrey Epstein

For the first time years, travelers no longer are required to take off their shoes during security screenings at U.S. airports.

<p>For the first time years, travelers no longer are required to take off their shoes during security screenings at U.S. airports.</p><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem (<a href="https://twitter.com/Sec_Noem?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Sec_Noem</a>): &quot;TSA will no longer require travelers to remove their shoes when they go through our security checkpoints.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/BlGmEJRcNY">pic.twitter.com/BlGmEJRcNY</a></p>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1942696991298846746?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

🎥TSA explains new no shoe removal policy at airport security

Hospitals stand to lose hundreds of millions of dollars under the GOP’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

By:&nbsp;<a href="https://stateline.org/author/avollers/">Anna Claire Vollers</a>

The giant tax and spending bill President Donald Trump signed into law over the weekend includes&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/who-would-be-affected-by-health-care-cuts-in-senate-version-of-trumps-budget-bill#:~:text=This%20would%20be%20the%20biggest%20cut%20to%20Medicaid%2C%20in%20fact%2C%20the%20biggest%20cut%20to%20health%20care%20in%20history." target="_blank">the biggest health care spending cuts</a>&nbsp;in U.S. history. In response, states are scrambling to shield their hospitals from the looming loss of hundreds of millions in federal funding.

In Georgia,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ajc.com/news/2025/06/georgia-hurries-to-amp-up-medicaid-hospital-funding-by-2-billion/" target="_blank">a key state panel late last month</a>&nbsp;took steps to send more state Medicaid money to hospitals, hoping to maximize federal matching dollars before the cuts take effect. Other states are considering new grant programs that would funnel additional money to rural hospitals. Some state legislatures likely will reconvene to discuss how to fill holes in their Medicaid budgets.

The tax and spending bill&nbsp;<a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5375991-gop-tax-bill-health-cuts/#:~:text=The%20legislation%20would%20also%20cut%20federal%20spending%20on%20Medicaid%2C%20Medicare%20and%20ObamaCare%20by%20%241.1%20trillion%2C%20with%20more%20than%20%241%20trillion%20coming%20from%20Medicaid.%C2%A0" target="_blank">cuts more than $1 trillion</a>&nbsp;from Medicaid, the public health insurance program for people with low incomes that’s jointly funded by states and the federal government. Under the measure, payments to hospitals or nursing facilities would probably&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kff.org/medicaid/issue-brief/reconciliation-language-could-lead-to-cuts-in-medicaid-state-directed-payments-to-hospitals-and-nursing-facilities/#:~:text=If%20Congress%20passes%20the%20reconciliation%20bill%20with%20the%20Finance%20Committee%E2%80%99s%20requirements%20for%20SDPs%2C%20the%20required%20payments%20to%20hospitals%20or%20nursing%20facilities%20would%20likely%20decrease%20in%2029%20states%2C%20and%20possibly%2C%20in%20more%20than%2031." target="_blank">decrease in at least 29 states</a>, according to an analysis by KFF, a nonprofit health policy group.

Facing such budget shortfalls, states may have to stop offering optional Medicaid benefits such as vision and dental, reduce the rates they pay providers — which could shrink access for Medicaid enrollees — and change eligibility requirements so that fewer people qualify for coverage.

State policymakers and health experts worry the loss of funding also will endanger hospitals, particularly those in rural areas, driving up uncompensated care and forcing them to cut services or close entirely.

“Ultimately, when these hospitals close, what happens? People have to now travel longer for care. They might not even make it,” Dr. Anahita Dua, a vascular surgeon at Massachusetts General Hospital and Southern New Hampshire Medical Center, told reporters last week during a news conference hosted by Defend America Action, a group launched to oppose Trump administration policies.

“This is ultimately not only going to affect the lives of the people that are not going to get the care, but also the majority of the hospitals that provide this care, and the people that are employed by those locations,” she said.

Earlier this month, an analysis by the State Health and Value Strategies program at Princeton University estimated that hospitals would lose 18% of their Medicaid funding,&nbsp;<a href="https://shvs.org/resource/senate-passed-h-r-1-updated-estimates-on-impact-to-state-medicaid-coverage-and-expenditures-hospital-expenditures-including-impacts-by-congressional-district/" target="_blank">nearly $665 billion over the next 10 years</a>.

Republicans have hailed the megabill — officially titled the One Big Beautiful Bill Act — as one that will cut waste, fraud and abuse in federal programs, secure the U.S. border and spur economic growth. The measure will&nbsp;<a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/07/02/nx-s1-5454598/the-gops-massive-bill-would-add-trillions-of-dollars-to-the-countrys-debt" target="_blank">add</a>&nbsp;at least $3 trillion to the national debt over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office, and has been scored by some independent economists as likely having little impact on growth. Dollars diverted from Medicaid will go toward the tax cuts prioritized by Trump, along with new spending on immigration control and defense projects.

