JEFFERSON CITY- Three Missouri taxpayers are suing to stop the state from providing money to a multi-state consortium that’s developing tests tied to the new Common Core education standards.

The Jefferson City News-Tribune reports that the lawsuit was filed last week in Cole County Circuit Court. The suit calls the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium an “illegal interstate compact not authorized by the U.S. Congress.”

Plaintiffs include suburban St. Louis businessman Fred Sauer. He was an unsuccessful Republican candidate in the 2012 gubernatorial primary.

The Common Core standards are unpopular among some conservatives. The uniform set of benchmarks for reading, writing and math replace a hodgepodge of educational goals that had varied from state to state. Backers say they are more rigorous, while critics fear they will set a national curriculum.

BY REBECCA FRENCH SMITH

Fall is a perfect time to learn about agriculture. Harvest is in full swing and farmers are bringing the last fruits and vegetables of the summer season to farmers’ markets, while some farmers are getting ready to host guests looking for an experience only agriculture can provide.

Across Missouri, farmers are opening their farms to guests not only during the fall but year-round. This time of year, pumpkin patches and corn mazes are busy making final preparations for guests to come gather their fall decorations or ingredients for their pumpkin desserts. Corn mazes will soon hear the squeals of children enjoying the twists and turns of the paths through the corn.

At other times of the year, u-pick berry patches, orchards and community supported agriculture farms are busy sharing their harvest with their customers who want to pick their own food. But food isn’t the only sort of agritourism found in the Show Me State. Horse rides, hay rides, Christmas trees, nurseries, wineries, on-farm bed-and-breakfasts and a host of other agriculture and rural experiences exist outside the city limits.

The idea of attracting visitors to the farm is not new. In the last two decades in Missouri, agritourism has become a more viable option as a new revenue stream for an existing farm or for new farmers looking to carve out a niche to support their families. According to the 2012 Ag Census, agritourism farms in Missouri grew from 588 farms in 2007 to 844 farms, a 43.5 percent increase, one of the fastest growing sectors of agriculture. Farm income from agritourism also increased significantly in Missouri, from $7.7M to $10.5M.

The growth of agritourism was apparent during the recent festivities at the Fall Farm Festival at the Magic House in St. Louis, where we brought a little of the farm to town. Guests to the museum enjoyed learning about agriculture and interacting with dairy cows, sheep, donkeys, tractors and hands-on activities. Little fingers and little hands wrapped around orange construction paper and pipe cleaners that would become a pumpkin when they were finished, as Missouri Farm Bureau volunteers explained the connection that these activities had with farming. At the pumpkin table, when I asked, most of the children knew how pumpkins grow — on the vine in the garden, of course. Many had been to a farm and picked out a pumpkin from the pumpkin patch.

Finding an agricultural experience is easy. You can put together a trip of your own and get more information on available opportunities at MOFB.org/MarketingCommodities/Agritourism.aspx.

Rebecca French Smith, of Columbia, Mo., is a multimedia specialist for the Missouri Farm Bureau, the state’s largest farm organization.

MATT SEDENSKY, Associated Press

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — An Institute of Medicine report says Americans often suffer needless discomfort and undergo unwanted and costly care as they die.

The “Dying in America” study released Wednesday was done by a panel of 21 experts. It finds that people repeatedly stress a desire to die at home, free from pain, but often the opposite happens.

The authors blame a medical system ruled by “perverse incentives” for aggressive care, inadequate physician training and too few conversations about end-of-life wishes.

They say patients’ advance directives have not been particularly effective, and urge a series of conversations throughout life about what’s desired in death. They say those talks should begin early, perhaps when people are teenagers.

DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is recalling 221,558 Cadillac XTS and Chevrolet Impala sedans because the brake pads can stay partially engaged even when they’re not needed, increasing the risk of a fire.

The recall involves Cadillacs from the 2013-2015 model years and Impalas from the 2014 and 2015 model years. There are 205,309 vehicles affected in the U.S.; the rest of the vehicles are in Canada and elsewhere.

GM says the electronic parking brake arm that applies pressure to the back of the brake pads may not fully retract after use. If the brake pads stay partially engaged with the rotor, excessive brake heat may result in a fire.

GM says it knows of no accidents or injuries related to the defect.

GM will notify owners and repair the vehicles for free.