Author: KMIZ

Matthew Sanders

Missouri has made the midterms that much more interesting with its down-to-the-wire battle over which congressional map will be in effect this November.

Now, the lawsuit over whether a Republican-friendly map approved by the legislature last year should be the law of the land, or the map drawn after the normal census in 2022, has found its way to the Supreme Court.

Missouri’s attorney general has asked the court to take up the case — something that was still under consideration late Monday. But the time is running out to get ballots printed ahead of the November election.

Do you think the Supreme Court will take up the case, or pass on it? Let us know by voting in the poll.

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Steven Lambson

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Vernon County man died Sunday morning after he was hit by a vehicle in Camden County, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

The crash was reported around midnight on westbound Highway 54 at Cedar Heights Drive just west of Camdenton and the Niangua Arm of the Lake of the Ozarks.

According to the Highway Patrol, the vehicle that hit the 23-year-old victim left the scene. Because of that, the exact time of the crash or information about the vehicle and its driver are unknown.

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Steven Lambson

The 67th Heart of America Marathon took place Monday morning, with runners enjoying cooler weather than had been around over the weekend.

The race, which goes around parts of southwest Columbia and southwestern Boone County, started at 6 a.m. Temperatures stayed lower than they had been Saturday and Sunday; the high temperatures on those days reached 100 degrees and 94 degrees Fahrenheit, respectively. Lower humidity also helped the outside air feel more pleasant.

Because the marathon happens every Labor Day, when temperatures can still reach high and potentially dangerous levels, race organizers said they took extra precautions.

Volunteers and organizers set up aid stations ever couple of miles, for a total of 13 in all. Each station had water jugs with around 300 cups and between five and 15 gallons of water for runners.

The race also provided a trail vehicle to monitor the aid stations and runners and help encourage them to exit the course if they had any signs of heat exhaustion or injuries.

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Steven Lambson

A boat crash caused injuries to those inside the watercraft Saturday, though non of the injuries were serious, according to the Maries County Sheriff’s Office.

The crash happened shortly before 1 p.m. on the Gasconade River, according to the Maries County Sheriff’s Office, between the 177 and 178 mile markers. First responders found the red boat on the shoreline.

Everyone inside had gotten out already, and only had minor bumps or bruises, the sheriff’s office said.

First responders from the Vienna Fire Department, Maries-Osage Ambulance District and Missouri State Highway Patrol helped in the response to the crash.

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Demetra Alarcon

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Jefferson City leaders will hear a presentation Tuesday on a new housing supply strategy proposed by Capital City Housing to improve the city’s housing stock.

According to the presentation, created by Capital City Housing, the strategy is an “actionable plan to expand the City’s housing supply and improve housing quality and stock”.

The presentation says Jefferson City needs a housing strategy.

“Home prices and rents continue to rise; the City has an aging housing stock; the City has made progress in permitting but needs more growth to meet its housing challenges,” the presentation states.

The presentation includes numbers, saying that typical home value is up 73% since 2019, HUD fair market rent is up $30 to $58 since 2020, more than 50% of homes were built before 1980, and that 110 units were permitted in 2025, which is only a 0.63% growth in the housing stock.

According to the presentation, households with unmet housing needs range from hourly wage workers to professional employees, including older adults, people with disabilities, and low-income households.

The strategy includes three phases: phase one with early success and foundation, phase two with the expansion and scale, and phase three with longer-term needs. The strategy is to build more, repair more, and ensure the city and its partners can implement this strategy.

The strategy comes after the capital city housing task force worked with the group housing innovations LLC to create this strategy to improve the city’s housing stock.

The presentation says Jefferson City is in a good position to address its housing challenges.

“The City has a strong economic base, home prices and rents that – while increased over earlier levels – are still lower than in many other cities, and a committed City government,” says the presentation.

Housing growth is a part of the city’s larger “race to 50” initiative, which aims to increase Jefferson City’s population to 50,000 residents.

Planning for the project was also directly tied to the 2019 tornado that destroyed 152 housing units in the city, most being rentals.

The presentation asks that the city council acknowledge the strategy and authorize city staff to use it as a guide; as work advances, specifics will be considered.

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Olivia Hayes

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Columbia City Council is scheduled to formally adopt a 1% public safety sales tax passed by Columbia voters in August at its meeting on Tuesday. The tax would then take effect on Jan. 1.

City leaders project the tax to generate an additional $38 million each year to support police and fire services. It passed by a mere 85 votes in August, with the first round of revenue expected to come in March.

The city monitor the first three months of revenue to see whether collections are meeting expectations. Across Columbia, sales tax will range from a little under 9% to nearly 10% after the increase.

The city has 19 special taxing districts, including multiple Transportation Development Districts, Community Improvement Districts and a Recreation Taxing District. Out of the 19 total districts, 15 are TDD’s, three are CID’s and one is a regional recreation district for the Boone County Fairgrounds.

According to the Missouri Department of Revenue, when added to current sales tax rates, areas of Boone County that aren’t shopping centers or districts will have the lowest sales tax set at around 8.97%.

