Business and Government


IRS Launches Stimulus Check Status Site

U.S. residents now have a resource from the Internal Revenue Service where they can track the status of their stimulus checks. Titled Get My Payment, it shows when people would receive payments of up to $1,200 for individuals, $2,400 for… more

Stimulus Check Would Cover Most KC Mortgages

More than half of Kansas City-area homeowners would be able to make a monthly mortgage payment and and cover their utilities with a $1,200 stimulus check, while a vast majority could make those expenditures with two checks totaling $2,400. Kansas… more

Tenant-Advocacy Group Calls for Rent Moratorium

KC Tenants, a tenant-advocacy group, is calling on Missouri Gov. Mike Parson to institute a rent and mortgage moratorium, due to economic struggles residents are facing during the COVID-19 pandemic. The organization is calling on people to sign a petition… more

KC’s Stay-At-Home Order Will Likely Extend

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas said yesterday that the stay-at-home order put in place last month will likely be extended beyond its original April 24 expiration. Though Lucas said he is considering pushing the order through mid May, he still… more

WHO Leader: COVID-19 Dwarfs 2009 Flu

The COVID-19 pandemic is 10 times deadlier than the flu pandemic of 2009, according to Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesu, general director of the World Health Organization. "We know that early case-finding, testing, isolating caring for every case and tracing every contact… more

Parson Approves Supplemental Budget

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson has signed a supplemental budget passed by the Missouri General Assembly, which will give the state access to federal COVID-19 relief under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. “COVID-19 has had an overwhelming… more

Q&A with: Keely Schneider, Workforce Partnership

Keely Schneider is the director of the Workforce Partnership serving Johnson, Wyandotte and Leavenworth counties for the Kansas Department of Labor. She talked about her views on the current labor market's challenges. Q: After a rough couple of weeks with… more

Sen. Moran: Federal Aid Hitting Rural Hospitals

Federal aid began flowing today to cash-strapped rural hospitals across Kansas, U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran said this morning. Although federal aid to business approved in March excluded rural hospitals owned by political subdivisions, Moran said additional federal money was being… more

Johnson County Enacts Furloughs, About $20M in Budget Cuts

Johnson County is furloughing 264 employees and will cut its fiscal year 2020 budget by $18.8 million and deferring another $2.3 million in expenditures for at least a year. The furloughed employees are in Johnson County government, the Johnson County… more

Parson Closes Schools for Remainder of Academic Year

Missouri Governor Mike Parson has closed schools in Missouri for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year. The move follows a similar measure by Kansas Governor Laura Kelly back in March. Missouri schools are expected to continue to provide services… more