The report from a legislative staff concluded that the administration did not maintain adequate records to judge the benefits from the hundreds of millions of dollars the state provides in tax credits. The Committee on Legislative Research Oversight Division is concerning about the tax credits program for Department of Economic Development after the division reviewed the statutes and procedures.

The Oversight Division Director Mickey Wilson said the revenue return of millions of dollars remained unclear.

Missouri gives away more than one-half billion dollars per year in tax credits for various business and special interest activities.

It's been a major issue of dispute in the ongoing debate about economic incentives for business.

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Kansas City's House representative Jason Kander is proposing putting limits on political donations at $500, at $1,000 for Senate campaigns and $2,000 for statewide offices.

Kander said capping contributions to state's political candidates would protect democracy and the voice of average Missourians since unlimited campaign contributions could let special interest have more influence than they should.

Kander said people want to believe that the people they send to Jefferson City are working on the best interest of the state, but disadvantage of six figure contributions for average Missourians is obvious.

The proposal would also have a two years ban on former lawmakers from working as a lobbyist, which could help avoid them from improperly using special relationships they have after they leave their office.

Meanwhile, the proposal would ban officials from accepting any gift from a lobbyist.

Kander said officials should use their own salary to pay for food and buy tickets for games.

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The saga of redistricting Missouri's House and Senate began almost a year ago.

After the bi-partisan citizen commissions deadlocked and couldn't decide on the new maps, the task was turned over to a panel of six Appellate judges selected by the Missouri Supreme Court.

Those judges have been criticized for their lack of transparency.

The judges would meet in secret behind closed doors to decide the fate of the new Senate and House districts.

Critics say that's a blatant disregard for Missouri's Open Meetings and Record Laws which requires most state boards and commissions to post meetings and leave them open to the public.

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A legislative committee was told Wednesday that longer prison sentences can lead to an increase in crime.

An expert with the Pew Research Center on the States told the legislature's Interim Committee on Criminal Justice that states that cut prison sentences also saw a decrease in crime rate.

During the past ten years, Missouri saw in increase in crime rate, but also saw an increase in the amount of criminals in prison.

The committee is working on a plan to cut prison  expenses and the crime rate in the state.

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Months after a quasi-governmental agency nearly accepted $21 in federal grants to set up Obama's federal health care plan in Missouri, lawmakers wonder if the agency has the authority to do so.

The Department of Insurance says the state must set up some type of exchange or else the federal government will.

Lawmakers say the debate over the exchange will be a hot topic when legislative session begins in January.

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Missouri State Treasurer Clint Zweifel has issued the state's largest single unclaimed property return to an individual in state history.

The treasurer's office declined to release the name of the woman and other details for privacy reasons. It did say, however, that the return was made up of one security.

Zweifel's office says it also returned $100,000 to a man in St. Joseph, Mo. for a claim made up of 15 different security accounts.

The state has 38 accounts each worth more than $100,000 that have not been returned, according to Zweifel's office.

According to Zweifel, about one in ten Missourians has unclaimed property.

He said the best way for Missourians to seek unclaimed property is through the state's website, ShowMeMoney.com.

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National statistics show an increase in the number of kids who are following in the footsteps of their offender parents.

George Lombardi, Director of Missouri's Department of Corrections, is one of many who acknowledge that this trend exists.

"Well, you know, the children of incarcerated parents are seven times more likely to go to prison than other kids," Lombardi said.

He also says the best thing the state can do is make sure kids are involved in youth mentoring programs.

Big Brother Big Sister is a program for kids whose lives have been affected by drugs and crime.

The program has reported an increase in the number of kids enrolling who have one or both parents in prison.

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Semi-truck and school bus drivers will be breaking the law if they reach for their cellphone while driving, under a federal law taking effect in January.

"Distracted driving is an issue that the trucking industry is very concerned about," said Tim Crawford, president and CEO of the Missouri Trucking Association.

Drivers could face a fine of up to $2,700, and they could lose their license after more than two offenses. A driver's trucking company could face a penalty of up to $11,000 for a driver violation, Crawford said.

The Missouri Department of Transportation reported that drivers are 23 percent more likely to be in an accident while using their cellphones; drivers using their cellphones caused 21 fatal accidents in 2010, said Capt. Tim Hull of the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

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Two Missouri senators blame robocalls for failing to pass telemarketing legislation in the past.

Cape Girardeau Senator Jason Crowell filed a bill that would add cellphones to the no-call lost and ban certain automated calls from telemarketers.