Health policy experts anticipate at least some states will have to pull their legislatures back into session to address gaping budget holes due to the Medicaid cuts.

States can expect to lose&nbsp;<a href="https://shvs.org/resource/senate-passed-h-r-1-updated-estimates-on-impact-to-state-medicaid-coverage-and-expenditures-hospital-expenditures-including-impacts-by-congressional-district/" target="_blank">3%-18%</a>&nbsp;of their federal Medicaid funding over 10 years under the law, according to the State Health and Value Strategies program report. Arizona, Kentucky and Virginia would see the largest shares of their Medicaid dollars evaporate.

Colorado Democratic Gov. Jared Polis&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/dust-barely-settled-colorados-2025-legislative-session-talk-special-session/#:~:text=Polis%20says%2C%20if%20Congressional%20Republicans%20follow%20through%20on%20proposed%20spending%20cuts%2C%20he%20will%20likely%20reconvene%20the%20legislature%20to%20deal%20with%20impacts%20to%20programs%20such%20as%20Medicaid%2C%20which%20covers%20about%20one%20in%20five%20Coloradans." target="_blank">has said</a>&nbsp;he’s likely to reconvene the legislature.

“Almost certainly if some of these big cuts to Medicaid go through … we would likely need to reconvene, depending on what Congress does,” Polis said at a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13k_fuNbbAA" target="_blank">news conference</a>&nbsp;in May.

Policymakers in some states have tried to get ahead of expected shortfalls.

In late June, the Georgia Department of Community Health’s advisory board held&nbsp;<a href="https://dch.georgia.gov/events/2025-06-27/dch-board-meeting-special-call" target="_blank">an emergency meeting</a>. In a unanimous vote, the board approved several measures aimed at increasing the state’s federal Medicaid reimbursement rate.

For example, the state wants to significantly increase Medicaid payments to hospitals that achieve certain goals, such as training Georgia doctors and delivering babies. The move would draw down an additional $2.1 billion per year in federal money.

“We’re doing our best to be responsive to the Medicaid conversations in Washington,” department Commissioner Russel Carlson told the board at the meeting. “Not overreacting in this 24/7 news cycle, but gathering the best information we can, reading the political environment the best we can, and acting responsibly.”

Other states have&nbsp;<a href="https://www.medicaid.gov/medicaid/managed-care/guidance/state-directed-payments/approved-state-directed-payment-preprints?q=&amp;filter%5Bfield_review_type%5D%5Bin%5D%5B%5D=8271&amp;filter%5Bfield_approval_date%5D%5Bgte%5D=&amp;filter%5Bfield_approval_date%5D%5Blte%5D=&amp;filter%5Bfield_state_rating_period%5D%5Bgte%5D=&amp;filter%5Bfield_state_rating_period_2%5D%5Blte%5D=&amp;limit=10&amp;sort=field_approval_date%3Adesc" target="_blank">filed similar requests</a>&nbsp;with the federal Centers for Medicare &amp; Medicaid Services, and received approval in recent months.

“Of all the Medicaid discussions happening in Washington,” Carlson said, “one of the policy decisions that could potentially, depending on how it ultimately lands, impact Georgians the most is the discussion surrounding directed payment programs.”

Some of the biggest federal savings in the new law come from limiting states’ use of a financing tool,&nbsp;<a href="https://stateline.org/2025/05/27/republicans-target-a-tax-that-keeps-state-medicaid-programs-running/">known as a provider tax</a>, that enables them to draw down more federal dollars. States use the extra money to boost reimbursement rates for hospitals and to expand coverage.

Some congressional Republicans have decried the maneuver as a “<a href="https://roy.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-roy-statement-house-passage-one-big-beautiful-bill-act-0#:~:text=Froze%20the%20state%20provider%20taxes%20to%20ensure%20states%20don%E2%80%99t%20grow%20their%20money%20laundering%20schemes." target="_blank">money laundering scheme</a>,” but lowering provider taxes will likely&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/17/upshot/medicaid-cuts-republicans-senate.html#:~:text=Cutting%20provider%20taxes%20would%20probably%20mean%20funding%20shortfalls%20of%20hundreds%20of%20billions%20of%20dollars%20for%20states%20over%20the%20next%20decade%2C%20leaving%20them%20with%20budget%20holes%20to%20fill." target="_blank">punch big holes</a>&nbsp;in state Medicaid budgets.

Meanwhile, some state legislatures are looking at alternate ways to shore up funding for hospitals. A bipartisan bill still under consideration in Pennsylvania would&nbsp;<a href="https://penncapital-star.com/government-politics/general-assembly/grant-program-for-rural-hospitals-advances-in-pa-house/" target="_blank">create a rural health care grant program</a>&nbsp;to help pay off student loans for rural doctors, nurses and dentists.&nbsp;<a href="https://legiscan.com/IN/bill/HB1274/2025" target="_blank">Indiana</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://legiscan.com/OK/bill/HB2754/2025" target="_blank">Oklahoma</a>&nbsp;also considered bills this session to create grant programs for rural hospitals.

