Evy Lewis

Reporter and writer with experience covering state, county and local government, data and investigative projects, graphics.

STLPR •

Missouri Republicans promise action on abortion following judge’s ruling

Republicans in the Missouri House and Senate vowed action Tuesday following a court ruling last week that allowed abortions to resume across the state.A Jackson County judge ruled Friday that certain licensing regulations for abortion providers were discriminatory, as they treated abortion care differently from other comparable types of healthcare.Those regulations had prevented clinics from providing abortions even after the passage of Amendment 3 added a right to abortion to the state constitu...
STLPR •

Missouri House passes anti-lockdown bill to stop government closing houses of worship

The Missouri House of Representatives passed its first four bills of this year’s session on Thursday, including allowing houses of worship to remain open despite a government lockdown.The House also passed bills to end the capital gains tax, preserve the assets of foster children and allow landlords to refuse tenants who receive federal housing assistance.House Bill 75 originated from the COVID-19 pandemic. It would establish a new section of law called the “Missouri Religious Freedom Protection...
STLPR •

Missouri senators consider removing several firearm restrictions

A Missouri Senate committee is considering two bills that would repeal limitations on the carry and use of firearms.Senate Bill 74, sponsored by Stone County Republican Sen. Brad Hudson, would bar cities and counties from imposing their own open carry restrictions.If passed, the bill would be in conflict with local laws in municipalities including St. Louis. The St. Louis Board of Aldermen voted to prohibit people without concealed carry permits from openly carrying firearms in 2023.Mary Gross,...
STLPR •

Missouri AG files anti-DEI lawsuit against Starbucks, alleging hiring discrimination

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey filed a lawsuit against Starbucks on Tuesday, accusing the company of race- and sex-based discrimination by favoring people of color and women.The lawsuit claims that Starbucks setting goals for the representation of people of color and women in its workforce and leadership amounts to illegal discrimination.The lawsuit states, “Whether described as ‘benign discrimination’ or ‘affirmative action,’ the racial quota is nonetheless a creator of castes, a two-e...
STLPR •

Missouri lawmakers debate exceptions to minimum wage increase

Two bills that would create exceptions to Missouri’s minimum wage laws, such as exempting businesses with fewer than 50 employees, had an initial hearing before a House of Representatives committee Wednesday.Proposition A, which will increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour by January 2026, was approved by 57% of voters in November. The proposition also requires employers provide employees an hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked.The minimum wage increased to $13.75 an hour on Jan. 1...
STLPR •

Missouri House speaker sees little interest in immigration bounty bill

Lee este reporte en Español.Missouri House Speaker Jon Patterson said Thursday he sees no appetite in his chamber for a Senate bill that would place bounties on people in the country without legal status.That means that the bill, Senate Bill 72, is unlikely to pass the House.On Monday, a Senate committee spent hours hearing testimony against SB 72 and another bill that would impose harsh penalties for immigration violations.SB 72 would include life imprisonment without parole as a punishment, an...
STLPR •

Missouri may ban child marriage with bipartisan legislation

Bipartisan legislation introduced in the state Senate may bring an end to child marriage in Missouri.A law passed in 2018 raised the minimum age for marrying from 15 to 16 and prohibited anyone over 21 from marrying a minor. That means that 16- and 17-year-olds can still legally marry with parental consent.Democratic Sen. Tracy McCreery and Republican Sen. Rick Brattin have introduced two bills with identical language that would prohibit the practice entirely by raising the age of marriage to 18...
STLPR •

Missouri House committee considers regulating video gambling machines

The Missouri House is considering a bill that would regulate and tax video gambling machines, after multiple failed attempts to pass legislation on the issue in recent years.The machines, called video lottery terminals, are often found in bars and convenience stores.The proposed legislation, House Bill 970, would place the machines under the management of the Missouri Lottery Commission.Currently, the only VLTs operating in Missouri are what are known as “no chance” machines because they don’t h...
STLPR •

Missouri lawmakers hear bill to pay damages to people wrongfully imprisoned

Missouri could be required to pay damages to people wrongfully imprisoned under a bill that had its first hearing Wednesday before the Senate Judiciary Committee.Senate Bill 36 would allow exonerated defendants to claim damages of $179 per day of wrongful imprisonment. The amount would be capped at $65,000 per fiscal year.Supporters say passing the bill is necessary because there is currently almost no support available for exonerees after they're freed, despite the major difficulties of obtaini...
Investigate Midwest •

Syngenta spent decades attempting to quiet health concerns about its profitable herbicide.

