The Appellate Judicial Commission now is accepting applications for the position of judge of the Supreme Court of Missouri, to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Judge Ronnie L. White, effective July 6. Judge White has served more than 11 years on the Court.

Applications may be filed until 5 p.m. Monday, July 9, 2007, but earlier submission is encouraged. The commission will meet Tuesday and Wednesday, July 24 and 25, 2007, in Columbia, Mo., to conduct interviews and to select a panel of three applicants for submission to the governor.

Interested persons may download an application and accompanying rules and instructions from the Missouri Courts website listed under Quicklinks, “Judicial Vacancies.” All applicants, including those who have applied previously for other vacancies, must file a new application.

The Missouri Constitution requires that a judge of the Supreme Court be at least 30 years old, licensed to practice law in Missouri, a United States citizen for at least 15 years and a qualified Missouri voter for at least nine years next preceding selection.

With all the uproar about the billions more dollars allocated for the Iraq War yesterday, almost completely unnoticed is that in the same bill Congress also raised the federal minimum wage for the first time in almost a decade.

The hike will raise the minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25 an hour over three years. Starting 60 days after it is signed into law, the first increase will be to $5.85. In year two, it goes to $6.55 an hour. And in year three, $7.25.