In April, Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott announced the state would release&nbsp;<a href="https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-announces-over-6-million-in-grant-funding-for-rural-hospitals" target="_blank">more than $6 million</a>&nbsp;in grants to support struggling rural hospitals.

Stateline reporter Anna Claire Vollers can be reached at&nbsp;<a href="mailto:avollers@stateline.org">avollers@stateline.org</a>.

<figure>
                        <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/7/1751996899942.png" alt="Google image" />
                        <figcaption>Google image</figcaption>
                    </figure><h2>Hospitals stand to lose hundreds of millions of dollars under the GOP’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act.</h2><p>By:&nbsp;<a href="https://stateline.org/author/avollers/">Anna Claire Vollers</a></p><p>The giant tax and spending bill President Donald Trump signed into law over the weekend includes&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/who-would-be-affected-by-health-care-cuts-in-senate-version-of-trumps-budget-bill#:~:text=This%20would%20be%20the%20biggest%20cut%20to%20Medicaid%2C%20in%20fact%2C%20the%20biggest%20cut%20to%20health%20care%20in%20history." target="_blank">the biggest health care spending cuts</a>&nbsp;in U.S. history. In response, states are scrambling to shield their hospitals from the looming loss of hundreds of millions in federal funding.</p><p>In Georgia,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ajc.com/news/2025/06/georgia-hurries-to-amp-up-medicaid-hospital-funding-by-2-billion/" target="_blank">a key state panel late last month</a>&nbsp;took steps to send more state Medicaid money to hospitals, hoping to maximize federal matching dollars before the cuts take effect. Other states are considering new grant programs that would funnel additional money to rural hospitals. Some state legislatures likely will reconvene to discuss how to fill holes in their Medicaid budgets.</p><p>The tax and spending bill&nbsp;<a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5375991-gop-tax-bill-health-cuts/#:~:text=The%20legislation%20would%20also%20cut%20federal%20spending%20on%20Medicaid%2C%20Medicare%20and%20ObamaCare%20by%20%241.1%20trillion%2C%20with%20more%20than%20%241%20trillion%20coming%20from%20Medicaid.%C2%A0" target="_blank">cuts more than $1 trillion</a>&nbsp;from Medicaid, the public health insurance program for people with low incomes that’s jointly funded by states and the federal government. Under the measure, payments to hospitals or nursing facilities would probably&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kff.org/medicaid/issue-brief/reconciliation-language-could-lead-to-cuts-in-medicaid-state-directed-payments-to-hospitals-and-nursing-facilities/#:~:text=If%20Congress%20passes%20the%20reconciliation%20bill%20with%20the%20Finance%20Committee%E2%80%99s%20requirements%20for%20SDPs%2C%20the%20required%20payments%20to%20hospitals%20or%20nursing%20facilities%20would%20likely%20decrease%20in%2029%20states%2C%20and%20possibly%2C%20in%20more%20than%2031." target="_blank">decrease in at least 29 states</a>, according to an analysis by KFF, a nonprofit health policy group.</p><p>Facing such budget shortfalls, states may have to stop offering optional Medicaid benefits such as vision and dental, reduce the rates they pay providers — which could shrink access for Medicaid enrollees — and change eligibility requirements so that fewer people qualify for coverage.</p><p>State policymakers and health experts worry the loss of funding also will endanger hospitals, particularly those in rural areas, driving up uncompensated care and forcing them to cut services or close entirely.</p><p>“Ultimately, when these hospitals close, what happens? People have to now travel longer for care. They might not even make it,” Dr. Anahita Dua, a vascular surgeon at Massachusetts General Hospital and Southern New Hampshire Medical Center, told reporters last week during a news conference hosted by Defend America Action, a group launched to oppose Trump administration policies.</p><p>“This is ultimately not only going to affect the lives of the people that are not going to get the care, but also the majority of the hospitals that provide this care, and the people that are employed by those locations,” she said.</p><p>Earlier this month, an analysis by the State Health and Value Strategies program at Princeton University estimated that hospitals would lose 18% of their Medicaid funding,&nbsp;<a href="https://shvs.org/resource/senate-passed-h-r-1-updated-estimates-on-impact-to-state-medicaid-coverage-and-expenditures-hospital-expenditures-including-impacts-by-congressional-district/" target="_blank">nearly $665 billion over the next 10 years</a>.</p><p>Republicans have hailed the megabill — officially titled the One Big Beautiful Bill Act — as one that will cut waste, fraud and abuse in federal programs, secure the U.S. border and spur economic growth. The measure will&nbsp;<a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/07/02/nx-s1-5454598/the-gops-massive-bill-would-add-trillions-of-dollars-to-the-countrys-debt" target="_blank">add</a>&nbsp;at least $3 trillion to the national debt over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office, and has been scored by some independent economists as likely having little impact on growth. Dollars diverted from Medicaid will go toward the tax cuts prioritized by Trump, along with new spending on immigration control and defense projects.</p><h2>Reconvening legislatures</h2><p>Health policy experts anticipate at least some states will have to pull their legislatures back into session to address gaping budget holes due to the Medicaid cuts.