MOScout Daily Update: Earnings Tax Question - Moon Takes Over Wash U Tax - More MedEx Intrigue - Campaign Cash for Childcare? and more...
Earnings Tax Question
Next month St. Louis and Kansas City voters will be asked to re-approve their cities’ earning tax. These taxes contribute hundreds of millions of dollars to their budgets. But there is a larger question looming – which may play out in the courts this year. “How does remote working change the taxes’ reach?”
Folks who work in those cities, but reside elsewhere, are subject to the tax. Now remote working is blurring the definition of where they work.
COVID has meant many companies located within city limits have their workforce spread out and working from home. St. Louis and Kansas City appear to be dealing with this issue differently.
· Kansas City has increased its budget to refund non-residents now working remotely.
· St. Louis doesn’t plan to offer refunds.
And the legislature may wade into the debate… On Monday, Sen. Andrew Koenig filed SB 604 which says these remote workers “may bring a cause of action in a court… and such taxpayer shall recover reasonable attorney's fees resulting from such cause of action…”
Talk on the STL Mayoral Primary
· I have thought for some time that St. Louis City elections are like small town elections. Voters already have an opinion on every candidate and there isn’t much a campaign can do to influence them one way or the other... What do you have to do get more than 20% of voters in the city to come out for a mayoral election? Have most of the voters just given up any hope of turning the city around?
· It’s definitely a change electorate and Reed proved to have both a solid ceiling and floor. It would seem Alderwoman Spencer has a lot more room to grow than Treasurer Jones having never run city wide, whereas Jones has been on the ballot multiple times. It’s refreshing to see two strong women in the general.
Moon Takes Over Wash U Tax Bill
Sen. Mike Moon’s SB 451 would tax Washington University’s endowment and offset that tax revenue with cut in the state’s income tax.
This is the same bill that Sen. Bill Eigel had filed in previous sessions. Last year it was voted out for the Ways and Means Committee but never made it to the Senate floor.
Moon explained to The Pathway why the university is being targeted: “Washington University is a premier institution which trains students to perform abortions… These students are then hired to murder developing human babies across our nation… This will place a financial hardship on their ability to train these students. It is our hope that the passage of SB 451 will end the practice.”
FYI
Gamble & Schlemeier represents Washington University in the capitol.
More MedEx Intrigue
Following up on yesterday’s article from MOIndy on Medicaid expansion funding, Jim Moody of the Moody Report has an interesting insight:
“House Budget Chairman Cody Smith in March 2, 2021 filed House Joint Resolution 64, which if passed would resubmit Medicaid expansion to a vote of the people and make the expansion subject to appropriation. HJR 64 would also impose work requirements on healthy members of the expansion population. Putting 2 and 2 together to get to 4 on this issue, the HJR 64 filing by Chairman Smith may portend a move to not pass House Bill 20 to fund expansion, or as a minimum if passed, to insert some form of work requirement into the funding bill…”
Expanding Uses of Campaign Cash
Bloomberg reports that “federal regulators next week are set to pave the way for lawmakers to pay for bodyguards with campaign money… Allowing campaigns to pay for lawmakers’ bodyguards would mark a significant expansion of permissible campaign fund uses… There’s agreement within the commission that personal security for elected officials is a growing concern, [citing] examples such as a protest in January at the suburban Virginia home of Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), who wasn’t there at the time but accused protesters of vandalism and threats to his wife and newborn daughter…”
Meanwhile
Meanwhile here in Missouri, Rep. Mary Elizabeth Coleman’s HB 917 would allow campaign fund to be used for child care expenses.
Any childcare expenses that result directly from campaigning for office or in connection with the duties of public office that would not have been otherwise incurred but for those activities. Eligible childcare expenses include any expenses that provide for the well-being and protection of the child, provided that no expenditures shall be made to a member of the candidate or office holder's household;
It’s been referred to the Elections Committee, but hasn’t received a hearing yet.
2022 Planning Continues
The lack of clarity with redistricting isn’t keeping political hopefuls from stepping up.
In Jefferson County, Kyle Haubirch will be announcing his state representative campaign later this month. He’s running to replace term-limited Rep. Dan Shaul.
The delay in census data means we won’t have state House and Senate districts until late 2021 at the very earliest.
“Vice Chair” Talk
One Senate side observer chuckled at my bit yesterday that Speaker Rob Vescovo was appointing Rep. Cody Smith as the vice-chair of the Joint Committee on Legislative Review.
“The speaker can’t just appoint the vice-chair of a joint committee. That’s up to the committee.”
Final Senate Bill
Monday was the final day to file new bills this session. In the Senate, the final bill of the session was filed by Sen. Denny Hoskins. SB 630 deals with a situation where someone is helping rescue a pet in a locked car.
“A person who enters a motor vehicle, by force or otherwise, for the expressed purpose of removing a domestic animal shall not be liable in a civil action…”
Gubby Appts
Governor Mike Parson appointed Stephen J. Coppinger and Shanda Durbinto the Northwest Missouri State University Board of Regents.
Lobbyists Registrations
Tom Dempsey and Dave Berry added St. Charles County Convention & Sports Facilities Authority.
Jonathon Dalton added St. Louis Public School District.
John Nations added KPMG LLP, and The Polaris Strategies Group LC.
Shawn Rhoads added Lathrop GPM Consulting LLC.
Bill Stouffer added National Steamboat Museum.
Mark Francis Brady added Nextera Energy Resources LLC.
Shawn Copeland added Human Rights Campaign.
John William Payne added Missouri Independent Medical Cannabis Association, and Taste Buds Dispensary; and deleted The Dispensary LLC, Evolve Wellness LLC, Next Gen Natures Releaf LLC, Elevated Farms, Ozark Wellness LLC, and Fractal Farms LLC.
$5K+ Contributions
Dennis Chassaniol for Judge - $15,000 from Dennis Chassaniol.
Birthdays
Happy birthdays to Sen. Dan Hegeman and St. Louis County Councilwoman Rochelle Walton Gray.