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Bills limiting liability of pesticide makers sweeping through legislatures | Georgia

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Bills limiting liability of pesticide makers sweeping through legislatures | Georgia

www.thecentersquare.com – By Kim Jarrett | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-03-27 13:01:00

(The Center Square) – State legislatures across the country are considering bills that would limit legal liability for pesticide makers.

The bills would protect pesticide makers from lawsuits as long as they have a label that meets U.S. Environmental Protection Agency standards. The bill passed the Georgia House of Representatives on March 13 and is now on Gov. Brian Kemp’s desk.

The legislation passed in Georgia days before a jury awarded a man $2.1 billion in a lawsuit against Bayer, the makers of Roundup Weed Killer. The Georgia man said the product caused his cancer.

Bayer officials said in a statement the company would appeal the verdict and it stood behind its Roundup product.

“The company remains committed to trying cases, having secured favorable outcomes in 17 of the last 25 trials,” the company said. “Our track record demonstrates that we win when plaintiffs’ attorneys and their experts are not allowed to misrepresent the worldwide regulatory and scientific assessments that continue to support the products’ safety.”

The Tennessee Senate Judiciary Committee heard a similar bill this week and received an earful from those opposed to the legislation.

Amy Miller accused Bayer of a “fear campaign.”

“It is taking away our ability to fight for truth, for discover and if we get harmed,” Miller told the committee.

Bayer officials told the Atlanta Journal Constitution it is working to pass the bill in statehouses.

“Since litigation against glyphosate began, Bayer has paid out roughly $10 billion from an expensed & provisioned total of $16 billion to address these cases – funds that could be invested in R&D and used toward creating new technology for farmers, consumers and patients,” the company told the newspaper.

Farmers call the products “crop protection.” Smith County farmer George McDonald told the Tennessee Senate Judiciary Committee that farmers are trained to use the products.

“If we keep chipping away at these tools that we have in our toolbox, we will not be able to use those tools and if we do not have these pesticides, taking them away from farmers will be like taking away tractors from farmers,” McDonald told the committee.

The Tennessee bill passed the Judiciary Committee 6-2 and goes to the full Senate for approval. The Tennessee House Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on their version on Wednesday.

Other states are considering similar bills.

The Missouri House of Representatives passed the bill in February and a Senate committee passed it on Thursday, according to its website.

The Iowa Senate passed it on Monday, according to WKRG. The bill moves to the House, where it failed last year.

Montana’s bill never made it out of the House of Representatives and missed the deadline for general bill transmittal, according to Montana Legislative Services.

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Billy Long’s bid to lead IRS under scrutiny over donations that paid off personal debt

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missouriindependent.com – Jason Hancock – 2025-04-19 05:55:00

by Jason Hancock, Missouri Independent
April 19, 2025

Former Missouri Congressman Billy Long received $137,000 in campaign contributions — just enough to pay off a personal loan to his campaign — soon after he was tapped to lead the Internal Revenue Service.

Some of the donations are connected to companies that will be policed by the agency Long has been nominated to run.

According to recently filed financial disclosures, which were first reported on by the investigative journalism site The Lever, Long only raised roughly $36,000 in the last two years. 

He was named as President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the IRS in December, and in January received $137,000 in donations. He then paid back the remaining $130,000 in debt from a $250,000 loan he made to his unsuccessful 2022 U.S. Senate campaign.

The donations, and their timing, have renewed criticism of Long’s appointment, which still awaits Senate confirmation. Senate Democrats have already called for a criminal investigation of firms with ties to Long that they allege are involved in fraudulent tax credit schemes. 

Among the donors to Long’s campaign are financial advisers from some of those firms.

“When they told Billy he’d be in charge of revenue collection, did they forget to tell him that meant for the American people, not his own bank account?” said Sean Nicholson, a longtime progressive activist and campaign consultant in Missouri. 

Jordan Libowitz, vice president of communications for the liberal watchdog Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, said the timing of the donations and the “explicit knowledge that they’d end up directly in Long’s bank account, it’s hard to see them as anything other than an attempt to curry favor with the future head of the IRS.”

Long did not respond to a request for comment. 

