MOScout Daily Update: House Passes ESA - Parson Announces Next Phase - Richardson to Take Leave of Absence and more...

Richardson To Take Leave of Absence

Todd Richardson will be taking a leave of absence as Medicaid Director beginning in late March.

He’s taking a break after a demanding period in which he maintained his regular duties as head of the Medicaid program, and was also running point for the governor on many parts of the COVID response.

He’ll be taking several months off to spend time with his family, expecting to return in the early fall.   

Look for an interim director appointed from within the department to maintain operational and agenda continuity in the department during his unpaid absence. 

House Passes ESA Legislation

In a contentious issue in which the Republican supermajority was divided, House leadership was able to cobble together the needed votes to pass Rep. Phil Christofanelli’s HB 349 creating “Missouri Empowerment Scholarship Accounts Program.” 

The measure passed with the minimum amount of votes necessary, 82.  And the difference between the perfection vote and the passage vote showed some fluidity in the voting.

Advocates for the bill lost Democratic support as well as Republican Rep. Brad Pollit.  But they picked up Reps. Andrew McDaniel and Shane Roden who didn’t vote on perfection, and Rep. Louis Riggs who voted against perfection.

It was a big win for Speaker Rob Vescovo who put himself on the line with a passionate speech just before the vote.

Of course, this isn’t final passage.  The Senate must approve it too.  It’s a safe assumption that they won’t simply pick it up and pass it.

One provision which could give heartburn to some folks is how the top “tier” of qualifying students is defined.  An early amendment defined a qualifying student as those with an IEP or by income level.

One reader points out the “or” means “an affluent parent who has a kid with an IEP to use that scholarship for private school… Many St. Louis County kids go to public school and then they go to a private catholic high school. So it would be easy for them to access this scholarship. My personal feeling is this money should be for people who can can’t afford choice – not for people who just want to subsidize choice… they need to change the OR to an AND.”

The Senate version doesn’t have “tiers.”

And

·         One MOScouter noted that the legislature has passed significant education reform in the past… Major school choice reform was put on Nixon's desk in 2014 and 2015.

·         Another downplayed the rhetoric about how transformational this House bill was: It’s basically just another benevolent tax credit.

House Passes Anti-Eminent Domain Bill

The House passed HB 527 yesterday.  It makes expands the prohibition on eminent domain to include projects such as the Grain Belt Express.  It passed by a vote of 113-44.  But it will likely have a harder time in the Senate.

Sen. Jason Bean is carrying the Senate version, SB 508.  It does not appear to be on a fast track.

Senate Passes Law Enforcement Bill

The Senate passed Sen. Bill Eigel’s SB 26, covering a variety of law enforcement issues.

The vote was nearly straight party line.  Sen. Doug Beck the lone Democrat voting with Republicans in the 24-9 vote.

Parson Announces Next Vaccine Step

Governor Mike Parson announced that “Tier 3” eligibility for getting the COVID vaccine will begin on March 15.

While we strongly encourage Missourians to consider getting a vaccine, we know it’s a personal choice and not everyone who is eligible will want to. In fact, a recent study by the Missouri Hospital Association found that approximately 40 percent of people are NOT likely to seek out a vaccine.

Currently, we estimate there are about 800,000 Missourians who ARE eligible and interested in getting vaccinated, but by March 15, we expect this number to decrease because of vaccinations to roughly 400,000.

Part of why we are activating Tier 3 on March 15 is to make sure that there is a steady flow of people who are eligible and interested in getting vaccinated.

This allows vaccinators across the state to continue vaccinating Missourians without having to wait on those who don’t want one.

Just as we have done throughout the pandemic, we are looking to what is next and taking proactive steps now to be ready for the next phase of this fight.

Lobbyists Registrations

Gamble & Schlemeier added Wave Taco.

David Winton added Missouri Health Connection.

Jake Silverman added Missouri Electric Restructure Association.

Sherry Doctorian deleted National Association of Public Insurance Adjusters.

$5K+ Contributions

Freedom Incorporated - $87,000 from Together KC.

Together KC - $10,000 from Lathrop GPM LLP.

Citizens for Proposition A - $10,000 from Civic Progress - Jefferson City Chamber of Commerce.

Birthdays

Happy birthdays to Bradley Green and Brad Thielemier.