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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - The CEO of a rural hospital is warning that its financial security could hinge on the expansion of Missouri's Medicaid health care program.

Pemiscot Memorial Hospital CEO Kerry Noble joined lawmakers at a Capitol news conference Monday as House Democrats announced legislation to expand Medicaid eligibility for low-income adults.

The federal health care law cuts payments to hospitals for treating uninsured patients on the assumption they will get more money from an expanded Medicaid program.

If Medicaid is not expanded, Nobel says his hospital system would lose around $1 million annually because of the reduced federal payments for the uninsured. He says that would eventually put the hospital at risk.

Gov. Jay Nixon also wants to expand Medicaid.

But Republican legislative leaders have expressed concerns about its potential long-term costs.

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. (AP) -- Democratic Party leaders from southeast Missouri picked state Rep. Steve Hodges on Saturday to run in a special election to replace resigned U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson in the GOP-leaning 8th District.

The Southeast Missourian reported that he earned 39 votes during his party's meeting in Poplar Bluff. De Soto funeral home director Todd Mahn got 27 votes, and former Blodgett mayor Markel Fitchpatrick earned only two votes.

Hodges, 64, of East Prairie, is a former grocery store owner and high school sports referee who spent a dozen years on a local school board and first won election to the Missouri House in 2006. Only after other likely candidates bowed out did he belatedly enter the race Wednesday night to run in a June 4 special election against Republican state Rep. Jason Smith, who was nominated by his party last weekend.

In accepting the nomination, Hodges recalled his son Andrew's valedictorian address at West Point. "He said opportunities sometimes only come along once in your life," Hodges said. "And he said it's your choice to decide whether to accept that opportunity or let it pass. I thought about it a great deal for several days this week and I thought I think God is presenting this as an opportunity for me. So I need to decide whether this is something I should take advantage of or let pass by because it's not going to happen again."

Missouri's 8th District stretches across 30 counties, from the outer suburbs of St. Louis south to the agricultural-base of the Missouri Bootheel and west to the rolling Ozark hills. The district's residents are the poorest and least educated in Missouri, with a median household income of less than $36,000 and more than 85 percent lacking bachelor's degrees. For 32 years, much of the area had been represented by either Bill Emerson or Jo Ann Emerson, who succeeded her husband after he died in 1996. Jo Ann Emerson resigned Jan. 22 to become president and CEO of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. Although of opposite political parties, Hodges praised the Emersons and vowed to continue their legacies of supporting labor and agriculture. He also stressed the need to balance the budget.

Hodges described Smith, the Republican nominee, as a friend and said he hoped to conduct the campaign as friends. "That was the way I was reared," he said. "But in politics as Gov. (Jay) Nixon has said, `There is no second place.' There are only winners and losers, and I hope to give you a winner."

Smith, an attorney, farmer and real estate partner, won a special election to the Missouri House of Representatives in November 2005. Because of term limits, Smith, 32, is now one of the most senior members of the chamber. After serving as majority party whip, his colleagues elected him in January as House speaker pro tem - the No. 2 ranking position.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- A state Supreme Court decision and a veto by Gov. Jay Nixon have cost Missouri cities and counties at least $43 million in lost tax revenues that they otherwise could have collected from the sale of cars, trucks and boats, according to figures compiled by a state senator.

The estimate of lost tax revenues is being used by Sen. Mike Kehoe as one of his main arguments why lawmakers should enact a measure reinstating local taxes on vehicles bought from other states or sold in private deals between Missouri residents. The bill, which already has won initial Senate approval, is expected to receive a second vote this week that would send it to the House.

The legislation was prompted by a Missouri Supreme Court decision last year that said local sales taxes cannot be levied when vehicle purchases are made in another state. The ruling also applied to cars sold by one person to another, because sales taxes only can be collected from retail businesses. The court said a local "use tax" could be charged on such vehicles, but only if approved by local voters.

Almost all counties and municipalities had been collecting the tax on out-of-state vehicle sales before the Supreme Court's decision, but less than half had a voter-approved "use tax" and so have been unable to keep collecting the revenue.

State lawmakers reacted to the Supreme Court decision by passing a bill last May that would have allowed local governments to collect the tax. But Nixon vetoed the measure and said voters should have a say in whether the tax should be imposed. Some lawmakers launched an effort to override Nixon's veto over concerns that Missouri car dealers were at a competitive disadvantage, because customers were going out of state to avoid paying local vehicle taxes. The veto-override attempt ultimately failed.

Now lawmakers are trying again to re-instate the local taxes. "Who in their right mind would think it is right for the state of Missouri that we would tax our own local businesses, but not those out-of-state," said Sen. Jay Wasson, R-Nixa.

This year's Senate bill would try to alleviate the governor's concerns. Republican Sen. Mike Kehoe, a former Jefferson City car dealership owner, said it's a "new version for the same conversation."

The bill would allow local governments to start collecting the sales tax immediately after Nixon's signature. But it would also require local governments to put a "repeal" vote on the ballot sometime between November 2014 and November 2016 in which voters would be asked whether they want to keep the local tax.

Kehoe said he thought his bill would be a "bit more palatable" to Nixon than the version he vetoed, because it lets voters decide whether to keep the tax.

One Senator said she was "a little nervous" about how the bill would allow taxes to be collected immediately without voter approval. But Minority Leader Jolie Justus, D-Kansas City, said she still wants the bill's end result.

