Friday, April 25, 2014
Anti-SB509 Radio Spot Starts
Coalition for Missouri’s Future which successfully fought last year’s tax cut bill (HB 253) is back. (See coalition members here.) And they started doing radio – in Springfield – yesterday to fight this year’s tax cut bill, SB 509.
Why Springfield? The area is dominated by Republican legislators but has clutch of educational institutions. So it might be a place where local interests could bring some pressure on individual members of the united Republican caucus.
The Script
They’re at it again special interests and politicians in the Missouri Legislature are pushing a risky tax scheme that will force cuts to our local schools.
It’s called Senate Bill FIVE-OH- NINE (509). A risky experiment that creates special tax loopholes for lawyers and lobbyists while cutting our schools.
If Senate Bill FIVE-OH-NINE (509) becomes law our local schools could face drastic cuts. Meaning hundreds of local teachers out of work, overcrowded classrooms, and cuts to activities.
All so lawyers and lobbyists can get a special tax loophole and a six- hundred-twenty-million dollar tax break. Unbelievable!
Call your legislator today at 1-866-617-4263 and tell them put our schools ahead of special interests and to vote no on Senate Bill 509.
Pro-SB509 Advocates Correct Nixon’s Spreadsheet
Speaker Pro Tem Denny Hoskins circulated numbers late last week to correct what Republicans feel is a misleading spreadsheet that Governor Jay Nixon released the week before.
Nixon’s spreadsheet showed the impact in each school district should the tax cuts of SB 509 go into effect. The Hoskins numbers adjust it for the triggers in the bill.
From the email: Last Thursday, Gov. Nixon released a statement with a spreadsheet from MSBA showing an untrue reduction in revenue to all of our school districts. There is one significant flaw to the assumptions made in their data—they did not factor in the growth to revenue we must meet in order for the tax cut to be implemented.
The attached spreadsheet paints a more accurate picture for our school districts. It is formulated using the same math as the MSBA spreadsheet and it accounts for the growth/triggers. I hope it is helpful if you receive calls from your superintendents.
Barnes Dismantles Nixon’s Claim
On his blog (see it here) Rep. Jay Barnes dismantles Governor Jay Nixon’s contention that the SB 509 as written would result in no state income tax for anyone earning over $9,000.
On Tuesday, Gov. Nixon claimed a sentence in the bill did something other than what the legislature has been debating for the past two years: reduce the top tax rate – not to 5.5 percent – but instead to zero.
Gov. Nixon’s Chicken Little-style interpretation is only possible if you read one sentence of the bill in complete isolation from the rest of it. But after 16 years serving as our state government’s top attorney, Gov. Nixon knows that courts don’t interpret legislative language in isolation.
Dempsey Letter #2
Senate Pro Tem Tom Dempsey sent a second letter to Attorney General Chris Koster yesterday, following up on his first letter and subsequent meeting, reiterating his request for information.
Dear Attorney General Chris Koster,
Thank you for following up with regard to the status of Master Settlement Agreement negotiations. It has come to my attention that there seems to be some confusion as to whether I still wish to receive the information included in my previous letter to you dated, March 26, 2014. I would like this information, and I request that it be provided as soon as possible…
Also, as previously stated, I do not believe that any legal privilege attaches to raw data (e.g. attorney-client privilege, work production privilege, etc.). If your opinion is to the contrary, I request that you specifically name the types of data requested that you believe are shielded by any privilege or statute.
I look forward to…..
This continuing back-and-forth bodes ill for passage of legislation changing the MSA.
Here Comes Ashcroft
Jay Ashcroft was in the building yesterday, meeting with senators and talking up the prospects for his race. It’s said that he’s done his polling and feels confident. We’ll see…
Salva Gets Sentence
Former Rep. Ray Salva was sentenced for Social Security fraud. See the story here.
Criminal Code Passes
The legislature passed the criminal code revision. Just in time to allow for an override vote during session should Governor Jay Nixon decide to veto it because it’s too big and the potential for drafting errors is too high.
It’s said that earlier this week his office contacted Senate bill sponsor Jolie Justus to express some concerns. But once again he’s late to the game. With implementation pushed off until 2017, any concerns could be addressed in next year’s legislative session, a fact which has buoyed bipartisan legislative support to move forward with the reforms.
See the Post-Dispatch article here.
Help Wanted
Department of Insurance, Financial Institutions & Professional Registration seeks Chief of Investigations.
Works under the direct supervision of the Division Director of Consumer Affairs. Supervises all work activities of investigators and support staff…
LOCATION: Investigations Section, Consumer Affairs Division, Jefferson City, Missouri
MINIMUM SALARY: $50,975 (Salary will be commensurate with relevant qualifications and experience)
Tomorrow is Comcast Cares Day
Look for 8 – 10 state legislators to be at Comcast Cares Day tomorrow in Independence Missouri. From 8am to Noon, they’ll be painting inside, mulching outside, and generally cleaning up the Hope House.
Comcast will have a camera and crew at the event to tape unscripted Public Service Announcements on the importance of volunteering, so you’ll be see their mugs on cable TV in the months to come…
$5K+ Contributions
Missouri Senate Campaign Committee - $17,500 from Anheuser Busch Companies.
Birthdays
Happy birthdays to Ed Finkelstein (76), and Libla’s Courtney Lauer-Myers.
Saturday: Jennifer Bauer.
Sunday: Rep. Tony Dugger.