Thursday, April 28, 2016
Emerging Issues Can’t Move SJR39
The House Emerging Issues Committee voted on SJR 39 yesterday and failed to secure enough votes to move it, tying 6-6. There are several emotional statements made before the vote. Rep. Mike Colona described his experience of coming out to his mother, and her initial response: what did I do wrong?!
And Rep. Jim Hansen explained how the bill was highly personal and not an abstract debate at all. He had spent “hours and hours” considering the subject. His personal engagement with the issue brought many moist eyes to the audience.
See a video of the committee hearing here.
Here are two texts I received from Republicans that shows the divide on the issue.
Republican 1: Reps. Hansen, Caleb Rowden and Anne Zerr showed true leadership. I expect that they will be invited into meetings with corporate CEOs this summer, while many of their colleagues who were vocally supportive of SJR39 try to fundraise from the Missouri Baptist Convention.
Republican 2: Amateur hour in the MO House. A strong speaker would have never allowed that to happen…
Discharge?
It looks dead now, but remember with two weeks left nothing is dead. And talk began pretty quickly about a discharge petition. A bill in committee requires only one-third of the House members (55) to bring it to the floor calendar. However once the vote occurred and the bill was turned in, House Rule 43 was in effect and the number climbs to a constitutional majority (82 members). Folks I talked to believe that’s out of reach of supporters of the bill.
Senate Debates Voted ID Again
The Senate spent hours late last night debating the Voter ID bill again. (See HB 1631 bill here and see what Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal thinks of it here.). Democrats offered amendments and filibustered until it was the bill was laid over. This is clearly a Republican priority and one would expect them to use the “previous question” on this around the final day if no compromise is reached.
Some possible deals were mentioned in the hallways though it’s not clear if there are actual negotiations going on since this isn’t a “lobbyist issue”… Let Voter ID through for extended early voting period (probably acceptable to Dems but not Republicans); let it through for felons who have served their time being allowed to vote (probably accepted to Dems but not Republicans); or trade Voter ID for some other piece of priority legislation from urban legislators.
We’ll see….
Accountability Committee’s New Ad
David Humphreys’ PAC, Committee for Accountable Government in Missouri, announced yesterday that it was launching a new round of television commercials. They don’t target politicians as the ones in the past do. Instead they aim to “educate” workers how to de-certify their workplace union. See the TV ad here.
It’s certainly an unconventional campaign, and most likely a pretty great waste of money, but… all together now… we’ll see….
See one of the TV contracts here.
And
Paul Mouton – advisor to Humphreys – has been in the halls again this week. He’s not a registered lobbyist however so apparently he’s just hanging out, not trying to influence legislation or anything like that.
Marshall Contra MO Freedom
Rep. Nick Marshall cc-ed the entire legislature in his disagreement with Missouri Alliance for Freedom over their supporting bills…
Mr. Johnson,
I was disappointed to receive your emails urging support and passage of SB765 and SB572.
While I agree that the original purpose of each respective senate bill was good, the additions and changes through the Senate and House have made them thoroughly unconstitutional.
The Missouri Supreme Court has repeatedly warned the General Assembly about these Constitutional violations and has repeatedly struck down parts of our legislation because of it. Even our beloved judge Zel Fischer has scolded that we are not learning our lesson when it comes to these repeated violations of the single-subject and original purpose Constitutional restrictions.
In the end, it is never right to do wrong (constitutionally), to get the chance to do right.
In the future, I encourage you to closely examine all parts bills and all constitutional aspects before issuing action alerts in favor of bills….
Bits
Governor Jay Nixon announced appointments, subject to confirmation by the Senate… Former Rep. Martin Rucker and Jimmie Lee Wells to the Board of Probation and Parole; Koster-ite Matt Dameron and John Mehner to the Missouri Development Finance Board; and Larry Hale and Brian Jamison to the Missouri Gaming Commission.
From Politico’s Morning Health: CYBER BILL INTRODUCED IN THE HOUSE: Reps. Doris Matsui (D-Calif.) and Billy Long (R-Mo.) introduced the HHS Data Protection Act Tuesday; among other provisions, it creates a Chief Information Security Officer in HHS on Oct. 1, 2016. See the bill here.
From Politico’s Morning Defense: “Aerospace giant Boeing plans to continue building F/A-18E/F Super Hornets into the 2020s, a company executive tells POLITICO — a major turnaround for a fighter jet the Pentagon once wanted to stop buying this fiscal year. The decision to keep building the carrier-based jets follows years of lobbying by Boeing, the Navy and Missouri lawmakers determined not to allow the company’s St. Louis production line to close. It’s also the result of renewed international demand for the plane, with a deal to sell 28 Super Hornets to Kuwait in the final stages of the approval process. Then, there’s the fact that the F-35 fighter jet, designed to replace the Navy’s legacy F/A-18 Hornets and built by Boeing rival Lockheed Martin, has been delayed by years — forcing the Navy’s F-18 fleet to pick up the slack.”
A MOScout reader who follows national politics more than me (which means more than not at all) noted that in Maryland David Trone spent $12 million (“the biggest self-funding House candidate ever”) on a losing congressional bid. See it here. The Missouri connection: Trone’s company, Total Wine & More, does business here. Their lobbyists: Mike Gibbons and Tricia Workman.
Keep an eye on state revenue folks. With a few days left, the numbers for this big month of April are running behind last year…
Today’s Events
From Mary Scruggs’ indispensable events calendar:
Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal – Hendel’s Market Café – Florissant – 6:30PM.
Rep. Bill Otto Meet and Greet – Hughes Home – Chesterfield – 6:30PM.
Lobbyists Registrations
Steve Tilley and Shawn Rigger added Human Rights Campaign.
John Maslowski added Renovate America Inc.
Birthdays
Happy birthdays to former Rep. Brian Yates, Ameren’s Tina Shannon, and Adam Schnelting.