JEFFERSON CITY (AP) – Missouri groups are asking for state lawmakers’ help in releasing millions of dollars in funding withheld by the governor.

Members of the state Senate Appropriations Committee on Tuesday listened for three hours as groups fighting for arts education, help for victims of domestic violence and other programs pleaded for lawmaker assistance.

Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon withheld roughly $700 million this fiscal year, but Missourians in November amended the state constitution to allow lawmakers to override a governor’s budget restrictions.

It’s unclear whether lawmakers can use those powers on budget restrictions made by Nixon before that amendment passed.

Appropriations Committee chairman and Republican state Sen. Kurt Schaefer of Columbia says if lawmakers act, they’ll prioritize money for many of the programs discussed Tuesday.

JEFFERSON CITY (AP) – Members of the Missouri House have rejected a proposed raise for themselves and other state elected officials.

The House voted Tuesday to forego salary increases of about 11 percent for themselves and a proposed increase of $22,000 per year for Gov. Jay Nixon.

Some Democrats spoke in favor of a pay increase. House Minority Leader Jacob Hummel said the current salary meant only wealthy individuals could serve in the Legislature.

The measure passed 133-15. It now goes to the Senate.

Senate Majority Leader Ron Richard says the measure may face more opposition in the Senate and has a 50-50 chance of passing.

CAROLYN THOMPSON, Associated Press

Nearly all campus police officers at public universities now carry guns, pepper spray and other weapons, according to a new Justice Department report, and experts say more private schools are looking to arm police.

The Bureau of Justice Statistics surveyed more than 900 four-year colleges with at least 2,500 students. Findings released Tuesday show that overall, about two-thirds of public and private campuses used armed officers during the 2011-12 school year. Officers at public universities were more than twice as likely as those at private schools to carry guns.

Despite the increase, schools aren’t required to report weapon use to federal authorities.

Experts say campus administrators are increasingly being pressed for assurances that officers are well-equipped and well-trained following high-profile crimes like the 2007 Virginia Tech shootings.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas lawmakers are considering a bill that would toughen punishments for scrap metal theft amid a sharp increase in the crime statewide.

Law enforcement officials and representatives of utility companies testified during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Tuesday that millions of dollars in damage are being done to businesses and homes each year by scrap thieves seeking precious metals. They said existing laws fail to adequately address the issue.

Senate Majority Leader Terry Bruce criticized the bill, saying its proposed punishments were excessive. Under the bill, first time offenders would face 11 to 34 months in jail, while repeat offenders could face more than 11 years behind bars.

The bill would also set up a database that would help law enforcement track metal transactions by scrap dealers and recycling centers.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Prosecutors asked a federal judge to order collection of a DNA sample from a man in Kansas accused of assuming the identity of a dead Texas boy.

Teodoro Erasmo Luna initially had requested through his attorney that his Jan. 13 trial be delayed to allow the testing, and the judge agreed.

But in a court filing Tuesday. prosecutors say Luna balked when his jailers tried to collect the sample, even after his defense attorney met with him.

The government is now asking the court to direct the U.S. Marshals Service to immediately obtain a swab of his saliva for use in DNA testing.

His defense did not immediately return an email seeking comment.

Luna is charged in a 17-count indictment with aggravated identity theft and related crimes.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas legislators have learned that Republican Gov. Sam Brownback’s proposals for reducing the state’s annual payments for public pensions would increase long-term costs by $3.7 billion.

The House Appropriations Committee received a briefing Tuesday about Brownback’s proposal to extend the time for closing a long-term funding gap for the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System.

A 2012 law commits the state to increasing payments to KPERS to eliminate a $9.8 billion shortfall in the pension system by 2033. Brownback wants the payoff date to be 2043 to lower the state’s annual costs.

He’s also proposing to issue $1.5 billion in bonds to give KPERS an infusion of funds.

But the changes would require larger-than-planned contributions to KPERS after 2032. Some lawmakers said they’re concerned about the higher long-term costs.

ERIC TUCKER, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department has reached a $134,000 settlement with a New York woman after federal drug agents used information from her cellphone to set up a fake Facebook page in her name.

The settlement with Sondra Arquiett was revealed in court papers Tuesday, months after a judge referred both sides into mediation.

It follows revelations that the Drug Enforcement Administration took photos and other information from Arquiett’s cellphone to create a fake Facebook page in hopes of tricking her friends and associates into revealing incriminating drug secrets. Arquiett had earlier been arrested in a cocaine case and was sentenced in 2012 to time served and given a period of home confinement.

Arquiett sued the federal government last year. The Justice Department initially defended the practice but later announced a review.

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — The former technology director for the city of Lenexa has been sentenced to prison for fraud.

Forty-four-year-old Andrew Davey, of Overland Park, Kansas, was sentenced Tuesday to a year and a day in prison and ordered to pay $103,000 in restitution.

He pleaded guilty in October to wire fraud.

Prosecutors say Davey would take city-owned technology such as iPads, computers and televisions and give them to friends and family, or sell them online and keep the profits.

He worked for Lenexa from 2010 to 2012.

JEFFERSON CITY (AP) – A Missouri Republican who supports Medicaid expansion will introduce a bill that would cover veterans and their families.

Missouri residents with incomes below the federal poverty level, or $19,530 for a family of three, do not qualify for Medicaid or for subsidies to buy health insurance through a federally run website.

Sen. Ryan Silvey, of Kansas City, says that group includes veterans’ families. He plans to introduce a bill expanding Medicaid for veterans that fall in the coverage gap created by Missouri’s decision not to expand the program.

Silvey says he still supports a broader Medicaid expansion but doesn’t want to leave veterans in a lurch if those proposals do not move forward this year.

Republican leaders have said Medicaid expansion is unlikely this session.

JEFFERSON CITY (AP) – Tyson Foods Inc. will pay $539,000 for a chemical spill that killed more than 100,000 fish and caused a southwest Missouri town’s wastewater treatment system to fail.

The settlement was announced Tuesday by Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster, who sued the company last June.

Koster says that last May, Tyson discharged wastewater that contained an acidic animal feed supplement from its Aurora facility, eventually causing Monett’s wastewater treatment system to fail and contaminating Clear Creek in Barry County.

The settlement will be divided between state agencies and a $110,000 civil fine. Tyson also will replace a bridge over Clear Creek and donate $10,000 to the James River Basin Partnership.

Tyson said in a statement that it “deeply regretted” the incident and has worked with authorities to correct any problems.