</p><p>States can expect to lose&nbsp;<a href="https://shvs.org/resource/senate-passed-h-r-1-updated-estimates-on-impact-to-state-medicaid-coverage-and-expenditures-hospital-expenditures-including-impacts-by-congressional-district/" target="_blank">3%-18%</a>&nbsp;of their federal Medicaid funding over 10 years under the law, according to the State Health and Value Strategies program report. Arizona, Kentucky and Virginia would see the largest shares of their Medicaid dollars evaporate.</p><p>Colorado Democratic Gov. Jared Polis&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/dust-barely-settled-colorados-2025-legislative-session-talk-special-session/#:~:text=Polis%20says%2C%20if%20Congressional%20Republicans%20follow%20through%20on%20proposed%20spending%20cuts%2C%20he%20will%20likely%20reconvene%20the%20legislature%20to%20deal%20with%20impacts%20to%20programs%20such%20as%20Medicaid%2C%20which%20covers%20about%20one%20in%20five%20Coloradans." target="_blank">has said</a>&nbsp;he’s likely to reconvene the legislature.</p><p>“Almost certainly if some of these big cuts to Medicaid go through … we would likely need to reconvene, depending on what Congress does,” Polis said at a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13k_fuNbbAA" target="_blank">news conference</a>&nbsp;in May.</p><p>Policymakers in some states have tried to get ahead of expected shortfalls.</p><p>In late June, the Georgia Department of Community Health’s advisory board held&nbsp;<a href="https://dch.georgia.gov/events/2025-06-27/dch-board-meeting-special-call" target="_blank">an emergency meeting</a>. In a unanimous vote, the board approved several measures aimed at increasing the state’s federal Medicaid reimbursement rate.</p><p>For example, the state wants to significantly increase Medicaid payments to hospitals that achieve certain goals, such as training Georgia doctors and delivering babies. The move would draw down an additional $2.1 billion per year in federal money.</p><p>“We’re doing our best to be responsive to the Medicaid conversations in Washington,” department Commissioner Russel Carlson told the board at the meeting. “Not overreacting in this 24/7 news cycle, but gathering the best information we can, reading the political environment the best we can, and acting responsibly.”</p><p>Other states have&nbsp;<a href="https://www.medicaid.gov/medicaid/managed-care/guidance/state-directed-payments/approved-state-directed-payment-preprints?q=&amp;filter%5Bfield_review_type%5D%5Bin%5D%5B%5D=8271&amp;filter%5Bfield_approval_date%5D%5Bgte%5D=&amp;filter%5Bfield_approval_date%5D%5Blte%5D=&amp;filter%5Bfield_state_rating_period%5D%5Bgte%5D=&amp;filter%5Bfield_state_rating_period_2%5D%5Blte%5D=&amp;limit=10&amp;sort=field_approval_date%3Adesc" target="_blank">filed similar requests</a>&nbsp;with the federal Centers for Medicare &amp; Medicaid Services, and received approval in recent months.</p><p>“Of all the Medicaid discussions happening in Washington,” Carlson said, “one of the policy decisions that could potentially, depending on how it ultimately lands, impact Georgians the most is the discussion surrounding directed payment programs.”</p><h2>Grants for hospitals</h2><p>Some of the biggest federal savings in the new law come from limiting states’ use of a financing tool,&nbsp;<a href="https://stateline.org/2025/05/27/republicans-target-a-tax-that-keeps-state-medicaid-programs-running/">known as a provider tax</a>, that enables them to draw down more federal dollars. States use the extra money to boost reimbursement rates for hospitals and to expand coverage.</p><p>Some congressional Republicans have decried the maneuver as a “<a href="https://roy.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-roy-statement-house-passage-one-big-beautiful-bill-act-0#:~:text=Froze%20the%20state%20provider%20taxes%20to%20ensure%20states%20don%E2%80%99t%20grow%20their%20money%20laundering%20schemes." target="_blank">money laundering scheme</a>,” but lowering provider taxes will likely&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/17/upshot/medicaid-cuts-republicans-senate.html#:~:text=Cutting%20provider%20taxes%20would%20probably%20mean%20funding%20shortfalls%20of%20hundreds%20of%20billions%20of%20dollars%20for%20states%20over%20the%20next%20decade%2C%20leaving%20them%20with%20budget%20holes%20to%20fill." target="_blank">punch big holes</a>&nbsp;in state Medicaid budgets.</p><p>Meanwhile, some state legislatures are looking at alternate ways to shore up funding for hospitals. A bipartisan bill still under consideration in Pennsylvania would&nbsp;<a href="https://penncapital-star.com/government-politics/general-assembly/grant-program-for-rural-hospitals-advances-in-pa-house/" target="_blank">create a rural health care grant program</a>&nbsp;to help pay off student loans for rural doctors, nurses and dentists.&nbsp;<a href="https://legiscan.com/IN/bill/HB1274/2025" target="_blank">Indiana</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://legiscan.com/OK/bill/HB2754/2025" target="_blank">Oklahoma</a>&nbsp;also considered bills this session to create grant programs for rural hospitals.</p><p>In April, Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott announced the state would release&nbsp;<a href="https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-announces-over-6-million-in-grant-funding-for-rural-hospitals" target="_blank">more than $6 million</a>&nbsp;in grants to support struggling rural hospitals.</p><p>Stateline reporter Anna Claire Vollers can be reached at&nbsp;<a href="mailto:avollers@stateline.org">avollers@stateline.org</a>.</p>

