/news-rss MO.gov News Feed Sat, 21 Jan 2017 05:59:59 +0000 en-us http://www.sos.mo.gov/default.aspx?PageID=8785 http://www.sos.mo.gov/default.aspx?PageID=8785 Fri, 20 Jan 2017 08:17:00 +0000 For immediate release: January 18, 2017Contact: Maura Browning, (573) 526-0949 Ashcroft Announces Initiative Petition Amending Article IV of the Missouri Constitution is Open for Public Comment Jefferson City, Mo. — Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft today announced his office received an initiative https://notes.mshp.dps.mo.gov/si01/si01p001.nsf/9300de8f24f618a68625729800536892/8a87a3b3196fdd62862580ad007db7fc?OpenDocument https://notes.mshp.dps.mo.gov/si01/si01p001.nsf/9300de8f24f618a68625729800536892/8a87a3b3196fdd62862580ad007db7fc?OpenDocument Thu, 19 Jan 2017 16:53:53 +0000 https://notes.mshp.dps.mo.gov/si01/si01p001.nsf/9300de8f24f618a68625729800536892/b08c174f34bfb8f7862580ad0079f478?OpenDocument https://notes.mshp.dps.mo.gov/si01/si01p001.nsf/9300de8f24f618a68625729800536892/b08c174f34bfb8f7862580ad0079f478?OpenDocument Thu, 19 Jan 2017 16:12:53 +0000 http://ago.mo.gov/home/ag-hawley-sues-obama-administration-to-protect-missouri-energy urn:uuid:7bb4b514-ad6b-6a5c-bcc3-ff000082a1ac Thu, 19 Jan 2017 08:00:38 +0000 Attorney General Josh Hawley today announced that Missouri has sued the Obama Administration over regulations that will drive energy costs up for Missouri families. The suit alleges that regulations promulgated by the Department of the Interior on December 20, 2016 affecting coal mining overstep agency authority and violate federal law. “The Obama Administration has no authority to issue these regulations,” Hawley said. “They will drive up the cost of energy for Missouri families and hurt Missouri workers. I promised to protect working families in our state, and I will.” The suit, Ohio et al v. Department of the Interior, claims that the regulations promulgated by the Interior Department’s Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement exceed the office’s statutory authority and violate Missouri’s prerogatives under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act. “These draconian regulations by the Obama Administration are exactly the kind of federal overreach that is holding Missouri’s economy back. They are contrary to law. And this office will fight them to defend the people of Missouri,” Hawley said. https://notes.mshp.dps.mo.gov/si01/si01p001.nsf/9300de8f24f618a68625729800536892/513c9a13e9ec966e862580ad004cbc95?OpenDocument https://notes.mshp.dps.mo.gov/si01/si01p001.nsf/9300de8f24f618a68625729800536892/513c9a13e9ec966e862580ad004cbc95?OpenDocument Thu, 19 Jan 2017 07:58:53 +0000 http://ago.mo.gov/home/ag-josh-hawley-secretary-of-state-jay-ashcroft-announce-864-million-settlement-with-moody-s-investors-service-inc- urn:uuid:ffafb514-ad6b-6a5c-bcc3-ff000082a1ac Wed, 18 Jan 2017 09:04:35 +0000 Attorney General Josh Hawley and Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft announced today that an $864 million settlement has been reached with Moody’s Corporation, Moody’s Investors Service, Inc., and Moody’s Analytics, Inc. (collectively “Moody’s”), by the U.S. Department of Justice, 21 states and the District of Columbia. These efforts were led by the attorneys general of Connecticut and Mississippi in partnership with the USDOJ.  The landmark settlement is the culmination of an investigation into Moody’s conduct and its representations of independence and objectivity in the rating of structured finance securities. Structured finance securities, including residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) and collateralized debt obligations (CDOs), derive their value from the monthly payments consumers make on their mortgages. These securities, particularly those backed by subprime mortgages, were at the center of the financial crisis.     “This settlement is a major win for the people of Missouri,” Hawley said. “Missouri’s businesses and economy suffered at the hands of deceptive and reckless credit rating agencies and justice has now been served.”  “We are very pleased to have been part of this nationwide effort and achieved such a large payment of $12.2 million to the State of Missouri,” said David M. Minnick, Commissioner of Securities for Secretary Ashcroft. “Just as important, though, is that the settlement seeks to provide protections for investors who rely on ratings services.  Our continued focus is investor protection for all Missourians.”  Despite repeated statements emphasizing its independence and objectivity, Moody's allowed its analysis to be influenced by its desire to earn lucrative fees from its investment bank clients, and assigned inflated credit ratings to toxic assets packaged and sold by the Wall Street investment banks. This alleged misconduct began as early as 2001, and became particularly acute between 2004 and 2007.   Moody’s represented to consumers that its Aaa rating carried a specific level of risk, and the investigation found evidence that Moody’s altered its process so that the Aaa rating represented a greater risk than Moody’s disclosed to investors and consumers.  The investigation also found evidence that Moody’s gave in to pressure from big banks, which were powerful, repeat customers that paid Moody’s millions of dollars to rate these securities. The banks needed Aaa ratings in order to sell these securities to institutional investors, such as pension plans and retirement plans.    In addition to the monetary settlement, Moody’s has agreed to (1) a detailed statement of facts in connection with the way it rated RMBS and CDOs leading up to the financial crisis, and (2) significant compliance terms – including an annual certification by the CEO of Moody’s Corporation, which will be provided to Missouri every year for the next four (4) years, certifying that Moody’s is following certain compliance requirements.                Together with the similar settlement against Standard & Poor’s in 2015, the Attorney General’s Office has recovered more than $33.5 million from the credit rating agencies to resolve allegations of deceptive conduct.  The state of Missouri was represented by Joyce Yeager, Anne Schneider, Amy Haywood, Caleb Aponte and Nathan Aquino in this matter.  Download Moody’s FIRREA Settlement Agreement  Download Moody’s Statement of Facts  Download Moody’s Compliance Commitments http://ago.mo.gov/home/ag-josh-hawley-statement-on-sex-offender-conviction urn:uuid:80afb514-ad6b-6a5c-bcc3-ff000082a1ac Tue, 17 Jan 2017 15:12:37 +0000 On January 11, 2017, a Jackson County jury found Donald Allison, 49, guilty of two counts of statutory rape in the first degree, statutory sodomy in the first degree, attempted statutory rape, child molestation and furnishing pornography to a minor.  “Thanks to the hard work of our attorneys and law enforcement officers, this dangerous individual will no longer be allowed to prey upon children,” Attorney General Josh Hawley said. “This Office is committed to protecting the weak and innocent and seeing criminals like this man punished to the fullest extent of the law.”  Allison’s sentencing is set for February 24, 2017 at 1:30 p.m. before the Honorable Justine Del Muro of Jackson County.  “My thoughts and prayers are with the victim and her family,” Hawley said. “While no sentence is strong enough to heal the wounds caused by these heinous crimes, the victim and her family can know that justice has been done.”   