_Discussions about balancing the budget for the state of Missouri tend to focus on ways to cut spending. Today we look at the other side of the equation and explore some ideas for increasing revenue to pay for state government programs.

_Panelists:
Amy Blouin, executive director, Missouri Budget Project
Chris Kelly, 24th District Missouri House Representative
Misty Snodgrass, legislative and government relations director for the American Cancer Society.

_In advance of elections on Tuesday, we discuss the two school funding measures on the ballot. We also examine how the city council and school board races are shaping up. The discussion of school-related items fills the first half of the program; the second half is devoted to city council races.

_Panelists:
Andrew Denney, city government reporter, Columbia Tribune
Catherine Martin, K-12 education reporter, Columbia Tribune
Jan Mees, member, Columbia School Board
Jonathan Sessions, member, Columbia School Board
Kip Hill, public life reporter, Columbia Missourian (joining the program by phone)

After months of discussion, the Columbia City Council is expected to soon settle on a redrawn ward map. We follow up our discussion from July with a look at the latest ward reapportionment options under consideration. What are the changes proposed in each of the four maps options -- Trial A, Trial B, Trial D and Trial E? What are the implications of the proposed maps? How might the new boundaries affect the character of individual wards? And most importantly... why are people so worked up over some of the potential changes?

Panelists:
Andrew Denney, Columbia Daily Tribune reporter who has been covering ward reapportionment
Karen Miller, Columbia Missourian reporter who has been covering ward reapportionment
Karl Skala, former third ward councilman

It's time to rework the boundaries that outline the City Council districts in Columbia, thanks to uneven population growth across Columbia over the past 10 years. Panelists -- along with several members of the audience -- discuss the options that have been proposed and the implications of the different scenarios.

Panelists:
Kip Kendrick, president of Benton-Stephens Neighborhood Association
Wiley Miller, Ward Reappointment Committee member (also former psychologist, MU Counseling Center)
Bob Pugh, chair of the Columbia ward reapportionment committee (also former Columbia mayor and current CEO of MBS Textbook Exchange)
Terry Smith, member of the Columbia ward reapportionment committee (also executive vice president and dean of academic affairs at Columbia College)

A month into the job, Columbia's new city manager discusses his recent State of the City report, his priorities for the coming year, and his views on parking garages, tax incentives, development, economic growth, infrastructure, public spending, Columbia Regional Airport, and more.

Two newly-elected Columbia City Council members join us in the studio to share their vision for Columbia... and to take audience questions. The discussion includes their views on topics such as downtown parking, city growth, low-income housing, public safety, city budgeting, and more.

Panelists:
Fred Schmidt, Columbia First Ward city councilman
Helen Anthony, Columbia Fifth Ward city councilwoman

As a result of voting on April 5, Columbia City Council members will be paid in the future, and the City of Columbia is authorized to buy the Columbia Energy Center. Several cities in mid-Missouri also elected new city council and school board members. In advance of the election, our guest panel of Columbia-area journalists discussed the candidates and issues on the ballot.

Panelists:
Matt Beezley, public life reporter, Columbia Missourian
Pat Sweet, assistant city editor, Columbia Missourian
Lora Wegman, city editor, Columbia Daily Tribune

A panel of local and state journalists recap the biggest stories of 2010 and explain how those events might shape mid-Missouri in the year ahead.

Panelists:
Marshall Griffin, statehouse reporter for St. Louis Public Radio
Janese Silvey, higher education reporter at the Columbia Daily Tribune
Scott Swafford, senior city editor at the Columbia Missourian and associate professor at the Missouri School of Journalism

In preparation for Tuesday's voting, we take an across the board look at this election season -- including the highly contested U.S. Senate race in Missouri. We talk about how national trends have filtered down into politics in Missouri and have affected voter attitudes, political advertising and the democratic process.

Panelists:
George Kennedy, professor emeritus of the Missouri School of Journalism, and columnist and former managing editor at the Columbia Missourian
Marvin Overby, professor and Frederick A. Middlebush Chair in Political Science at MU
Phill Brooks, director of the State Government Reporting Program at the Missouri School of Journalism (joining the program by phone)

Panelists:
Edward Berg, attorney, and one of the original members of Coalition to Control Tasers
Dwayne Carey, Boone County sheriff