MOScout Daily Update: SuperPAC for Hawley - Jones Departs - Utility Policy Through the Eyes of CWIP - SportsBetting Map and more…
Pro-Hawley SuperPAC Enters
Tipster says that a pro-Josh Hawley SuperPAC, Show-Me Strong PAC is making a big buy in the Missouri market…
· $528k STL Broadcast (~900 GRP’s)
· $478k KC Broadcast (~900 GRP’s)
What It Means
Team Hawley is obviously taking this US Senate race seriously. And the big entry will offset the heavy spending that Lucas Kunce is deploying.
Old Lobbyist Eyes New Utilities Ask
A “veteran of the CWIP battles,” who no longer walks the hallways as a combatant, sent me a few thoughts about the possible utility legislation coming down the pike. Two big take-aways…
First, assuming Mike Kehoe wins, he’ll be an ally to help utilities make their infrastructure investments…
· Mike Kehoe was a champion for the utilities, so if they have an ask, of course they’re going to push it in his first year as Governor.
Second, does the changed economic environment necessitate the proposals?
At the same time the utilities were pushing Construction Work in Progress, they were also pushing legislation to improve their return on long overdue maintenance. The argument then was that they were never again going to see the massive growth in electrical demand that came with air conditioning, and therefore, they needed new ways to pay for maintenance of an aging (sometimes 100-year old) infrastructure.
Fast forward to today, and lo and behold the demand from data centers and electric vehicles is the new “air conditioning.” Couple that with federal green energy rules and you have incentives to build much more expensive baseload capacity. The obvious question for the utilities will be: with all of the new demand coming on line, why can’t the utilities use the new demand to fund expansion?
Gregory PAC Didn’t Unload
By 5PM tonight campaigns are required to file their 30 Days After Reports. It can be an anti-climatic event. However it will give some indications how quickly those with tough primaries are reloading ahead of their November battle.
One early filing came from the Wonderdog PAC, which supports Rep. Kurtis Gregory. It showed that the PAC didn’t really spend any of its $100K remaining war-chest in the final week, apparently secure in Gregory’s victory. Gregory beat Rep. Doug Richey 56%-43%.
Jones Departs
The Parson diaspora continues as another top aide announces her coming departure.
Governor Mike Parson announced that his Deputy Chief of Staff, Kelli Jones, will step down from her current role in the Office of the Governor to pursue a new opportunity with the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education as Deputy Commissioner–Division of Learning Services, effective November 1, 2024. Her last day in the Office of the Governor will be October 31… Jones first joined Governor Parson's team when he was Lt. Governor. Upon Governor Parson's elevation to Governor, Jones transitioned to the Office of the Missouri Governor alongside him, serving as Communications Director and later as Deputy Chief of Staff.
· The release mentions her prior educational experience – “Before joining state government, she served as a Communications and English Instructor and was the Communications and Social Sciences Department Chair at State Technical College of Missouri” – which one lobbyist in the education space side-eyes is a little thin to be deputy commissioner.
Kansas August Revenue
Interesting to note that while Kansas tax receipts had held firm recently amid Missouri’s weakness early in the fiscal year…
Governor Laura Kelly announced today that the August 2024 total tax collections were $665.6 million. That is $22.8 million, or 3.5% more than the estimate. Total tax collections are up 4.0% from August 2023.
Missouri Surrounded by Sports Betting
From this map, it seems like it’d be surprising if Missourians opted to remain an island without sports betting. But we’ll see…
Lobbyists Registrations
Jon Hensley and Zach Pollock added DailyPay, Inc.
$5K+ Contributions
Missouri Right to Life Political Action Committee - $140,000 from D John Sauer.
Missouri Right to Life Political Action Committee - $20,000 from Frederic Sauer.
Missouri Right to Life Political Action Committee - $10,000 from LB Eckelkamp.
Vote "NO" on 3 - $40,000 from Jean Obrien.
Vote "NO" on 3 - $20,000 from Diane Snively.
Vote "NO" on 3 - $10,000 from Mary Ann Buckner.
Missourians for Constitutional Freedom - $250,000 from Deborah Simon (Carmel, IN).
Missourians for Constitutional Freedom - $10,000 from Karen Coyningham (Austin, TX).
American Dream PAC (pro-Kehoe) - $10,000 from Jared Hill.
NEMO Leadership PAC (pro-O’Laughlin) - $7,500 from Charter Communications.
Graves Garrett, LLC PAC - $5,400 from Parents for Safer Streets.
ATGS PAC - $26,000 from Armstrong Teasdale LLP.
Association of MO Electric Cooperatives (AMEC PAC) - $15,000 from Northeast Missouri Electric Cooperative.
Birthdays
Happy birthdays to Kate Casas, Jack Danforth, John CE Gaskin III, Jenee' M. Lowe, Rachel Storch, and Lana Ladd Baker.