The case was tried by Assistant Attorney General Sue Boresi. https://notes.mshp.dps.mo.gov/si01/si01p001.nsf/9300de8f24f618a68625729800536892/5ee039469a65b96d862580ab0058ce2a?OpenDocument https://notes.mshp.dps.mo.gov/si01/si01p001.nsf/9300de8f24f618a68625729800536892/5ee039469a65b96d862580ab0058ce2a?OpenDocument Tue, 17 Jan 2017 10:09:53 +0000 https://notes.mshp.dps.mo.gov/si01/si01p001.nsf/9300de8f24f618a68625729800536892/d6da074aa8e33675862580ab004d132c?OpenDocument https://notes.mshp.dps.mo.gov/si01/si01p001.nsf/9300de8f24f618a68625729800536892/d6da074aa8e33675862580ab004d132c?OpenDocument Tue, 17 Jan 2017 08:01:53 +0000 https://notes.mshp.dps.mo.gov/si01/si01p001.nsf/9300de8f24f618a68625729800536892/981651e39945ab8f862580ab004c1dc8?OpenDocument https://notes.mshp.dps.mo.gov/si01/si01p001.nsf/9300de8f24f618a68625729800536892/981651e39945ab8f862580ab004c1dc8?OpenDocument Tue, 17 Jan 2017 07:51:53 +0000 http://dnr.mo.gov/news/newsitem/uuid/6ea238bd-2a83-4f39-92d6-83bed6d1bf94 http://dnr.mo.gov/news/newsitem/uuid/6ea238bd-2a83-4f39-92d6-83bed6d1bf94 Mon, 16 Jan 2017 18:00:00 +0000 https://governor.mo.gov/news/archive/governor-greitens-takes-first-steps-balance-missouri%E2%80%99s-unbalanced-budget ac816aa1-91e7-448a-ae50-1083eb1edd9e Mon, 16 Jan 2017 16:00:00 +0000 Today, Governor Eric Greitens announced $146.4 million of spending restrictions constitutionally required to balance Missouri's budget. Missouri's budget is suffering from reduced revenue due to poor economic growth. That revenue is being drained by special interest tax credits and the faster-than-projected growth in healthcare expenditures, driven in part by the national impact of Obamacare.    http://ago.mo.gov/home/ag-josh-hawley-statement-on-reverend-dr.-martin-luther-king-jr.-day urn:uuid:ddacb514-ad6b-6a5c-bcc3-ff000082a1ac Mon, 16 Jan 2017 08:00:19 +0000 Attorney General Josh Hawley today issued the following statement on the 88th birthday of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  “Today we honor the life and legacy of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Through his preaching, his intellect and his courage, and perhaps above all, through his willingness to suffer for the oppressed, he taught a nation to understand liberty differently. He reminded us that freedom and justice are forever linked. If the rule of law is not upheld for all, liberty is safe for no one. Today is a chance for Missourians to commit ourselves anew to this great vision of justice, so that, in the words of Scripture, ‘the poor may have hope, and injustice shut its mouth.’” http://www.modot.org/newsandinfo/District0News.shtml?action=displaySSI&newsId=209680 http://www.modot.org/newsandinfo/District0News.shtml?action=displaySSI&newsId=209680 Sat, 14 Jan 2017 09:48:00 +0000 http://ago.mo.gov/home/ag-josh-hawley-warns-consumers-about-storm-related-price-gouging urn:uuid:9da6b514-ad6b-6a5c-bcc3-ff000082a1ac Fri, 13 Jan 2017 15:18:42 +0000 Attorney General Josh Hawley today cautioned Missourians to be on the alert during the pending ice storm for storm-related price gouging.    Due to Winter Storm Jupiter, forecasters project that most of Missouri will be affected by severe weather, freezing rain and accumulating ice over the coming days. "Unfortunately, there are always individuals who see a natural disaster as an opportunity for personal gain," Hawley said. "I encourage all Missourians to stay alert in the coming days for scams and for those who would take advantage of consumers when they are at their most vulnerable. And I remind those who would scam or defraud Missourians: this Office will bring you to justice." Price gouging refers to artificially inflated prices on necessities after a disaster, natural or otherwise. Missouri law prohibits individuals and businesses from substantially raising their prices for the necessities of life during such an emergency.   The types of goods and services covered by the price gouging law include food and water, gasoline, hotel rooms, kerosene, gas powered generators, and other basic necessities. Those who violate the price gouging provisions can face penalties of up to $1,000 per violation.  To report price gouging to the Attorney General's Office, submit a complaint form online or call the Consumer Protection Hotline at 1-800-392-8222.