Billy Long, Trump’s nominee to lead IRS, touts credential tax experts say is dubious

After a career as an auctioneer and conservative radio host, Long served six terms representing a Southwest Missouri congressional district. He gave up his seat to run for U.S. Senate in 2022, losing in the GOP primary to now-Sen. Eric Schmitt. 

Long then worked for Lifetime Advisors and earned at least $5,000 in income from White River Energy. Both companies have drawn scorn from Senate Democrats, and intense media scrutiny, over their involvement in controversial tax credit programs. 

In 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a limit on the amount of post-election funds a candidate can use to pay back personal loans. The majority found the limit an unconstitutional restriction on the freedom of speech, while the dissenting justices argued removing it would pave the way for political corruption.  

“Even if our broken campaign finance system allows this behavior,” Libowitz said, “it raises serious questions about future conflicts of interest and needs to be addressed in any hearings (Billy Long) has before Congress.” 

Missouri Independent is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Missouri Independent maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jason Hancock for questions: info@missouriindependent.com.

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Illinois family desperate for answers after man goes missing in Mississippi River

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Illinois family desperate for answers after man goes missing in Mississippi River

www.youtube.com – FOX 2 St. Louis – 2025-04-18 22:22:17

SUMMARY: An Illinois family is urgently seeking answers after 52-year-old Shane Bear fell into the Mississippi River while being chased by police over the Stan Musial Veterans Memorial Bridge on Wednesday night. The family fears that the search efforts have slowed and that their loved one may still be alive. Bear, who had mental health struggles and outstanding warrants, was reportedly attempting to climb under the bridge when he slipped and fell into the river. Illinois State Police, alongside the Coast Guard and local fire departments, have conducted aerial and boat searches, but the family demands more thorough efforts.

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An Illinois family is demanding police do more after they said their loved one fell into the Mississippi River.

They said it happened as he was being chased by police Wednesday night over the Stan Musial Veterans Memorial Bridge.

St. Louis News: FOX 2 covers news, weather, and sports in Missouri and Illinois. Read more about this story or see the latest updates on our website https://FOX2Now.com

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Missouri health department announces first measles case of 2025

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missouriindependent.com – Clara Bates – 2025-04-18 14:39:00

by Clara Bates, Missouri Independent
April 18, 2025

Missouri’s first confirmed measles case of the year involves a child in Taney County, the health department announced Friday afternoon.

The child’s vaccination status “has not yet been verified,” according to the press release.

The child, who is not a Missouri resident, was visiting Taney County and was diagnosed “soon after arrival,” Lisa Cox, spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services, said in a press release.

Taney County is in southwest Missouri, and its largest city is Branson. 

“Exposure is believed to be limited, and known contacts have been identified and contacted,” Cox said, adding that the state is supporting Taney County’s health department to investigate possible exposure. 

The case is “associated with recent international travel,” Cox said.

Measles is a highly-contagious virus the country declared eliminated 25 years ago, but that has resurged with falling vaccination rates. 

“For those unvaccinated or those unsure of their vaccination status, now is the time to review records and get caught up if needed,” Dr. George Turabelidze, state epidemiologist with DHSS, said in the press release.

The percent of Missouri kindergarteners fully vaccinated against measles, mumps and rubella has declined over the last several years, from 95% in the 2019-2020 school year to 91% in the 2023-2024 school year, in public schools, per DHHS data. In private schools, the drop has been even larger, from 92% to 85% in the same period.

Nationally, there are at least 800 reported cases of measles across 25 states, according to Center for Disease Control data as of Friday. That doesn’t include Missouri’s case, Cox said, because the state received lab test results Thursday night, after the federal reporting deadline for this week. 

That is the highest number for a single year since 2019 and is still growing.

The majority of measles infections nationally have been reported in a West Texas outbreak. There have been two confirmed deaths, both in Texas. 

Kansas has reported 37 cases, possibly linked to the Texas outbreak.

There are outbreaks in Canada and Mexico, too, and several states have reported isolated cases as the result of international travel.

At the same time, the federal government has cut grant funding set aside for the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services to encourage vaccinations, according to St. Louis Public Radio.

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Missouri Independent is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Missouri Independent maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jason Hancock for questions: info@missouriindependent.com.

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