Since the issue has been unresolved, counties and municipalities lost $43 million in revenue between April and December 2012, according to figures compiled by Kehoe's office. During that period, $1.4 billion in motor vehicle sales were not subject to local sales taxes. Missouri dealers sold $5.1 billion worth of vehicles, which were subject to local taxes.

At the time of Nixon's veto, just 43 of Missouri's 114 counties and more than 90 of the roughly 950 municipalities had the ability to continue to collect a sales tax on cars not bought at Missouri dealers. Under the Senate bill, these local governments would not have to hold a "repeal" vote and currently can collect taxes on motor vehicles not purchased from Missouri car dealers. With Kehoe's bill still in the legislative process, some counties are looking to fix the problem on their own. At least 18 counties or municipalities have placed "use taxes" on the April ballot that would apply to vehicles sold in other states or between individuals, according to Americans for Prosperity, a group that advocates for lower taxes and limited government.

ST. LOUIS (AP) - A southern Missouri school district is ending a policy prohibiting same-sex couples from attending prom, a day after a national anti-discrimination group threatened to sue.

Scott County Central School District superintendent Alvin McFerren told The Associated Press Friday that the school board has agreed to revise a handbook policy that prohibits same-sex dates at school dances. McFerren says the policy was adopted 10-15 years ago because students were attending prom as couples simply to save money - the couples price was cheaper than the individual cost.

The Southern Poverty Law Center on Thursday threatened legal action on behalf of Stacy Dawson, a male student who wanted to attend prom with his boyfriend. McFerren says Dawson can attend the dance on April 20 with whomever he chooses.

ST. LOUIS - AP - A small southeast Missouri school district is facing a threat of legal action over a policy barring same-sex couples from attending prom together.

The Southern Poverty Law Center on Thursday accused the Scott County Central School District in Sikeston of discrimination. Messages left with the district’s superintendent, Alvin McFerren, were not returned.

The district has just an elementary and a high school, serving a combined 330 students. The SPLC says a male student sought permission to bring his boyfriend to the prom on April 20, but was told district policy prohibits same-sex couples from attending school dances.

An SPLC attorney says the policy denies Dawson’s constitutional rights.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - The Republican-led Missouri House has advanced a new effort to require voters to show photo identification at polling places.

On Thursday, the House approved a constitutional amendment that allows a photo ID requirement. Lawmakers then endorsed legislation to implement it. Both measures now move to the state Senate.

Lawmakers have considered enacting a photo ID requirement for voting several times in recent years. Debate generally has split along partisan lines. Republicans now control a veto-proof supermajority in both the House and the Senate.

Supporters of a photo ID requirement say it would help prevent voter fraud and protect legitimate votes. Critics say Missouri has not had recent incidents of voter fraud and the requirement could make it more difficult for some people to cast ballots.

JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) - A Joplin man will face trial for first-degree murder after waiving a preliminary hearing in the killing of his estranged wife.

Thirty-five-year-old Rondias Webb waived the hearing Wednesday in Jasper County Circuit Court. He is charged in the Nov. 17 shooting death of 36-year-old Monica Webb.

Prosecutors say Monica Webb was shot inside the home where she had moved to get away from her husband. Police say Rondias Webb shot himself after shooting his wife.

The Joplin Globe reports Monica Webb had obtained a protection order against her husband in September after he was charged with misdemeanor domestic assault at an apartment they had shared. Two weeks before her shooting, Webb reported that her husband had violated the protection order.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - The slate of Democratic candidates is in flux for a vacant Missouri congressional seat with just two days remaining before party leaders pick a nominee.

State Rep. Linda Black, of Bonne Terre, announced Thursday that she would not seek the Democratic nomination to succeed Republican Congresswoman Jo Ann Emerson, who resigned last month. Black had been among the leading contenders for the 8th District seat in southeast Missouri.

Poplar Bluff chiropractor Jack Rushin, who lost to Emerson last year, said Thursday that he also is considering whether to drop his bid for the June 4 special election.

But state Rep. Steve Hodges, of East Prairie, announced he was entering the race.

The two other Democratic candidates are Todd Mahn of Festus and Markel Fitchpatrick of Blodgett.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - People fired for sleeping on the job and missing work could have a harder time getting unemployment benefits under a bill endorsed by the Missouri Senate.

The Senate gave initial approval Wednesday to a measure expanding the definition of "misconduct" in the workplace. The change would make it harder for people to qualify for unemployment insurance after they are fired. Supporters say the bill will protect businesses from liability and give them more freedom to fire employees who misbehave at work. The legislation is sponsored by Republican Sen. Will Kraus, of Lee's Summit. It needs one more affirmative vote in the Senate before moving to the House.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- A proposal to raise Missouri’s fines for seat belt violations could have a better chance in the Senate this year.

Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Mike Kehoe said Wednesday that he wants to advance the bill to the full Senate for debate. The legislation by Sen. Joe Keaveny has died each of the past three years in the transportation committee.

The Democratic senator from St. Louis is proposing to increase the fine from $10 to $50 for people caught not wearing seat belts in vehicles.

The percentage of people using seat belts in Missouri lags behind the national average, and Keaveny hopes a higher fine would encourage more people to buckle up.

The bill drew support Wednesday from police, insurance, doctors’ and trucking groups.