Wednesday, November 28, 2012
The + Four Impact
Yesterday I wrote about a few legislative targets in the coming session which might trigger the governor’s veto pen. Last session both passed the Senate with veto-proof majorities, and passed the House without enough votes to override.
The changes to the Missouri Human Rights Act – HB 1219 – only passed the House with 89 votes. Thus despite the new supermajority Republicans will still be challenged to override this. To do so, they’ll have to make concessions to pull some wayward caucus members back into their fold on this issue. See the governor veto letter here.
Republicans who dissented were Reps. Randy Asbury (replaced by new Republican), Jay Barnes, TJ Berry, Rick Brattin, Brent Lasaster (replaced by Dem), Melissa Leach (replaced by Dem), Nick Marshall, Myron Neth, Ron Schieber, Ryan Silvey (to Senate), Sheila Solon, Noel Torpey, and Zach Wyatt (replaced by Republican).
The other issue recently mentioned was changes to the occupational disease portion of workers compensation. SB 572 passed with 87 votes in the House, again making it necessary for Republicans to lure back some members if they want a veto-proof voting bloc. See the governor’s veto letter here.
Republican who dissented were Reps. Randy Asbury (replaced by new Republican), Jay Barnes, Jeff Grisamore, Galen Higdon, Brent Lasaster (replaced by Dem), Melissa Leach (replaced by Dem), Nick Marshall, Chris Molendorp, Myron Neth, Ron Schieber, Ryan Silvey (to Senate), Chrissy Sommer, Ray Weter (appointed to Christian Commission), Anne Zerr.
St. Louis County Passes Wider Non-Discrimination Law
Last night St. Louis County Council passed an ordinance adding LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered) to those protected under its nondiscrimination laws. Read the Beacon article here.
Sen. Jim Lembke spoke against the ordinance. See the mighty Jason Rosenbaum’s interview with him here. Speaker Tim Jones and Sen. Brian Nieves sent letters opposing the ordinance.
Rumorville: Lembke Intern – Not Lembke – to Emery’s Office
The rumor-mill baby, it churns out the talk just as fast as real reporters can chase down the facts! Last night the mighty Jason Rosenbaum asked Sen. Jim Lembke if he would be headed to Sen-elect Ed Emery’s office. The answer was: no.
New rumor: Josh Foster, a former Lembke intern, is the one who is headed to Emery’s office.
I’ll let you know what Rosenbaum finds out about this one…
Ray Salva Indicted
Former state representative Ray Salva was indicted yesterday for fraud. AP has the story. Read it here. The accusation is that he continued to take his Social Security Disability checks even after he was employed as a lawmaker. The fraud amounted to $58,917.
The Medicaid Expansion Question
The Kaiser Foundation released an analysis of the cost of the Affordable Care Act (aka ObamaCare), broken down by state. See it here.
For Missouri (see the state breakdown on page 8 of the above link) they calculate that it will cost an extra $23.7 billion in the decade from 2013-2022. The federal government will cover most of that cost, leaving Missouri with a $2.8 billion price-tag.
Of that $2.8 billion, $1.5 billion would contain the cost of Medicaid expansion, an idea unpopular with Republican legislators. According to Kaiser, implementing the Medicaid expansion in Missouri would reduce the number of Missourians without insurance from approximately 800,000 to 300,000.
Wolf PAC
Former state rep candidate Courtney Cole started a committee this week, Wolf PAC. See it here. WOLF stands for Women on Leadership Fund. The idea is to raise money to help progressive women around the state.
MO Planned Parenthood Preps to Voice Outrage Neat Year
From their recent email blast:
“This year, leaders in the Missouri legislature held a clinic on how to throw women’s reproductive rights under the bus. The 2012 Session featured everything from the House Speaker refusing to recognize seven female House members to speak against an anti-birth control resolution, to the Missouri General Assembly voting to override Gov. Nixon’s veto of the Birth Control Refusal bill… It wouldn’t surprise us if the 1950’s called and asked for their reproductive health care agenda back…
“The good news is that, with up-to-date contact information, we helped thousands of Missourians voiced their outrage every step of the way: Over 2,700 letters were sent to legislators urging them to vote NO on anti-birth control bills. Hundreds attended a rally at the Capitol and delivered over 35,000 petitions to Speaker Tilley demanding that he withdraw his plan to honor Rush Limbaugh with a bust in the Hall of Famous Missourians. Thousands of supporters asked for and received a veto of the Birth Control Refusal bill from Governor Nixon!
“Please take a moment to update your contact information and so that we can make sure you get the information you need to take action next year!...”
Former Rep Peter Myers Dies
Speaker Tim Jones’ statement: “The House as a body stands in mourning for the loss of former State Representative Peter Myers. He was a stellar State Representative and a dedicated public servant, and I know that he will be remembered as a tireless champion of American ideals.”
Sen.-elect Wayne Wallingford’s statement: “He will be missed. Whether as a legislator, deputy
secretary for the USDA, local Republican Committeeman, or any of the other positions he held throughout his life, he always served our state and our country honorably, and I know he will be fondly remembered for his service.”
And More Sales Go Online…
“Cyber Monday” e-tail sales were up 30.5% from a year earlier according to IBM. Read it here.
eMailbag: On Sen. Brian Nieves’ New Side Business
“If you've got something against Ponzi schemes, you should stop paying your FICA tax…”
$5K+ Contributions
Citizens to Elect John Wright - $15,000 from John Wright.
Missourians for Health and Education - $10,267 from American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network.
Birthdays
Happy birthday to Rep. Ed Schieffer (63), and SEIU Healthcare’s Lenny Jones (45).