States scramble to shield hospitals from GOP Medicaid cuts

<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">President Trump: &quot;I&#39;m not happy with Putin. I can tell you that much right now because he&#39;s killing a lot of people and a lot of them are his soldiers.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/QK7ENcQKvg">pic.twitter.com/QK7ENcQKvg</a></p>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1942621038908489905?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">President Trump: &quot;We get a lot of bullshit thrown at us by Putin, if you want to know the truth. He&#39;s very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/VMnXSTuCiK">pic.twitter.com/VMnXSTuCiK</a></p>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1942621413250121955?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>

🎥 President Trump shows anger about Putin during Cabinet meeting

WOODSON COUNTY —A Kansas man died in an accident just after 7a.m. Tuesday in Woodson County.

The Kansas Highway. Patrol reported a 2016 Honda 4-wheeler driven by Clint Allen Tracy, 82, Toronto, Kansas, moving cattle in a field at 1263 Apache four and one half miles North of U.S. 54. The driver was thrown from the vehicle when it struck ravine.&nbsp;

Tracy was pronounced dead at the scene and was transported to&nbsp;Campbell Funeral Home - Yates Center.&nbsp;&nbsp;

<p>WOODSON COUNTY —A Kansas man died in an accident just after 7a.m. Tuesday in Woodson County.</p><p>The Kansas Highway. Patrol reported a 2016 Honda 4-wheeler driven by Clint Allen Tracy, 82, Toronto, Kansas, moving cattle in a field at 1263 Apache four and one half miles North of U.S. 54. The driver was thrown from the vehicle when it struck ravine.&nbsp;</p><p>Tracy was pronounced dead at the scene and was transported to&nbsp;Campbell Funeral Home - Yates Center.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>

Kansas man dies in 4-wheeler accident

By:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/ariana-figueroa/">Ariana Figueroa</a>&nbsp;

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s massive tax and spending cut bill signed on Friday has as its centerpiece $170 billion for the administration’s immigration crackdown, helping fulfill the president’s 2024 campaign promise of mass deportations of people without permanent legal status.

The measure, passed by the House 218-214, would fulfill several of Trump’s key immigration priorities, such as bolstering border security, increasing immigration detention capacity and adding fees to legal pathways for immigration, among other things. Thousands more Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers are slated to be hired.

While most of the immigration-related provisions in the massive bill would vastly expand immigration enforcement, it also aims to limit benefits currently extended to some immigrants with legal status.

Immigrants with a lawful status, including asylum, under the bill would be ineligible to receive food assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. Immigrants without legal status or authorization to be in the country are already ineligible for SNAP benefits, which roughly 42 million people rely on.

The bill could also cut off tax benefits from mixed-status families, in which family members have different immigration statuses.

For example, while Republicans would raise the child tax credit to $2,200 per eligible child, the bill would exclude that benefit to U.S. citizen children who are born to immigrant parents without legal status. The proposal would require that the parent applying for the child tax credit also have a Social Security number.

The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/1/text" target="_blank">870-page</a>&nbsp;megabill was passed by the Senate&nbsp;<a href="https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_votes/vote1191/vote_119_1_00372.htm" target="_blank">51-50&nbsp;</a>on Tuesday, with Vice President JD Vance casting a tie-breaking vote.

Here’s an overview of what else the bill will do:

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement would be the highest-funded law enforcement agency in the country, at nearly $30 billion through September 2029.

Those funds would go toward hiring 10,000 ICE officers within five years. The money would also pay for retention bonuses, transportation of immigrants, upgrades of ICE facilities, detainment of families, and the hiring of ICE immigration lawyers for enforcement and removal proceedings in immigration court.

