JEFFERSON CITY - Missouri's House and Senate approved the FY 2005 fiscal year budget, restoring cuts the House had made in the Medicaid budget.

The House-passed plan would have dropped more than 30,000 recipients off the welfare program. The final version, now before the governor, would cut slightly more than 300 off Medicaid.

The total budget is slightly larger than the governor's originally recommendation. Gov. Bob Holden's budget had been based on tax increases exceeding $500 million. Since then, however, tax collections have grown far faster than projected -- allowing legislators to claim a balanced budget without tax increases.

JEFFERSON CITY - The bill passed in the House by a wide margin, but opponents say the bill infringes on the First Amendment right to free speech.

JEFFERSON CITY - Despite thousands of Americans celebrating the Mexican holiday of Cinco de Mayo, there wasn't a tremendous amount of celebration in the Missouri legislature. Some like Rep. Larry Taylor say we should celebrate it like we celebrate other national holidays.

JEFFERSON CITY - There is currently a loophole in Missouri state law allowing criminals to get away with kidnapping. The Missouri State Senate passed a bill to make it a felony to unlawfully remove or confine a child without the consent of the parents or guardians.

JEFFERSON CITY - Current state law requires parents who lose their children to foster care to appear in court within 72 hours. If they don't, there's no penalty and children may have to return to unsafe home situations. Rep. Mark Wright proposed the amendment that passed overwhelmingly.

JEFFERSON CITY - A report released by the departments of Economic Development and Revenue shows that Missouri's economy is improving. The report looks at aspects of the economy including employment, personal income, taxable sales and new businesses.

JEFFERSON CITY - Key supporters of a higher education bond said Wednesday that the legislation appears to be headed for a legislative death. The University of Missouri system would recieve about $195 million from the bond; MU would get about $90 million of that for construction of a health science center on campus.

JEFFERSON CITY - Governor Holden recommended tax increases in order to fund the state budget for fiscal year 2005, but legislators found that positive economic changes make the taxes unnecessary.

Nonetheless, a governor's spokeswoman said the governor still supports his tax plan because education needs more funding.

JEFFERSON CITY - The bill would reinstate a tire waste surcharge that expired in January. The money would go towards making sure old and used tires get disposed or recycled in an environmentally friendly way.

Though the bill has bipartisan support, some senators say the funding might benifit private companies more than the enviornment.

JEFFERSON CITY - Legislators Tuesday approved a higher education budget that calls for $20 million more in state aid to Missouri colleges and universities.

The budget also appropriates more than $860 million in state aid to higher education for the coming fiscal year. With both houses approving the budget, it now heads to the governor's desk.

JEFFERSON CITY - Sen. Ken Jacob filibustered a Medicaid bill that would require annual eligibility checks for those receiving the health care subsidy. Republican leadership dropped the bill after realizing it wouldn't get enough votes.

JEFFERSON CITY - Some Democratic lawmakers still say the bill doesn't do enough for Missouri public schools, but the house budget chairman says they are just playing politics. The education budget is almost $5 billion, a 4.7 percent increase over last year's budget.

JEFFERSON CITY - The Missouri House gave first-round approval to a bill to repeal emissions testing programs.

Rep. Jim Lembke, the bill's sponsor, says Missouri wouldn't face federal funding cuts due to pollutant levels until 2010, and therefore, is not a real threat. However, Department of Natural Resources officials disagree.

JEFFERSON CITY - The House and Senate conference committee on the budget met in spurts for four hours Monday without any discussion of Medicaid.

The committee ended the day in the midst of a battle over whether to increase pay for highway troopers. The House plan recommends increases over the next five years while the Senate plan has no increase.

The constitutional deadline for submitting the budget to the governor is Friday. The conference committee has not yet taken up the issue of Medicaid -- a portion of the budget where the two sides stand far apart. The committee will meet again shortly after 10 a.m. Tuesday.

JEFFERSON CITY - Hundreds rallied at the state Capitol Monday to support a proposed constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.

Both houses have passed similar legislation, however they have not come to an agreement on the bill's language.