MOScout Daily Update: Transgender Issues Take Center Stage - Moore New Cannabis Head - Kunce Married - Property Tax Hearing and more...

1 Big Thing: Transgender Issues Take Center Stage

The whistleblower affidavit has brought the issue of gender reassignment to the center stage of the Missouri legislature.

Yesterday Sens. Nick Schroer and Mike Moon spent time on the Senate floor recounting various allegations in the whistleblower’s account.  Read the affidavit here.

Today the Senate Emerging Issues Committee will hold a hearing on three bills to regulate and limit gender reassignment.  Sens. Jill Carter, Denny Hoskins, and Moon each have bills establishing the SAFE ACT, “Missouri Save Adolescents from Experimentation (SAFE) Act.”

What It Means

·       This issue could take a lot of air from other topics.

·       Depending how it plays out, it has the potential to create a major confrontation on the Senate floor, derailing other priorities.  But given the explosive nature of the allegations, this topic is clearly now a major Republican priority for the session.

Eigel Contra Kehoe

I wrote yesterday about Sen. Bill Eigel throwing punches at Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft in early in the 2024 gubernatorial race.

Eigel has also run ads hitting the other candidate, Lieutenant Governor Mike Kehoe.  Those attacks focus on Kehoe’s support for raising the gas tax.  See the ad here.

·       Kehoe’s votes and support for the gas tax have long been considered his Achilles heel as Missouri Republicans are fervently anti-tax. 

House Hears Property Tax Proposals

The House Special Committee on Tax Reform (Noon, HR 7) will hear resolutions today dealing with property tax.  All three would bring constitutional amendments to the voters in 2024.

·       Rep. Jeff Coleman’s HJR 33 would limit increases in property tax.

·       Rep. Ben Keathley’s HJR 45 would exempt seniors’ from any increase in property tax.

·       Rep. Renee Reuter’s HJR 51 would give counties the ability to exempt seniors from increases.

Moore Takes Reins of Cannabis Division

I missed this announcement last Friday from DHSS…

·       Amy Moore has been named the director of the Division of Cannabis Regulation within Missouri’s Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS). Moore, who has been with the department for four years, most recently served as the deputy director and counsel for the Division of Cannabis Regulation…

·       Per Amendment 3, DHSS is the agency assigned with regulating adult use of cannabis for those ages 21 and up in Missouri just as it has led the state’s medical marijuana program since its 2018 inception.

·       Moore previously served the Missouri Public Service Commission and Missouri Department of Social Services. She graduated with honors from the University of Tennessee with three bachelor’s degrees and earned her law degree from the University of Missouri School of Law.

FoF for Prez?

Politico ran a profile of Vivek Ramaswamy.  He’s a “biotech entrepreneur… [who] started Strive, a new asset management firm that competes against the likes of BlackRock but differentiates itself by telling companies to stay out of politics.”  And he’s eyeing a presidential run.  See the profile here.

·       Of interest: He’s a “Friend of Fitz.”  Then-State Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick brought him in to speak to MOSERS last year about ESG investing.  I’m told they’re good friends.

No Surprise

Sen. Lauren Arthur has cancelled her Noon Wednesday Progress and Development Committee.

·       She’ll be at the Super Bowl parade with the rest of the KC delegation.

Hinderliter Hearts Books

April brings a slew of municipal elections across Missouri, often bond issues for local capital projects.

Proposition L in the St. Louis suburb of Maplewood will seek approval to issue $3 million in bonds “for the purpose of renovating, improving, expanding and furnishing the Municipal Library District of Maplewood District library facilities.”

St. Louis Relators’ Director of Government Affairs Charlie Hinderliter is the president of the Maplewood Library Board of Trustees.

·       He quips, “I thought ‘Books should not be wet’ was a better committee name, but that did not prevail.”

Kunce Married

Lucas Kunce announced on Twitter that he married.

·       And of course when you’re running for US Senate, you never miss a reason to touch your supporters with an email blast… Lucas Kunce married his wife Marilyn at the Jackson County Courthouse in Independence — and they’re expecting a baby later this year!  Our whole team couldn’t be happier for Lucas and Marilyn, so we wanted to give top supporters like you an opportunity to personally congratulate and wish them well…

Eigel Off Commerce

Pro Tem Caleb Rowden removed Sen. Bill Eigel from Commerce, Consumer Protection, Energy, and the Environment Committee.

Lobbyists Registrations

Heath Clarkston and Doug Nelson added HRW Companies, LLC.

John Estus added Amazon.com Services LLC.

Jon Hensley and Zach Pollock added Spire Inc, and Missouri Natural Gas Association.

Cassie Brown added National Association of Social Workers - MO Chapter.

Phillip Scaglia added UHS of Kansas City, LLC.

$5K+ Contributions

H-PAC (pro-Houx) - $20,000 from Ellen Houx.

Friends of SPS - $10,000 from Jeff Hutchens.

Birthdays

Happy birthdays to Jeff Altmann, Michael Moorefield, and Katie Jamboretz.