The highest sales tax rates will be seen in areas like the Shoppes at Stadium, Columbia Mall, or Discovery Parkway and Grindstone Plaza, with the transportation districts sales tax bumping to 9.97%. That means a consumer is paying nearly $10 on every $100 spent.

Downtown Columbia and the Business Loop area won’t be far behind with the Community Improvement Districts now having a sales tax rate of 9.47%.

Each time a person buys something in one of these districts, the taxed percentage is going back to fund projects or expenditures in the community they may not even realize at the time of their purchase. For example, the Conley Road TDD helps fund the extension of the existing Business Loop 70 to be able to serve as an I-70 outer road through to a new connection to Conley Road near the Broadway Marketplace.

In 2025, Columbia’s Downtown CID brought in $828,964 in sales tax revenue.

The highest sales tax rate in Missouri is at 12.23% in parts of St. Louis County.

With the funds generated by the tax, Columbia Fire Department plans to hire 42 additional firefighters, build two new fire stations and renovate three existing stations. The Columbia Police Department wants to boost its staffing numbers and convert a city-owned building on Lemone Industrial Boulevard into a new $35 million police headquarters.

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Matthew Sanders

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man left a car running in a garage after he had listened to music on its stereo, leading to the deaths of five people in a Rolla residence in June, the coroner’s office wrote in a statement posted to social media Monday.

The carbon monoxide poisoning on June 19 killed a 21-year-old man, a 31-year-old man, two 43-year-old men and an 18-year-old woman, all in the same residence. All five were undocumented immigrants, and their remains have been returned to their countries of origin, the release states.

The Phelps County Coroner’s Office said in June that three of the victims were Honduran nationals, one was a Mexican national and another was a Guatemalan national.

The man who inadvertently left the car running was the first to succumb to carbon monoxide poisoning because his bedroom was the closest to the garage, according to the statement. One person survived because his room was farthest from the garage, his door and vents were closed, and his window was open, the coroner’s office stated.

Carbon monoxide detectors in the residence were unplugged. The coroner’s office stated the residents might have disabled them in their confused state because of the noise.

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Matthew Sanders

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia man died after a tractor-trailer hit him while he was crossing the road late Sunday on Interstate 70 in Saline County.

The 66-year-old man was pronounced dead minutes after the 11 p.m. crash, according to a Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report. The 2023 Freightliner hit the man on the eastbound interstate at mile marker 70.4, just east of Sweet Springs.

The truck driver, a 26-year-old San Antonio man, tried to avoid the man, who was walking in the right lane, according to the patrol. The driver pulled over onto the shoulder and waited for authorities after the collision, the report states.

The semi-truck suffered moderate damage and was towed from the scene.

The Highway Patrol no longer publishes the names of people involved in crashes.

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Ellyse Edwards

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Diesel prices have reached all-time highs nationally, statewide and in Columbia on Labor Day, with averages roughly 60% higher than they were one year ago.

The national diesel average reached about $5.90 per gallon Monday, according to AAA. That is up from $5.60 one week ago and about $3.71 one year ago — a year-over-year increase of about 59%.

Missouri’s average reached a record of about $5.55 per gallon. The statewide average was about $5.23 one week ago and $3.42 one year ago, meaning diesel prices have increased approximately 62% over the past year.

Columbia also set a diesel record Monday, with an average of about $5.51 per gallon. That is up from $5.28 one week ago and $3.47 one year ago—an increase of approximately 59%.

LINK: ABC 17 Fuel Finder

The effects of record diesel prices can extend beyond what drivers pay at the pump. Diesel powers trucks used to transport food and other consumer products. Farmers also rely on diesel to operate equipment and transport crops and livestock.

Higher fuel expenses could increase operating and transportation costs for those industries and eventually affect the prices consumers pay for groceries and other products. Meanwhile, inflation continues at rates that have led the Fed to keep interest rates the same.

Regular gasoline also reached a national Labor Day record Monday.

The national average for regular gasoline reached about $4.15 per gallon, according to AAA. That is up from $4.08 one week ago and about $3.20 one year ago — an increase of approximately 30%.

The current national average remains below the all-time gasoline record of about $5.02 per gallon set in June 2022.

Missouri drivers are paying an average of about $3.82 per gallon for regular gasoline. The statewide average was $3.79 one week ago and $2.90 one year ago.

Columbia’s average reached about $3.87 per gallon Monday, compared with approximately $2.95 at the same time last year.

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Camryn Payne

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A 43-year-old Osage Beach man and a 41-year-old Lake Ozark woman were seriously injured after a crash Saturday afternoon in Morgan County.

According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the crash happened around 4:10 p.m. on Route J at Swan Drive near Gravois Mills.

The Osage Beach man was slowing down to turn left in a 2013 Toyota Scion when a 21-year-old Gravios Mills man driving a 1999 Dodge Ram 1500 hit the Toyota. Both vehicles went off the left side of the road.

The Osage Beach man and a Lake Ozark woman, who was a passenger in the Toyota, were both flown to University Hospital with serious injuries. The Osage Beach man was not wearing a seat belt. Both vehicles were totaled.

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