JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - Missouri's two U.S. senators are backing legislation to name a new federal courthouse in Jefferson City after former Sen. Kit Bond.
Republican Sen. Roy Blunt said the legislation was approved Wednesday by the Senate public works committee. Blunt is sponsoring the legislation with Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill.
Bond recently retired from the Senate after serving 24 years; voters in last year's elections chose Blunt to succeed him. Bond also is a former Missouri governor and auditor.
Judges are scheduled to move into the new courthouse in mid-August. It's built on the site of the former Missouri State Penitentiary on a bluff overlooking the Missouri River. The current federal courthouse shares a building with the U.S. Post Office across the street from the Missouri Capitol.