Capitol Report 7/6/2026

Missouri News Network: Statehouse News for MPA Members

This report is written by Missouri School of Journalism students for publication by MPA member newspapers in print and online.

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Missouri News Network this week included coverage of Missouri’s presence on the National Mall, the Supreme Court’s birthright citizenship ruling and challenges for egg producers across the state.

If you have thoughts or questions, contact Fred Anklam at anklamf@missouri.edu.

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Supreme Court upholds birthright citizenship

By Jacob Miklas, Kaleb Anderson and Kennedy Voss, Missouri News Network

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected President Donald Trump’s proposed restrictions on birthright citizenship, dealing a sharp rebuke to the president’s aggressive immigration agenda.

In a sharply divided opinion, the court ruled that, “Children born in the United States to parents unlawfully or temporarily present are ‘subject to the jurisdiction’ of the United States and are citizens at birth under the Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause.”

Writing for the 6-3 majority, Chief Justice John Roberts asserted that regardless of the legal status of their parents the children “satisfy both elements of the Citizenship Clause: they are ‘born…in the United States’ and ‘subject to the jurisdiction thereof.’ Under the Constitution, they are citizens at birth.”

Immigration restrictions have been a core principle of Trump’s governing doctrine and one of his top political priorities. On the very first day of his second term, Trump signed an executive order that would have denied citizenship to children born in the United States to parents without permanent legal status.

The American Civil Liberties Union immediately sued the Trump administration to block the order from being enforced.

U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., who had filed an amicus brief in support of Trump’s position, announced that he will propose a constitutional amendment to block birthright citizenship after Tuesday’s ruling.

“The privilege of United States citizenship is a priceless and profound gift,” Trump asserted in the executive order, which is titled: “Protecting The Meaning And Value of American Citizenship.” The order would have made it the policy of the United States not to “issue documents recognizing United States citizenship, or accept documents issued by State, local, or other governments or authorities purporting to recognize United States citizenship, to persons” if either of their parents were undocumented at the time of their birth.

A federal district court issued a preliminary injunction that blocked enforcement of the order until the Supreme Court delivered its opinion in the case, which came Tuesday.

ACLU National Legal Director Cecillia Wang, who argued the case before the court, said after the ruling that the president’s executive order was an overstep of his authority. “A president cannot change the Constitution by executive fiat. Our brave clients and our legal team stand with millions of people around our country who spoke up for one of our most cherished rights.

“The Constitution’s guarantee of birthright citizenship stands strong,” she said.

Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Amy Coney Barrett and Ketanji Brown Jackson joined Roberts in the majority opinion. Dissenting were justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch. Justice Brett Kavanaugh concurred in the opinion in part but also dissented on the grounds that Trump’s executive order does contravene a federal statute.

Kavanaugh said that it was up to Congress to revise the Fourteenth Amendment “or otherwise enact new legislation establishing exceptions to birthright citizenship for children born to foreign citizens unlawfully or temporarily in the country,” Kavanaugh wrote. “But Congress has not yet done so.”

In his broader dissent, Thomas wrote: “The Court today takes the extraordinary step of holding facially unconstitutional the President’s Order excluding from citizenship the children of foreign temporary visitors and illegal aliens. In doing so, the Court adds to the sad history of the Fourteenth Amendment, which was designed and understood to secure equal rights for the freed blacks but has instead been repurposed for political projects that the Reconstruction Congress did not support.”

The Citizenship Clause of the 14th Amendment, ratified in 1868 in the wake of the Civil War, states that, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.” This amendment guaranteed citizenship for all formerly enslaved people born in the United States.

Both the majority and dissenting opinions referenced Dred Scott v. Sandford, the landmark 1857 Missouri case in which the court ruled that Black people — whether enslaved or free — were not citizens of the United States and could never become citizens. The 14th Amendment was seen as a direct repudiation of the Dred Scott decision.

In United States v. Wong Kim Ark, the court affirmed that birthright citizenship applies to people born on U.S. soil to alien parents. This precedent was later codified by Congress.

In his amicus brief, Schmitt argued that the Citizenship Clause and existing precedent do not grant citizenship to people born on U.S. soil to those whose parents are in the country illegally.

“The text, structure, and history of the Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause support the constitutionality of President Trump’s Executive Order,” Schmitt wrote.

In response to the decision, Schmitt issued a statement that he is seeking to amend the Constitution to “protect American citizenship and reign in birthright citizenship.”

“Under the Supreme Court’s erroneous interpretation, American citizenship is extended to anyone who happens to be on U.S. soil when they’re born — even if they were here in violation of our laws,” Schmitt said in the release.

Though Republicans hold a majority in both houses of Congress, their margins are slim, so passage of a Constitutional amendment is unlikely. It would require a two-thirds majority vote in both the House and Senate. If such an amendment was approved by Congress, it would require ratification in 38 of the 50 states to go into effect.

