By AP/KWMU
Jefferson City, MO – A proposal to raise the tobacco tax in Missouri is still off the ballot after a day of legal arguments Thursday, but there will be more arguments today.
A Cole County judge rejected all of the arguments -- both from supporters and opponents -- seeking to either count or disqualify initiative petition signatures.
Secretary of State Robin Carnahan determined that the proposed constitutional amendment fell 274 signatures short of the number required in a Kansas City area congressional district.
But Thursday's ruling by Judge Thomas Brown isn't the end of the matter because another hearing is scheduled Friday, and attorneys are expected to make more legal arguments and perhaps argue over whether individual signatures should be counted.