The Associated Press

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says the near-historic Mississippi River flood of 2011 caused $2.8 billion in damage and tested the system of levees, reservoirs and floodways like no other flood before it.

The Army Corps released a report Monday saying the Mississippi River and Tributaries system was operated as it was designed to work and was mostly successful in fighting the flood along of the nation's most important inland waterway.

Kentucky is coming closer to closing a loophole that allows amusement ride operators to avoid paying fines for safety violations.

The House Committee on Agriculture and Small Business has approved a bill that requires operators to pay fines regardless of a change in their business's name or ownership. Operators have been able to dodge fines after transferring ownership or renaming themselves, according to Sen. Morgan McGarvey, the bill's sponsor.

A Washington-based group has started airing its second TV ad in Kentucky criticizing U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell on his pro-gun record.

The Progressive Change Campaign Committee began airing the spot Monday, saying it spent $100,000 on both ads. The newest ad focuses on Gary Nutt, a Cub Run resident and gun owner who supports a reinstatement of a ban on military-style weapons. Nutt criticizes McConnell's support from the gun lobby and for "blocking reform" and asks who’s side the senator is on.

The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security is requesting over 7 and a half million dollars to supplement its budget after a planned windfall from driver's license fees failed to materialize.  A 2011 bill allowed the state to revoke the licenses of people who don’t pay criminal fines and court costs.

Kentucky may soon join a small but growing number of states enacting laws to protect juvenile victims of the sex trade.  House Bill 3 would restrict authorities' ability to charge minors with offenses related to prostitution and require minors suspected to be involved in prostitution receive social services. 

The Hopkins County Jail has taken a gardening program for inmates to a new level by adding a small orchard.  Jailer Joe Blue says inmates enrolled in a Master Gardener program have planted 30 apple trees on a quarter-acre site near the jail. 

Sports tourism is expected to have a $20 million impact on Owensboro this year.  Jared Bratcher is sports marketing director for the Owensboro-Daviess County Convention & Visitors Bureau.  He tells the Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer there will be more than 50 tournaments, including figure skating, hockey, baseball, running, soccer, softball, basketball, tennis, volleyball, fishing and football.

Tennessee lawmakers are poised to decide this week whether a proposal to allow supermarket wine sales moves ahead.  The bill to overhaul the current system preventing shoppers from buying wine alongside groceries faces votes in both House and Senate committees this week.

Illinois officials say savings from cuts to the state's Medicaid program have fallen short by $464 million. That’s about 30 percent of the expected $1.6 billion in cuts to the health program for the poor.

Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services Director Julie Hamos says nearly half the gap is because of a delay in implementing a program to check Medicaid recipients' eligibility. The federal government also denied permission to carry out some planned cuts.