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'We're losing money': Egg producers grapple with price crash in past year

By Misbahul Haque, Missouri News Network 

Many egg producers are going through a tough time as prices have decreased sharply over the past year. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, a dozen Grade A large eggs cost consumers $4.55 on average in May 2025, but the price declined to $2.19 in May this year.

Among all egg categories, the average price declined 35.2% in May compared with the same month in the previous year, according to the latest Consumer Price Index. Egg producers said the sharp price crash is taking a toll on their businesses.

“We’re losing money, and losing a lot of it,” said Tony Wesner, the CEO of Rose Acre Farms, the second-largest egg producer in the U.S. “Last year was profitable, and this year is not going to be. It’s a large swing.”

Cal-Maine Foods, the largest U.S. egg producer, also reported its net sales fell 53% in the quarter ending Feb. 28, while net income fell 90%, compared with a year earlier. The company attributed the decline to increased supply following the influenza-induced disruptions in the previous year.

Some Missouri-based egg producers also reported a significant decline in their revenue.

Factors driving the price decline

The highly pathogenic avian influenza was first confirmed in a U.S. commercial flock on Feb. 8, 2022, and peaked in 2024 and 2025. It forced farmers to slaughter more than 166 million birds, mostly egg-laying chickens.

The average price of eggs was $2 per dozen before the outbreak. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, retail egg prices increased 32.2% in 2022, 1.4% in 2023, 8.5% in 2024 and 21.9% in 2025. The average price hit a historic high of $6.22 per dozen in March 2025 and has since been declining.

Seth Meyer, director of the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute at the University of Missouri and a former chief economist at the USDA, said the wholesale price peaked in February 2025, while the retail price peaked the following month. Following that, farmers increased their supply of egg-laying chickens following the mass-culling that took place at the height of the bird flu outbreak.

“The industry wanted to ensure it had backup production in case of another HPAI outbreak,” Meyer said. “When the HPAI outbreak does not occur, there are a lot of pullets sitting out there, so that overhangs the market.”

Wesner offered a similar perspective. “It’s too many chickens and too many eggs for what the market has to deal with today,” he said. “Between the commercial flock and the backyard flock, there are probably 450 million chickens laying eggs. That’s too many.”

He mentioned the rise of backyard flocks as a significant factor driving the surplus. He said when retail prices peaked in 2025, millions of Americans bought chicks at farm supply stores and started producing their own eggs.

“If you ever go to chick days at Tractor Supply, it’s big business,” he said. “The flock of chickens in this country laying eggs is bigger than it ever has been. Unfortunately, the government has no idea how many chickens are laying eggs.”

He added total egg consumption is probably at an all-time high, but commercial producers cannot capture that demand, as so much of it is being met by backyard birds that never show up in market data.

Meyer flagged a quieter force keeping prices down — commercial demand destruction. He said when egg prices surged, food manufacturers may have adjusted their recipes to use fewer eggs. Those formulas do not switch back overnight, even when prices fall.

How producers are coping

Rose Acre Farms, which operates 17 laying facilities in seven states, including Missouri, has been hit hard by the price fall. Wesner said, “There will be no profit in the coming year. Absolutely. It’s pretty rough at the moment.”

Smaller Missouri producers are also grappling with the decreased prices, though their experiences vary depending on how they sell their eggs.

Stanton Brothers Eggs is an independent mid-Missouri operation that grows its own grain, washes eggs on-site and sells directly to about 60 local retail outlets. Due to its business model, the farm has more control over its prices than other conventional contract producers, yet even so, its revenue is down.

“Our gross revenue is down by about 20% compared to last May,” said Dustin Stanton, co-owner of the egg farm. “Even though we can control our price and our margin a little bit, when prices go down in the market we still feel that.”

He described this as their tightest year yet. He also said producers who entered the industry in the past five years chasing the high prices, many of whom are still carrying debt, are in a far more difficult position.

Matt Van Schyndel is the owner of Hedge Holler Harvest, which sells eggs at farmer’s markets and deals directly with consumers. He experienced no rise or fall in prices, as he fixes the price and sells directly to customers.

“My prices aren’t down,” he said. “We got people just in line waiting for the product. I don’t chase the highs and lows. I just take care of my customers.”

No relief in sight

The coming months are unlikely to bring much relief for egg producers.

Wesner expects prices to stay low for the foreseeable future. “I think we’re probably looking at low prices for 18 months, maybe more,” he said.

He believes consumers will soon see eggs become cheaper, and it will push some backyard flock owners to stop raising their own chickens. He also expects commercial flock sizes to shrink in the coming months, which will eventually stabilize the market.

