Latest news with #LaneRoberts
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Missouri prepares for sports betting rollout
JOPLIN, Mo. — Legal sports betting in Missouri is now just a few months away. If you want to place a bet on the big game, that's legal for half of the Four States. Sports betting is allowed in Kansas and Arkansas, and isn't far off for Missouri. 'For a number of years, people have tried to convince us that we are losing revenue to other states. It doesn't change the activity. People who live in Missouri still engage in the activity. It's just that we don't benefit in any way from it, and it was simply good for business,' said MO. Rep. Lane Roberts, R. The Show Me State switch is happening in 2025 with the 'Missouri Gaming Commission' taking applications for direct mobile licenses through next month. There are a couple more months to go for applicants for other retail and mobile licenses. 'I think we're pretty much on target – I believe the end of the year is what we'd like to accomplish,' said Roberts. Voters approved sports betting last fall, setting that timeline in motion. Much of the tax revenue from the change is earmarked for education. That comes from a state tax of ten percent, something that had been a longtime issues for state lawmakers. 'We normally try to attach that to something that benefits a certain area of our budget or a population,' said Roberts. The Gaming Commission expects to officially launch Missouri Sports betting on December 1. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
17-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Missouri lawmakers prepare for key budget talks
MISSOURI — Missouri lawmakers, like many others in the state, are on spring break this week. They're already thinking about what will happen when they head back to work. For last night's story on lawmakers looking back on recent work, read State leaders reflect on first half of legislative session. 'A lot of great things have happened, but there's another whole half of session to go,' said Governor Mike Kehoe, R-Missouri. Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe points to the state's budget as the next big item to tackle. 'That will be a big issue as we come back from spring break, and I'm really grateful that the House and Senate members are letting me work with them and their membership to understand what Missourian's priorities are,' said Kehoe. State Representative Lane Roberts says preparing that budget can often be a thankless task. 'They have a yeoman's job, this year, working on that budget. That's by far the busiest, most difficult committee in the house,' said State Rep. Lane Roberts, R-Joplin. State Representative Bob Bromley says because the legislature has worked efficiently this year, a lot of priority items, like a crime bill, have already made it through both chambers. 'So we're going to try to do a lot of cleanup on things that are not just important to the entire state, but to our constituents back home,' said State Rep. Bob Bromley, R-Carl Junction. Unofficially, the mid-way point of session is known as 'turn around', when bills have made it through one chamber, and will now get worked in the other. 'I know that we have probably 30 plus Senate bills on our side to work through,' said Roberts. On the other side of the Capitol, Senator Jill Carter is hoping the chamber will look at 'education freedom.' 'Ensuring that our public teachers and our local schools are able to work with the school boards and the communities and the parents in those schools to actually have the school represent what it is that our communities and parents want for kids,' said Senator Jill Carter, 32nd District. Off the floor of the chambers, committee work will be happening. State Representative Ben Baker, who chairs the House Committee on Government Efficiency, says he'll be asking a lot of questions. 'Examining and investigating some of the departments, bringing them in, asking some really tough questions to the departments regarding efficiency and budgets and things like that,' said State Rep. Ben Baker, R-Neosho. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
23-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Missouri bill cracks down on 'organized retail theft'
A proposed Missouri law recently heard in the state senate suggests cracking down on organized retail theft from businesses, a growing concern in St. Joseph and nationwide. HB 277, sponsored by Missouri House of Representatives Rep. Lane Roberts (R-Joplin) creates a new defense within state legislature to deter retail theft. Language in the proposed legislation states if the amount stolen in 120 days is between $1,500 and $10,000, the crime becomes a class C felony and if the value is over $10,000, it becomes a class B felony. "In this case, you have an agreement among several people to engage in this,' Roberts said. 'The head of a group will send four or five different people to various locations to commit a theft, but this bill will make everyone a part of the agreement and everyone responsible for the conduct to be charged with the aggregated amount.' Roberts added that organized crime is a growing issue statewide which is landing business owners in a tough financial situation. 'They'll steal property then sell it online or will bring it back for an exchange for the money,' Roberts explained. 'That's the sort of conduct that ultimately costs the retailer, which drives and pushes the price up for the rest of us. This is an effort to try and better the livelihoods of everyone.' The bill additionally applies to anyone who commits the offense of organized retail theft if they attempt to return the merchandise to the merchant for value or resells, trades, or if they barter the merchandise for value in any manner, including, but not limited to, through the use of an internet or network site. For smaller law enforcement agencies such as the St. Joseph Police Department, prosecuting these cases can be complex and time-consuming. With a full plate of responsibilities, SJPD struggles to keep up with the increasing number of retail thefts. 'We do as much as we can to try and catch these incidents as they're in progress,' said SJPD Sergeant Jeremy Peters. 'So having this bill is a good thing. Any time we get a little bit more help on the law enforcement side, where we have some repeat offenders or people that are doing this on an organized level, that's a step in the right direction. There needs to be tougher penalties for people that are victimizing others.'
