KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Legislation in the U.S. Senate seeks to avoid a repeat of what happened in June, when farmers in Missouri and Iowa received letters from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers offering to buy their land just as the Missouri River rose.
Days before some of the letters were mailed, the corps began releasing massive amounts of water into the river from storage reservoirs upstream.
The corps has said the timing of the letters was a coincidence and a mistake. The corps has been acquiring land to rebuild wildlife habitats.
Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri has introduced legislation that would prohibit the corps from sending such letters during a flood event. Missouri's other senator, Republican Roy Blunt, signed on as a co-sponsor.
McCaskill described the letters as "unbelievably inappropriate and rude."