An ICE signing bonus would be given to those hired after the bill is signed into law, and as a retention bonus if an ICE agent has five years of service specifically dealing with immigration enforcement. The bill does not specify how much a signing bonus or retention bonus should be.

The Senate’s version provides ICE with added flexibility in which areas to allocate the nearly $30 billion.

Separately from ICE, the bill would include $1 billion for the Department of Defense to deploy military personnel for border-related operations, construction and temporary detention on military installations.

<a href="https://lailluminator.com/2025/04/11/repub/military-border-2/" target="_blank">Trump in April&nbsp;</a>directed several agencies to start militarizing a stretch of the southern border as he continues to intertwine the U.S. military with his administration’s immigration crackdown.

Created was a military buffer zone along the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona, California and New Mexico. It means that any migrant crossing into the United States would be trespassing on a military base, and therefore allows active-duty troops to hold them until U.S. Border Patrol agents arrive.

<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/trump-administration-reported-consider-expanding-military-role-along-southern-border" target="_blank">National and military experts have raised concerns&nbsp;</a>that militarizing that strip of land could violate the Posse Comitatus Act, an 1878 law that generally prohibits the military from being used in domestic law enforcement.

Additionally, the Trump administration last month&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/trump-keeps-control-california-national-guard-la-now-after-appeals-court-order" target="_blank">deployed 4,000 National Guard members and 700 Marines to Los Angeles</a>, amid major protests that arose after immigration agents began targeting day laborers at Home Depots for immigration enforcement.

The bill sets aside $45 billion for building new centers to detain immigrants, from single individuals to families. It’s a more than 300% increase from ICE’s fiscal year 2024 budget for detaining immigrants, which was about $9 billion.&nbsp;

Building new detention centers takes time, so private prison companies such as CoreCivic and GEO Group are likely to enter into more contracts with ICE.

Those companies have begun expanding detention capacity. CoreCivic last month acquired a 736-bed facility in Virginia and GEO this month purchased a 770-bed facility in western California.

The bill would allocate $46.6 billion for U.S. Customs and Border Protection to construct a wall along the U.S. Mexico border, as well as make any repairs. That would be more than three times what the first Trump administration spent on barriers at the southern border, at roughly $15 billion.

Some of the technology that would be added on the border includes cameras, lights, sensors, and other detection improvements. The funds would be used beginning in fiscal year 2025 until Sept. 30, 2029.

Another $4.1 billion would go toward hiring CBP personnel, until the end of September 2029. Another $2 billion would go toward retention and bonuses for CBP personnel.

The bill would also set aside $855 million for the repair of vehicles that CBP officers use. Republicans included $5 billion for upgrades and repairs at CBP facilities.

Additionally, $6.1 billion would go toward buying nonintrusive equipment to detect illicit narcotics at ports of entry along the southwest, northern and maritime borders.

Also, any immigrant without legal authorization and who is apprehended at a port of entry would be subject to a $5,000 fine.

There is currently a civil fine ranging from $50 to $250. Asylum-seekers typically surrender themselves at ports of entry.

Legal immigration pathways, application fees

The bill would give the Department of Justice roughly $3.3 billion for the Executive Office for Immigration Review to prosecute immigration matters, such as noncitizen voting – something that is extremely rare – and violations of the Alien Registration Act.

<a href="https://lailluminator.com/2025/04/11/repub/immigrant-document/" target="_blank">In April, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem announced</a>&nbsp;that immigrants in the country without legal authorization were required to register with the agency or face jail time and a fine of up to $5,000.

The bill would also provide funding for the hiring of immigration judges, but will cap the number of judges at 800. There are roughly 700 now, amid a 3.5 million case backlog in immigration court,&nbsp;<a href="https://tracreports.org/phptools/immigration/backlog/https://tracreports.org/phptools/immigration/backlog/" target="_blank">according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, or TRAC</a>.

The bill would also overhaul immigration fees and application fees for immigrants seeking legal pathways, both permanent and temporary.

For the first time, there would be a fee to apply for asylum, set at $100. There are no fee waivers for nearly every new fee set or increased by the bill, except for applications dealing with unaccompanied minors. All fees would also be subject to adjustment for inflation.&nbsp;

Asylum-seekers who want to apply for initial work permits would also have to pay another fee of $550, something that is currently free.

For an asylum applicant wanting to renew work permits, the bill would lower the cost to $275, where it is currently $470 to renew online and $520 to mail in the paperwork.

For immigrants on Temporary Protected Status, meaning the DHS secretary has deemed the immigrant’s home country too dangerous to return to, the fee to apply would be $500. It’s currently $50.

The fee to apply for humanitarian relief would increase to $1,000, where it is currently $630.