In 2004, John Platt and his wife purchased 26 acres of untouched woodlands in Florida’s panhandle. As they transformed it into a horse ranch, they toppled trees and stripped the undergrowth with the herbicide paraquat. Through 2012, Platt sprayed the powerful weedkiller for multiple days in a row each year, by hand.When Platt bought the land, he weighed around 190 pounds, he said. Now, as he battles Parkinson’s disease, he’s dropped to under 150 pounds. His symptoms, he said, are incessant. He h...
Investigate Midwest •

GRAPHIC: Most corn planted in the US is engineered to resist herbicides and kill insects - Investigate Midwest

Nearly all of the corn grown in the United States is from genetically engineered seeds designed to resist both bugs and herbicides, a shift that has largely taken place in the past 20 years. Genetically engineered seeds most commonly fall into two broad categories: herbicide-tolerant and insect-resistant. Herbicide-tolerant varieties are engineered to resist specific herbicides, such as glyphosate and dicamba, while insect-resistant varieties contain a gene from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuri...
Columbia Missourian •

'We've got more to do:' Love Columbia marks 15 years

Myria Key currently works as a coordinator for downtown nonprofit Love Columbia, but she was once one of the many clients who passed through its doors.“My experience working here is sometimes very surreal, because I’ve been on both sides of the table,” Key said.
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Columbia Missourian •

Waner bids farewell to Council service

Second Ward Councilperson Andrea Waner shared candid thoughts on the tough work of being a public servant at her final Council meeting Monday.“I would be lying to you if I said this experience has been easy. It hasn’t,” Waner said.
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Second Ward Councilperson Andrea Waner shared candid thoughts on the toug...
Columbia Missourian •

Noncompliance on federal fair housing costs Missouri $500,000 annually

Every year since 2017, Missouri has lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal money as a penalty for the state’s failure to meet the anti-discrimination standards of the federal Fair Housing Act.In 2017 the legislature passed Senate Bill 43, which changed the definition of discrimination in the Missouri Human Rights Act and created an inconsistency with federal law.
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Columbia Missourian •

'It's a bird! It's a plane!': Millions of birds fly over Boone County in fall migration

The height of this fall’s annual bird migration came when an estimated 16 million birds crossed over Boone County in one night on Oct. 5, according to radar data.During the fall migration, billions of birds fly south across Canada and the United States every night on their way to warmer climates in Central and South America.
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Columbia Missourian •

Source of income protection fails to address housing barriers

Housing access advocates and property owners both say that a March change to the city code, intended to aid people receiving government aid in finding housing, fails to adequately address obstacles applicants face.“There’s not a lot of weight behind the ordinance,” said Conrad Hake, program director for Love Columbia, a local nonprofit that assists people in finding housing. “It’s well-meaning.”
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Columbia Missourian •

Treeline refunds to go out Friday, ticket vendor says

Treeline Music Fest will initiate ticket refunds Oct. 6, according to information from Front Gate Tickets.More than a month has passed since Treeline suddenly announced its cancellation. The Aug. 31 announcement, posted on the festival’s official social media, stated that ticket purchasers would receive automatic refunds in “as little as 30 days.”
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Columbia Missourian •

Election authorities plan ahead for 2024 presidential race

JEFFERSON CITY — The 2024 presidential election is more than a year away, but preparations are already in motion, Director of Elections Chrissy Peters told a House of Representatives committee during Wednesday’s legislative veto session.Rep. Peggy McGaugh, R-Carrollton, chair of the House Committee on Elections and Elected Officials, said there has been significant turnover among local election officials, meaning that for many, the 2024 presidential election will be the first that they administe...
Columbia Missourian •

City Council wraps up public budget hearings, approves all amendments

The Columbia City Council concluded its discussion and amendment of the fiscal year 2024 budget at its Tuesday meeting, in a budget process City Manager De’Carlon Seewood called “probably one of the less painful ones that I’ve had to deal with.”The council will vote to approve the budget at its next meeting on Sept. 18.
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Columbia Missourian •

Gender-affirming care ban, other laws take effect Monday

Monday marks the day most new laws signed by Gov. Mike Parson take effect.Bills passed by the state legislature during the regular 2023 session and signed by the governor include limitations on gender-affirming care for transgender youths, which survived a court challenge in a judgment issued Friday.
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