Kansas City Today

Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe signed the state budget into law last week, approving more than $50 billion in spending. But he also stripped more than half a billion dollars out that had been approved by lawmakers, including for dozens of programs and projects in Kansas City.

KCUR's Brian Ellison spoke with Up To Date host Steve Kraske about Kehoe's decision to use his line item vetoes, and what fallout those could have across the state.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Brian Ellison. It is produced by Byron Love, Carter Galloway, and KCUR Studios, and edited by Madeline Fox, Emily Younker and Gabe Rosenberg.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

Kansas City will be the smallest city in North America to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup. But it may not have embraced the sport at all, if not for the efforts of immigrants who fought for the beautiful game — before there were even soccer fields to play on.

In less than a year, Kansas City will welcome the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and hundreds of thousands of soccer fans. This moment is helping cement the city as an international soccer destination, but it wasn’t always this way. From the podcast “A People’s History of Kansas City,” Suzanne Hogan reports on the city's soccer beginnings.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Brian Ellison. It is produced by Byron Love, Carter Galloway, and KCUR Studios, and edited by Madeline Fox, Emily Younker and Gabe Rosenberg.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

People across Missouri and Kansas are losing their starry views to light pollution. But the right lighting decisions can help preserve night skies and benefit animal and human health.

Missouri's Thousand Hills State Park is the 12th place in the world to earn a special title: urban night sky place. "The point of this certification is not to just get rid of all of the lights," the park superintendent says. "We just don’t want them pointing up so we can’t see the sky. Or pointing in our eyes so we can’t see at all." The Kansas News Service's Celia Llopis-Jepsen explains.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Luke X. Martin. It is produced by Byron Love, Carter Galloway and KCUR Studios, and edited by Madeline Fox, Emily Younker and Gabe Rosenberg.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

Many federal workers in Kansas City have seen their jobs and departments cut and their work devalued under the Trump administration. We're bringing you another conversation about the Department of Government Efficiency's impacts in town, this time with a local union representative for the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

KCUR's Nomin Ujiyediin spoke with Shannon Ellis, an IRS employee who works in the customer service department and is president of the National Treasury Employees Union Chapter 66 — representing more than 6,000 employees.

If you’re a current or former federal employee and you want to talk to KCUR about your work, email Nomin at [email protected].

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Brian Ellison. It is produced by Byron Love, Carter Galloway and KCUR Studios, and edited by Madeline Fox, Emily Younker and Gabe Rosenberg.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

The Kansas City Chiefs asked the state of Kansas to extend its offer for a stadium funding incentives package, catching Missouri lawmakers off guard after they passed a funding measure of their own. But neither the Chiefs nor the Royals have made any location commitments yet.

Steve Kraske spoke to Kansas City Star government and politics reporter Kacen Bayless about stadium developments on KCUR's Up to Date.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Brian Ellison. It is produced by Byron Love, Carter Galloway and KCUR Studios, and edited by Madeline Fox, Emily Younker and Gabe Rosenberg.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

Next year, transgender teens in Kansas will no longer be able to access puberty blockers and hormone treatments for gender-affirming care. One family in Wichita is worried about navigating the changes. Plus, aircraft manufacturing is a big part of the Kansas economy, but new tariffs by the Trump administration have some companies scrambling.

In Kansas and across the country, transgender children have been the subject of legislation, litigation and political debate. Zane Irwin of the Kansas News Service spent the day with a Kansas family affected by the state’s recent ban on gender-affirming health care for minors.

Just a few months in, the Trump administration’s sweeping tariffs are already reshaping global commerce. That includes the Kansas aviation industry, which contributes more than $7 billion annually to the state economy. Rose Conlon of the Kansas News Service visited one Wichita business that’s working through new challenges and opportunities.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios, and edited by Madeline Fox, Emily Younker and Gabe Rosenberg.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

An organization that provides teenagers with internship opportunities has grown to be one of the metro's largest summer employers of youth. But are there enough positions to go around for students with the same dream career? Take a deep dive into ProX.

For teens in Kansas City, there aren't too many places where they can get on-the-job experience for their dream careers. But one organization is dedicated to giving them the chance to see what the day-to-day of their dream job is like. KCUR's Brandon Azim explains.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios, and edited by Madeline Fox, Emily Younker and Gabe Rosenberg.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

The Kansas City Police Department pays out settlements for crashes for which it takes responsibility. A 10-month KCUR investigation uncovered how often Kansas City police wreck their vehicles — and the cost to taxpayers.

A KCUR investigation revealed that the vast majority of Kansas City Police Department legal settlements involve car wrecks. The big-dollar settlements usually involve a wrongful conviction, but month after month, the police department writes checks for car crashes for which it accepts liability. KCUR’s Sam Zeff joins Carlos Moreno to talk about his investigation.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios, and edited by Madeline Fox, Emily Younker and Gabe Rosenberg.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

As missile attacks intensified between Israel and Iran last week, a Kansas City-area nurse was providing aid in Jordan. She describes her experience in the country situated between two warring nations.

The United States has executed airstrikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities, intervening in the war over the weekend in support of Israel. Roxanne Jones, a Kansas City-area nurse and vice president of Lenexa-based Global Care Force, was providing aid in Jordan, located between the two nations. She shares her experience with Steve Kraske on KCUR's daily talk show Up To Date.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios, and edited by Madeline Fox, Emily Younker and Gabe Rosenberg.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

The U.S. Senate version of President Trump's so-called “Big Beautiful Bill” could ultimately have major budgetary consequences for Missouri, because of a provision capping a critical tax that helps pay for Medicaid. Republican Sen. Josh Hawley says he's concerned about the effect on rural hospitals.

St. Louis Public Radio's politics correspondent Jason Rosenbaum discusses the details with KCUR's Brian Ellison.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted by Brian Ellison. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios, and edited by Madeline Fox, Emily Younker and Gabe Rosenberg.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.