Meyer mentions two factors that he expects will keep downward pressure on prices even as the industry tries to rebalance: the large number of backup hens still waiting to enter production and demand destruction.

Jo Manhart, executive director of the Missouri Egg Council, said the market fluctuations boil down to simple principles of supply and demand. “When there’s plenty, the price is down. When there’s not enough, the price is up,” she said. “They just have to tough it out until the price gets better, and it will.”

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MoDOT's I-70 truck parking expansion aims to improve highway safety

By Sam Jackson, Missouri News Network

Missouri’s trucking and freight shipping industry has made massive expansions in the last decade, and with that comes the need for more parking for the large vehicles driving the growth.

In the U.S. there is only one dedicated parking space for every 11 trucks on the road. Approximately 55% of all goods were transported by trucks in 2023 in Missouri. That is expected to increase to 59% by 2043, according to the Missouri Department of Transportation’s Truck Parking Draft.

With parking improvements planned throughout the state came a push for highway safety upgrades.

Truck parking spots are being added along Interstate 70 as a part of the Improve I-70 project. Construction of the spots is set to begin this fall. The project is also adding a third lane to I-70.

The U.S. Department of Transportation created the Infrastructure for Rebuilding America Grants, which focus on rebuilding and improving the efficiency and safety of freight networks.

Surrounding states such as Illinois, Iowa and Indiana have received the grant.

Eric Kopinski, the Improve I-70 program director, said MoDOT applied for the competitive federal grants to better I-70 for all drivers.

“One of the first things that I did for our team as we quickly got on board was we said, ‘Is there any way to leverage this historic funding that’s been provided by the governor and the general assembly,” Kopinski said. “Missouri’s taken a very bold step with this funding of I-70, and the federal government should help participate a little more.”

The program initially requested over $300 million, but was awarded $93 million. It will use $33.4 million in grant funds to expand truck parking. That includes a $30 million contract for design and labor, plus $3.4 million for the early design items and project contingency. All those items will go toward raising road quality and ensuring safety for truck drivers.

“As everyone clicks on their Amazon order or orders their groceries online more and more, the need to move goods and services along I-70 is an all-time high,” Kopinski said.

In surrounding states with similar high demands on the freight industry, significant crashes have happened on highway corridors. Many accidents were due to semitrucks not having places to park.

“There were several needs that were brought to our attention from the trucking community,” Kopinski said. “But the biggest, by far, was ‘spend this limited money on as many new spots as you can get.’”

When drivers can’t find a proper truck spot, they may resort to using less favorable spots on the road, such as shoulders or ramps, which can result in crashes.

“The freight that moves along I-70 is going to be able to do so more easily, and really, for Missouri’s businesses and the parking, it’s going to be a good thing,” Kopinski said.

Truck drivers have a maximum of 11 hours they can drive when carrying property after 10 consecutive hours off duty, and a 10-hour driving maximum when carrying passengers after eight consecutive hours off duty. Kopinski said improving and expanding parking areas across the state will be a “game-changer” for the freight industry.

One of the biggest concerns the trucking community expressed in public interest meetings was that overnight truckers have limited hours that they can drive.

“As those hours become close to the end, they have to find a spot to safely pull off and park, and if they can’t, then they run into the paradox of do they park or do they keep trying to find another spot,” Kopinski said. “So it becomes a real big pinch point for them and puts them in a difficult spot.”

The federal grant money along with investments from MoDOT and private gas station and rest stop companies will contribute to the parking solution. There are two projects MoDOT is working on to help improve the rest areas and truck parking.

“The combination of the public-private partnership, where we’re each investing dollars into this, this challenge, it’s going to make the situation a lot better,” Kopinski said.

Outside of the truck parking project the department also has around $4 million to update facilities on I-70, I-35, I-29 and I-55. Kopinski said there are requests from the public to upgrade more building facilities and add truck parking on other routes but funding is a limiting factor.

Other states have invested in truck parking apps such as “Park My Truck,” “Trucker Path” and “TruxSpot,” to name a few but the need in Missouri was to add more pavement, parking spots and lighting.

“MoDOT will continue to have ongoing conversations with freight partners about this topic, Kopinski said. “We will also continue to communicate with surrounding states. For many drivers having different apps for different states becomes problematic.”

Construction will begin at the end of the summer and is expected to be completed by December 2028.

The first stop will be Concordia, which is about 50 miles east of Kansas City, then crews will move to Wright City, which is about 50 miles west of St. Louis. The final two stops will be Mineola, about 40 miles east of Columbia, and Boonville, about 25 miles west of Columbia.

The new parking spots will be in very similar locations to where current options exist, with the biggest change being additional parking spaces. The eastbound and a westbound locations at each of those stops will operate while the other is being improved. Furthermore, improvements will be completed one at a time, for accessibility to drivers who need to pull over.

