WASHINGTON (AP) — Retailers have the ability to scan your face digitally, and use that identification to offer you special prices or even recognize you as a prior shoplifter. But should they use it? Should they get your permission first?

Privacy advocates say they have walked away from a government-run effort with industry intended to answer these questions. The idea behind the negotiations was to hash out voluntary protocols for facial recognition technology in a way that doesn’t hurt consumers. The Commerce Department was acting as a mediator.

The two sides had been meeting for 16 months, including last week. But nine major privacy groups announced Tuesday that they had hit a dead end and that “people deserve more protection than they are likely to get in this forum.”

SEATTLE (AP) — Charitable giving in the United States has surpassed pre-recession levels for the first time in seven years.

A national organization that tracks the generosity of Americans says they gave an estimated $358 billion to charity in 2014. That’s about $47 billion more than they gave in 2007, the previous peak of charitable giving in the United States.

Last year marked the fifth year of increased giving. But the Giving USA Foundation had not expected donations to reach pre-recession levels for a few more years.

The economic recovery was given credit for most of the increase in giving. Charitable giving did not stop during the recession, but it slowed down and some Americans switched their donations toward human services.

Now they have started giving again to all their usual causes, from the environment to the arts.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A new report shows that 2 percent of the Kansas winter wheat has been cut since harvest activity began last week in the state.

The National Agricultural Statistics Service reported Monday that is about the same amount compared to a year ago at this time. But it is well behind the 18 percent typically cut by now on average.

The agency reported that 20 percent of the Kansas wheat crop has matured. That is behind the 26 percent that had done so at this time a year ago and well behind the 40 percent average for this late in the season.

About 29 percent of the wheat is reported in poor to very poor condition with 41 percent in fair shape. About 30 percent is in good to excellent condition.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Officials say the state math and reading tests this year went off with relatively few hitches.

The Kansas State Board of Education has learned that students and schools should have access to their scores in September.

Results from the exams last year were later declared invalid following technical glitches and cyberattacks of unknown origins. The 2014 exams were the first time the state rolled out a new test design and test delivery platform.

Testing staff worked to resolve the technical bugs and contracted with a private company to shield the testing platform from the cyberattacks.

(AP) — Rivers are rising throughout Missouri, and with more rainfall in the forecast, moderate flooding is now expected at several locations.

Both the Missouri and Mississippi rivers are overflowing their banks, due to heavy rain that has settled over the central U.S. over the past several days.

As of 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, the Missouri River at St. Joseph was at 19.25 feet, minor flood stage is between 17 and 21 feet. The river is expected to crest at 20.4 feet Wednesday in St. Joseph.

Butch Dye of the National Weather Service office in St. Louis said Monday that more rain is in the forecast for much of southwestern and eastern Missouri through the week. Up to 7 inches of rain could fall by the weekend, potentially making flooding even worse in parts of the state.

Parts of the Missouri River are expected to reach 4 feet above flood stage this week. The Mississippi is expected to reach 7 feet above flood stage south of St. Louis, but no significant problems are expected.

(AP and Post contributions)

JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) — A southwest Missouri judge has sentenced a 41-year-old man to life in prison for killing a Missouri Southern State University coach.

Circuit Judge Gayle Crane on Monday sentenced Jeffrey Bruner to life without parole in the November 2013 shooting death of Derek Moore, an assistant football coach at Missouri Southern State.

A jury found Bruner guilty at a trial in March.

Crane assessed Bruner the mandatory term of life without parole and five years for armed criminal action at the sentencing hearing in Jasper County Circuit Court. The judge also denied a motion for a new trial.

Also during the hearing, Bruner tried to apologize to the family and asked for their forgiveness.

NEOSHO, Mo. (AP) — Federal authorities are investigating after an explosion at a recycling facility in southwest Missouri killed one person and injured another. Neosho city spokesman Wes Franklin says the explosion at USA Metal Recycling in Neosho occurred early Monday. The site has been contained and there was minimal building damage.

Franklin says USA Metal Recycling recycles military shell casings at its Neosho plant. Lisa Nichols, a dispatcher with USA Metal Recycling in Lowell, Ark., said the company isn’t commenting.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration says its regional office has opened an investigation into the cause of the explosion. OSHA says the injured employee is expected to recover.

The agency also says the site has about 8 to 10 employees.

HARTSBURG, Mo. (AP) — Firefighters have pulled a body from the Missouri River in central Missouri. The search began early Monday when people reported seeing a body in the river.

Boone County Fire Protection District Division Chief Gale Blomenkamp says crews found the body floating in the river between Cooper’s Landing and Hartsburg north of Jefferson City. He says the body was downstream from where it had been sighted.

The medical examiner’s office will determine the cause of death. No other information has been released about the body.

The name of the victim has not been released. An autopsy was planned to determine cause of death. Authorities say people clearing logs away from a boat saw the body and contacted police.

 

DETROIT (AP) — Honda is adding more than a million of its most popular vehicles to a growing recall for air bags that can inflate with too much force.

The company said Monday it’s expanding a previous recall of passenger air bag inflators from high-humidity states to the entire nation. That will add just over a million 2001 to 2005 Civics and 2003 to 2007 Accords to the recall.

Two weeks ago Honda said it would recall about 350,000 of the cars in high humidity areas. But it added more Civics and Accords after U.S. safety regulators required a national recall.

Air bags made by Takata Corp. can send shrapnel into drivers and passengers. The problem has been blamed for at least seven deaths and more than 100 injuries worldwide.

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. (AP) — A southeast Missouri man who reached a plea deal with prosecutors after allegedly admitting that he exposed up to 300 people to the virus that causes AIDS faces sentencing next month.

The Dexter Daily Statesman reports that David L. Mangum of Dexter pleaded guilty last week to two counts of recklessly risking infection of another person of HIV. Dexter police say they interviewed alleged victims from several southeast Missouri counties.

Police say Mangum told detectives that he tested positive for HIV in 2003, and he claimed to have had 300 partners in the years since, without informing them of his HIV diagnosis. It wasn’t immediately clear if any of his partners developed the disease.

Sentencing is July 21.