<p>By:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/ariana-figueroa/">Ariana Figueroa</a>&nbsp;</p><p>WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s massive tax and spending cut bill signed on Friday has as its centerpiece $170 billion for the administration’s immigration crackdown, helping fulfill the president’s 2024 campaign promise of mass deportations of people without permanent legal status.</p><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">If you are in this country illegally: LEAVE NOW and self-deport using the CBP Home app. If you don’t, you will face the consequences.<br> <br>The CBP Home app is now available in English, Spanish, Haitian Creole, Simplified Chinese, and Hindi.<br> <a href="https://t.co/zRcQr3ujef">https://t.co/zRcQr3ujef</a> <a href="https://t.co/v265tKUvKN">pic.twitter.com/v265tKUvKN</a></p>&mdash; Homeland Security (@DHSgov) <a href="https://twitter.com/DHSgov/status/1940793844221858020?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 3, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><p>The measure, passed by the House 218-214, would fulfill several of Trump’s key immigration priorities, such as bolstering border security, increasing immigration detention capacity and adding fees to legal pathways for immigration, among other things. Thousands more Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers are slated to be hired.</p><p>While most of the immigration-related provisions in the massive bill would vastly expand immigration enforcement, it also aims to limit benefits currently extended to some immigrants with legal status.</p><p>Immigrants with a lawful status, including asylum, under the bill would be ineligible to receive food assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. Immigrants without legal status or authorization to be in the country are already ineligible for SNAP benefits, which roughly 42 million people rely on.</p><p>The bill could also cut off tax benefits from mixed-status families, in which family members have different immigration statuses.</p><p>For example, while Republicans would raise the child tax credit to $2,200 per eligible child, the bill would exclude that benefit to U.S. citizen children who are born to immigrant parents without legal status. The proposal would require that the parent applying for the child tax credit also have a Social Security number.</p><p>The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/1/text" target="_blank">870-page</a>&nbsp;megabill was passed by the Senate&nbsp;<a href="https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_votes/vote1191/vote_119_1_00372.htm" target="_blank">51-50&nbsp;</a>on Tuesday, with Vice President JD Vance casting a tie-breaking vote.</p><p>Here’s an overview of what else the bill will do:</p><h2>Immigration enforcement</h2><p>The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement would be the highest-funded law enforcement agency in the country, at nearly $30 billion through September 2029.</p><p>Those funds would go toward hiring 10,000 ICE officers within five years. The money would also pay for retention bonuses, transportation of immigrants, upgrades of ICE facilities, detainment of families, and the hiring of ICE immigration lawyers for enforcement and removal proceedings in immigration court.</p><p>An ICE signing bonus would be given to those hired after the bill is signed into law, and as a retention bonus if an ICE agent has five years of service specifically dealing with immigration enforcement. The bill does not specify how much a signing bonus or retention bonus should be.</p><p>The Senate’s version provides ICE with added flexibility in which areas to allocate the nearly $30 billion.</p><h2>DOD funding</h2><p>Separately from ICE, the bill would include $1 billion for the Department of Defense to deploy military personnel for border-related operations, construction and temporary detention on military installations.</p><p><a href="https://lailluminator.com/2025/04/11/repub/military-border-2/" target="_blank">Trump in April&nbsp;</a>directed several agencies to start militarizing a stretch of the southern border as he continues to intertwine the U.S. military with his administration’s immigration crackdown.</p><p>Created was a military buffer zone along the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona, California and New Mexico. It means that any migrant crossing into the United States would be trespassing on a military base, and therefore allows active-duty troops to hold them until U.S. Border Patrol agents arrive.</p><p><a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/trump-administration-reported-consider-expanding-military-role-along-southern-border" target="_blank">National and military experts have raised concerns&nbsp;</a>that militarizing that strip of land could violate the Posse Comitatus Act, an 1878 law that generally prohibits the military from being used in domestic law enforcement.</p><p>Additionally, the Trump administration last month&nbsp;<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/trump-keeps-control-california-national-guard-la-now-after-appeals-court-order" target="_blank">deployed 4,000 National Guard members and 700 Marines to Los Angeles</a>, amid major protests that arose after immigration agents began targeting day laborers at Home Depots for immigration enforcement.</p><h2>Detention</h2><p>The bill sets aside $45 billion for building new centers to detain immigrants, from single individuals to families. It’s a more than 300% increase from ICE’s fiscal year 2024 budget for detaining immigrants, which was about $9 billion.&nbsp;</p><p>Building new detention centers takes time, so private prison companies such as CoreCivic and GEO Group are likely to enter into more contracts with ICE.</p><p>Those companies have begun expanding detention capacity. CoreCivic last month acquired a 736-bed facility in Virginia and GEO this month purchased a 770-bed facility in western California.