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• The secretary of state gets power to write the concealed weapons ballot description. (01/21/99)
• Lawmakers propose mental health insurance requirements. (01/21/99)
• Tax cuts top the governor's legislative program presented to lawmakers. (01/20/99)
• Missouri's attorney general seeks to shut down a major portion of the state's biggest hog operation. (01/19/99)
• Democratic leaders propose $155 million tax cut (01/19/99)
• Lawmakers propose naming I-70 after Mark Mc Gwire (01/19/99)
• Anti-Abortion Legislation Drawing Strong Support (01/19/99)
• Tax cuts emerge as a leading issue for the U.S. Senate race. (01/18/99)

The Cole County circuit court has thrown out language passed by the legislature to describe the April ballot proposal to legalize concealed weapons.

Instead, the court told the secretary of state to write the description that will appear on the ballot and told the state auditor to prepare a cost estimate for the ballot description.

See our radio story for details.

A joint legislative committee has proposed requiring a minimum level of mental health coverage in health care plans.

The proposal would require that HMOs and insurance policies provide the same maximum limit for catastrophic mental illness care as is provided for treatment of physical health problems.

See our newspaper story for details.

Gov. Mel Carnahan proposed in his State of the State address a package of tax cuts totalling more than $190 million:

• Increase the personal and dependent deduction in the state income tax -- a change that would save the average taxpayer up to $54 per year.
• Exempt smaller businesses from the franchise tax.
• Allow self-employed persons an income tax deduction for their health-care insurance costs.

Republicans attacked the governor's plan for not cutting taxes deep enough.

For more information, see:

• Our newspaper story on the governor's tax-cut package.
• A table of the governor's budget recommendations.
• A separate story on the governor's plans to reorganize economic development and job support programs.
• Our story on the higher education budget recommendations.
• Our story on reaction from Columbia area legislators.

Missouri's attorney general has filed suit against the state's largest hog-producing plant, operateed by Premium Standards.

The lawsuit charges the operation, that holds some 900,000 hogs in it's northern Missouri complex, with several violation of the state's environmental laws.

The lawsuit seeks a court order shutting down the plant's breeding operations.

See our newspaper story for complete details.

Senate Democratic leaders proposed a tax cut that would raise personal exemptions by $900 for individual filers and $1,800 for couples filing jointly. The average Missouri tax payer would $60 wealthier a year starting in 2000.

Republicans said the total tax reduction should be more on the order of $300 million.

See our newspaper story and radio story for details.

Senator Danny Staples proposed a consent bill to the Transportation Committee to name parts of Interstate 70 after Cardinals' player Mark McGwire.

Anti-abortion advocates held a prayer event in the Capitol Rotunda as the opening shot of this year's effort to ban partial-birth abortion.

Four bills banning parital birth abortions are awaiting committee assignment in the House -- leading anti-abortion advocates to charge a deliberate stall by the House speaker who is an abortion rights supporter.

See our newspaper story and our radio story for details.

The campaigns of U.S. Sen. John Ashcroft and Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan focused on bragging rights over tax cuts in couple of media events Monday.

Ashcroft met with a group of Republican lawmakers in Jefferson City to highlight their tax-cut package. He charged taxes have risen during Carnahan's administration.

But aids to Carnahan, who watched over Ashcroft's news conference, said taxes rose higher when Ashcroft was governor.

Carnahan has formally announced for the GOP nomination for governor.