“We’re going to go try to continue to find more money to do this at the federal level to bring back to Missouri, because this is a win-win, and we want to make sure that we can ship goods across our state for our businesses and for everyone doing their personal shopping and those types of things,” Kopinski said.

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Gary Pinkel pleads guilty to DWI charge; state recommends a $1,000 fine

By Missouri News Network staff 

Gary Pinkel, the former head football coach at the University of Missouri, has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of driving while intoxicated with a recommended fine of $1,000 to be imposed plus related court costs.

The DWI charge stems from an incident on July 7, 2025, in Camden County after he summoned a Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper to help him with a blown-out tire. According to court documents, the trooper noticed that Pinkel was slurring his speech, had abnormal pauses and stutters, and smelled of an intoxicating beverage.

The misdemeanor DWI charge was filed against Pinkel on Thursday in Camden County Circuit Court.

Pinkel submitted a written guilty plea Friday, and the state is recommending a fine of $1,000 and combined court costs of $346.50.

Shortly after the July 7 incident last year, Pinkel faced the loss of his driver’s license and sued the state director of revenue to keep the license. His attorney immediately submitted a motion to stay the revocation of his license until the court could deliver a ruling.

The judge granted the stay, and resolution of the case was then delayed for nearly a year of legal procedure while Pinkel retained possession of his license.

A hearing was held Monday in that case before Camden County Circuit Judge Michael Gilley, and Pinkel’s attorney indicated he would be ending the lawsuit after the former coach's guilty plea was accepted. 

Under Missouri law, Pinkel's plea will be forwarded to the Missouri Department of Revenue, which determines points on a driver's record after a court conviction.

A DWI conviction adds eight points to a driver's record. Accumulating eight points within 18 months typically results in a 30-day license suspension followed by a 60-day restricted driving period.

Pinkel pleaded guilty to an earlier DWI charge in 2011 after he was pulled over just before the final home game of the season against Texas Tech in Columbia. He admitted to drinking two “jumbo” glasses of wine after failing multiple field sobriety tests, according to previous Missourian coverage.

He pleaded guilty Nov. 18, 2011, and was put on two years’ probation. He resigned as football coach at the end of the 2015 season after a lymphoma diagnosis.

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Missouri makes its presence felt at Freedom 250: The Great American State Fair

By Kaleb Anderson and Kennedy Voss, Missouri News Network

WASHINGTON — The Big Birthday Party has begun. The 250th Anniversary of America’s Independence is officially on Saturday, but the U.S. government has already begun the festivities.

Freedom 250 is President Donald Trump’s official commemoration of the independence anniversary, and his Great American State Fair kicked off last Thursday on the National Mall. And while the city is in the grip of a sweltering heatwave this week, it didn’t stop visitors from making the trip to the nation’s capital to celebrate in their best patriotic attire, including shirts and hats with American flags and bald eagle decals.

“People of all shapes, sizes, ages. Everyone’s just been in here,” said Deputy Director of VISIT Missouri Megan Rogers, who is a resident of Jefferson City. “Everyone’s been talking. It’s amazing what a small world it is when we’re thousands of miles from home, and it’s still a small world. It’s been great. We’ve really enjoyed it.”

From the Capitol to the Washington Monument, the fair hosted food, concert stages and booths for all 50 states.

Missouri’s booth boasted several pictures of landmarks and parks from the Show Me State and included a map of spots to visit. Roberts said choosing what to include in the booth was one of the bigger challenges over the past four months.

“I will tell you, there were a lot of people and a lot of discussion on which pictures to bring, because we have so much, and we didn’t want to miss anything, but we couldn’t show it all,” said Roberts. “So, we did our best to represent the whole state.”

Route 66 was a main feature of the booth, as it, like America, celebrates a landmark anniversary. The highway was built 100 years ago, beginning in Springfield, Missouri, in 1926.

Brad Mularcik, a resident of Ohio, stopped into the Missouri booth as he worked his way down the row of state attractions. He said that when his family did a tour of Route 66 years ago, Missouri was one of the highlights.

“All of the attractions were really cool, and there was a high density of them,” Mularcik said. “It took us 12 hours to go 125 miles because of all the times we stopped.”

Also featured at the fair was a display from Anheuser-Busch, located near the main stage where bands and musicians have been performing since the fair opened. The brewing company, headquartered in St. Louis, brought a museum of memorabilia, featured a beer garden and even had two of the company’s famous Clydesdales for fairgoers to enjoy.

For refreshments, the fair offers several air-conditioned booths with food ranging from American classics like hot dogs and turkey legs, to a wider selection including fried rice and dumplings. To beat the heat, the fair also offered multiple stations with free water bottles.

The fair continues through July 10.