</p><h2>Border security</h2><p>The bill would allocate $46.6 billion for U.S. Customs and Border Protection to construct a wall along the U.S. Mexico border, as well as make any repairs. That would be more than three times what the first Trump administration spent on barriers at the southern border, at roughly $15 billion.</p><p>Some of the technology that would be added on the border includes cameras, lights, sensors, and other detection improvements. The funds would be used beginning in fiscal year 2025 until Sept. 30, 2029.</p><p>Another $4.1 billion would go toward hiring CBP personnel, until the end of September 2029. Another $2 billion would go toward retention and bonuses for CBP personnel.</p><p>The bill would also set aside $855 million for the repair of vehicles that CBP officers use. Republicans included $5 billion for upgrades and repairs at CBP facilities.</p><p>Additionally, $6.1 billion would go toward buying nonintrusive equipment to detect illicit narcotics at ports of entry along the southwest, northern and maritime borders.</p><p>Also, any immigrant without legal authorization and who is apprehended at a port of entry would be subject to a $5,000 fine.</p><p>There is currently a civil fine ranging from $50 to $250. Asylum-seekers typically surrender themselves at ports of entry.</p><h2>Legal immigration pathways, application fees</h2><p>The bill would give the Department of Justice roughly $3.3 billion for the Executive Office for Immigration Review to prosecute immigration matters, such as noncitizen voting – something that is extremely rare – and violations of the Alien Registration Act.</p><p><a href="https://lailluminator.com/2025/04/11/repub/immigrant-document/" target="_blank">In April, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem announced</a>&nbsp;that immigrants in the country without legal authorization were required to register with the agency or face jail time and a fine of up to $5,000.</p><p>The bill would also provide funding for the hiring of immigration judges, but will cap the number of judges at 800. There are roughly 700 now, amid a 3.5 million case backlog in immigration court,&nbsp;<a href="https://tracreports.org/phptools/immigration/backlog/https://tracreports.org/phptools/immigration/backlog/" target="_blank">according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, or TRAC</a>.</p><p>The bill would also overhaul immigration fees and application fees for immigrants seeking legal pathways, both permanent and temporary.</p><p>For the first time, there would be a fee to apply for asylum, set at $100. There are no fee waivers for nearly every new fee set or increased by the bill, except for applications dealing with unaccompanied minors. All fees would also be subject to adjustment for inflation.&nbsp;</p><p>Asylum-seekers who want to apply for initial work permits would also have to pay another fee of $550, something that is currently free.</p><p>For an asylum applicant wanting to renew work permits, the bill would lower the cost to $275, where it is currently $470 to renew online and $520 to mail in the paperwork.</p><p>For immigrants on Temporary Protected Status, meaning the DHS secretary has deemed the immigrant’s home country too dangerous to return to, the fee to apply would be $500. It’s currently $50.</p><p>The fee to apply for humanitarian relief would increase to $1,000, where it is currently $630.</p><p>The bill would slightly increase the initial work application fee for TPS holders and those with humanitarian status to $550, up from a $470 fee for submitting online and $520 to mail in the paperwork.</p><p>To renew those work permits, the bill would lower the cost to $275, down from $470 for online and $520 for mail.</p><p>The nonimmigrant visa, which is currently free and handled by the State Department, would now cost $250 under the bill. This visa is typically used for international students, agricultural workers and other special skilled immigrant labor.</p><h2>Unaccompanied immigrant children</h2><p>Some of the $2 billion in funding for DHS would go toward removing unaccompanied children under certain circumstances. That includes if the child is found by a port of entry, is not a victim of human trafficking, and does not fear returning to their home country.</p><p>The bill would also provide a $300 million fund for the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which handles unaccompanied children, to conduct background checks and home studies on any potential sponsor of an unaccompanied child.</p><p>There would also be funding to check children in ORR custody for their potential criminal and gang history. Those 12 and older would be subject to examinations “for gang-related tattoos and other gang-related markings,” according to the bill.</p><p>The special juvenile immigrant visa, which is for immigrant children who are either abandoned or abused by a parent, and allows them to apply for lawful permanent resident status,&nbsp;would now cost $250 under the bill, but the fee could be waived. It’s currently free.</p><h2>State grants, World Cup and Olympics</h2><p>The bill would also give some states $450 million for the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.homelandsecuritygrants.info/Grant-Details/gid/21875" target="_blank">Operation Stonegarden Grant Program,</a>&nbsp;which gives funding to states and local governments that participate in border enforcement.</p><p>The bill would help states that are hosting major sporting events such as the World Cup in 2026 and the Olympics in 2028.</p><p>The bill allocates $625 million for security and other costs related to the FIFA World Cup and $1 billion for security and planning costs for the Olympics,<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/amid-la-protests-senators-raise-questions-about-safety-olympics-world-cup" target="_blank">&nbsp;which Los Angeles is hosting in 2028.&nbsp;</a></p>