A telemarketer violating this act could face up to a $5,000

Crowell said the bill will not cost the state money and he will continue to work with the attorney general to make any changes. He will present the bill during the regular session, which begins January 4.

Jefferson County Senator Kevin Engler has sponsored the cellphone no-call bill from 2006 to 2008 but it died each time. He said legislators need to decide between peoples' privacy and politicians' campaigns.

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Contrary to popular belief, mental health experts say the holiday season is the most unlikely time for people to commit suicide.

Numerous media outlets each year report the rumor that the holiday season sees a spike in suicides, said a researcher at the University of Pennsylvania who is releasing, for the 12th year in a row, research that shows this is a myth.

Dan Romer, the director of the Adolescent Communication Institute of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at Penn State, began researching the trend of holiday suicides in 1999. He said although there were about 60 stories released during that time reporting the holidays would see a jump in suicide numbers, that claim actually proved to be false.

"It's never been true as long as people have kept records in the northern hemisphere that there's more deaths at this time of the year due to suicide," Romer said.

Romer said many reporters hear rumors or simply think the idea of people suffering from the "holiday blues" makes sense, and so they report on it, many times without checking facts.

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Rep. Ray Weter, R-Nixa, is sponsoring the bill that would require gas stations to give the public 24 hours notice before they could increase gas prices by 3 cents or more.

Weter said he doesn't care if gas stations raise their prices as long as consumers get a 24 hour notice.

Ron Leone, the executive director of the Missouri Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association, said the plan is unreasonable and impossible to comply with.

"The main problem with the bill is that when it comes to the price of motor fuel, it literally is a commodity, which means that the price fluctuates multiple times a day," Leone said.

Weter said he is not surprised by that response and that opponents could argue in committee against posting gas price increases.

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In November, Congress lifted a ban on the inspection of horse meat for human consumption. Lifting that ban has opened an opportunity for Missouri horse ranchers and renewed an ongoing debate about treatment of horses.

Equine specialist Jim Dudley has been a part of the horse industry for 60 years, doing breeding, trading and offering riding lessons. He owns 50 horses and said on average that he has to get rid of five horses every year.

Before 2006, Dudley disposed of his horses by selling them to an auction and got about $1,000 for each horse. Now it costs $5,000.

After Congress put a ban on funding horse meat inspections in 2006, slaughterhouses in the U.S. went out of business, and the value of horses has declined significantly.

Missouri Farm Bureau director Kelly Smith said lifting the ban is a victory for many horse owners who wanted to get rid of the ban on horse slaughter.

Smith said the horse industry is important to the state's economy. According to a 2010 survey, there are 200,000 horses in Missouri.

Although some animal right activists are opposed to horse slaughter because they say it's inhumane, one animal rights group, PETA, has become an unexpected supporter.

PETA Director Lindsay Rajt says PETA doesn't want horse slaughterers in the U.S., but the group is in favor of lifting the ban because it found people did not euthanize horses after the ban in 2006.

"Instead, they were just taking them down to auctions, and then having these horses shift to Canada or Mexico, where they will still be slaughtered," Rajt said.

The USDA refused to talk to an MDN reporter, but a spokesman noted in a prepared statement that “if a facility opens, the Food Safety and Inspection Service will be prepared to carry out its statutory mandate to ensure industry compliance with the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act."

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Missouri Rep. Scott Largent, R-Clinton, announced his plan to run for the Missouri Senate in the 31st District.

Largent was elected to the state House of Representatives in 2008 and currently serves as the chairman of the Children and Families Committee.

Due to the new redistricting maps in Missouri, the seat will have no incumbent candidate entering the 2012 election.

Largent currently resides in Clinton with his wife and three children.

Senate Education Committee Chairman David Pearce introduced a bill establishing a new system for transferring college class credits to try to make the time spent in college as short and efficient as possible.

Pearce said the problem is when students take some courses in community colleges and then apply for four-year universities, some course credits cannot be transfered.

"Yes, you've wasted time; you've wasted money," Pearce said. "And what happens is if it takes too long and then some people do end up in dropping out?"

The bill would require the creation of an index of at least 25 introductory courses that would be transferable from community colleges to four-year universities.

Pearce said the new system would also give students more information they need before they apply for four-year universities.

"So there is no surprises when they leave that two-year institution and they go to enroll," Pearce said. "They will know beforehand which courses will transfer and which courses will not."

Pearce said the system will financially help college students because the longer they stay and the more money they spend, the less likely they are to graduate. They'll also have piled up more debt by the time they leave school.

There would also be a reverse transfer in the system to allow students to get an associate degree if they accumulate enough hours through a combination of institutions that offer an associate degree and four-year institutions.

Private higher education institutions would not be required to participate in the system, but they could if they want.

The bill is expected to be discussed in the next legislative session.

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The Federal Emergency Management Agency notified the governor on Wednesday [Dec. 7] that Missouri received a grant of more than $5,329,801 million dollars to aid the long-term recovery from natural disasters.

“I’ve made it clear that the state of Missouri has a long-term commitment of being there to see that the needs of Missourians who suffered from these disasters are met,” Gov. Nixon said. “This $5 million grant will help Missourians with their long-term recovery and help strengthen our communities as they come back.”

According to a press release, the Missouri Department of Economic Development will use the money to help survivors obtain resources and create a recovery plan.

The money can be used to provide services until May 2013.

The Missouri Veterans Commission reports it will run out of its veterans home funding by July 2013 and that it needs $13.3 million to fill that gap.

At an Appropriations for Public Safety and Corrections Committee hearing on Wednesday [Dec. 7], Missouri Veterans Commission Executive Director Larry Kay told committee members there's no single solution to filling the funding gap.

Kay proposed three options: getting more general revenue from the state, finding an alternative funding source or raising the fees to veterans living in the homes. 

Committee Chairman Chris Kelly, D-Columbia, expressed that the last thing his committee wanted to do was put the burden on the veterans themselves.

"I think it's fair to say that the members on this committee are overwhelmingly opposed to any increase in costs to the veterans" said Kelly.

Other funding options discussed include generating funds from scratch lottery tickets, raising the entry fee to casino boats by $1 and giving slot-machine gamblers the option of donating spare change on their earnings to the Missouri Veterans Commission.

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A Cole County circuit court has rejected Gov. Jay Nixon's motion to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the governor's withholding of state appropriations to agencies, mostly education.

The lawsuit, filed by the state auditor, challenges the governor's authority to withhold $150 million to reserve funds for future expected expenses for natural disaster relief -- largely from the Joplin tornado in May.

The state auditor, Tom Schweich, argues the Missouri Constitution allows the governor to withhold only when state tax collections actually fall below original projections.

Nixon argues that the governor has broad powers to balance the state's budget.

The two offices immediately issued statements of reaction to the court decision.

Republican Schweich said his office was pleased. Democrat Nixon called the decision merely a procedural ruling.

The administration's efforts to work on possible federal health care implementation in Missouri without legislative approval came under bipartisan attack by legislators at an interim House Budget Committee hearing Tuesday.

The administration has received a $26 million federal grant to set up the infrastructure for a health insurance exchange system that would regulate insurance policies. The administration applied for the grant without legislative authorization or knowledge.

Lawmakers charged they have been denied all the information they have requested about the basis by which the administration was able to get around the legislature.

The federal grant was awarded to a state quasi-governmental body that claims it can spend outside funds without legislative approval.

Legislators, however, urged the state's Department of Insurance and its outside health insurance consultant to work with the legislature on efforts toward a health insurance exchange. The health insurance exchange would establish standardized policies to facilitate comparison shopping by consumers.

Under the federal law, if the state does not establish such an insurance exchange, the federal government will operate one of its own in the state.

Missouri's Education Board has given the Department of Education authority to seek public comments on the request for a federal waiver from No Child Left Behind.

The U.S. Department of Education can grant authority for a state to use different reporting requirements for educational performance of students.

"This would be an opportunity for the state to put forward a better plan -- Missouri's plan -- to fulfill federal requirements," Margie Vandeven, the state department's assistant commissioner, said in a department news release.

Areas in which the state would seek a waiver include measuring preparation for college or careers by students.

The department set a Jan. 5 deadline for public comment.

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In light of the Penn State scandal, Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-St. Louis County, said he wants to add a line to Missouri's child abuse law.

That single sentence would extend the responsibility of reporting child sex abuse to all Missouri residents.

"These are pretty heinous crimes, and when somebody witnesses that, I think we ought to require people to report that to law enforcement and those people should be punished," Schmitt said.

Joy Oesterly, the executive director of the child abuse advocacy group Missouri Kids First, said she supports the law but still doesn't think all incidents will be reported to the authorities.

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