MOScout Daily Update: Bills Moving - Utilities, Police Control - Foster Children Benefits, Pesticides - Dems Appts - Benton Audit and more…

The Big Picture

It’s a pretty quick opening for the legislative session with a couple bills already feeling like they’re on the fast track. 

·       Reminder: there’s a fear that efforts to restrict the impact of Amendment 3 (reproductive rights) will eventually lead to a blow-up in the Senate.  Everyone wants their legislative package to get done early before things get testy and could be held hostage.

Here are some of the bills moving…

Utilities Bill Moving

Sen. Mike Cierpiot held a hearing on his “future test year” bills yesterday to a packed room in the Senate Commerce Committee.  Democrats Karla May and Tracy McCreery sounded skeptical.

But Cierpiot indicated he sees the bill being voted out next Thursday (January 30) to be ready for the floor the first week of February.

·       Will this be Dems first stand on the floor?  Or will they keep their powder dry for other fights?

GOP Determined for State Control

Both the House and Senate heard bills for the state to takeover the St. Louis police force.  In the Senate hearing, Sen. Barbara Washington mounted critical questioning, signaling that Sen. Karla May could find cross-state allies as she attempts to derail the effort.

There was compelling testimony from the St. Louis City Police Chief, detailing the progress he’s making and pleading with the lawmakers to keep the current system in place.  He prefers having one supportive mayor as boss, rather than six political appointees as boss.

His testimony appeared to fall on deaf ears as Republicans seem determined to deliver Governor Mike Kehoe his top legislative priority.

·       If Dems filibuster in the Senate, a compromise could be found in the make-up of the board. 

And

Mayor Tishaura Jones was praised for making the trip.  But sometimes, as in her House testimony, things devolved into a general difference of worldviews…

Rep. Brad Banderman: You've talked about some of the issues with the violent crime in St. Louis. and you've placed that blame on lax gun laws. And then your testimony just now said that the person that commits the most amount of crime in the City of St. Louis is a 31 year old man. I'm trying to see how a law lawfully aged adult man at 31 what kind of a law we could put in place…

Jones: Well red flag laws would be a start. If that 31 year old male had a mental health issue, then we cannot take their gun. You can own a gun at 18, and an 18-year-old shot up and killed two people at Central Visual and Performing Arts on October 22nd, 2023. And this particular individual had a mental health problem. Our officers tried to take his gun away, but because there are no red flag laws, he was able to get his gun back and then go shoot up that school several days later.

BB: So do you think the majority of the crime that's committed in the city of St. Louis is done by mentally ill people?

Jones: No, you asked me what law we could pass that would help…

BB: I just, I'm having trouble I come from a county just southwest of you and rarely do I ever hear the argument that lax gun laws are the issue for the crime within the counties unless they're large cities and when you look at who actually perpetrates those crimes in those large cities they are people of the age that can legally obtain firearms… I think we need to be careful when we deal with our constitutional amendments our rights..

Jones: According to your interpretation of the Second Amendment… making sure that that if you have a gun it's for protect yourself against the government rising up against you. And last time I checked, the last insurrection we had was January 6th.

BB: I think a free people, a free nation, is a person that has the ability to protect themselves and their property… I think foundationally in our nation we need to have a good discussion about why violent crime takes place and lack of fathers in our homes no matter where you live at within our state.

Jones: Sir, I'm a single mother. That's where, I'm sorry, I'm sorry for interrupting, but my son does just fine without having a father in the home. I grew up in a single family as well. And there are lots of single mothers who do not in their homes for a myriad of reasons. They died, they were sick, but we cannot sit here and blame fatherless children because that's the same argument that you're giving about guns. I'm not gonna let you do that.

BB: Could you answer my question then, Mayor?

Jones: No, I'm not gonna answer your question. I think I already answered your question.

Pesticide Labeling

Back again after a late run last session is a bill that critics say will offer immunity from cancer claims to pesticide makers.

The Senate Agriculture Committee will hear the bill this morning.  SB 14 is being carried by Justin Brown.

The House sponsor is Rep. Dane Diehl.  His bill HB 544 has a hearing scheduled for Monday.

·       But… It will face a fight again.  Trial attorneys with claims hate this bill.  And opponents are circuiting a poll (see it here) showing that the overwhelming majority of Missourians don’t want to give immunity to the pesticide-makers.

Schimdt Gets First House Bill?

Speaker Jon Patterson, in his Opening Day speech, said that he wanted the first bill out of the House to deal with benefits for foster children.

Yesterday, the House Children and Families Committee held a hearing on HB 737 sponsored by freshman Rep. Melissa Schmidt which would protect the benefits of children.  It looks like it’s on track to be that “first bill”.  We’ll see, but that’d be a big deal for a freshman to pass the first bill of session.

Dem Appts

Minority Leader Ashley Aune made more committee appointments. Here are the ranking members…

·       Agriculture Committee: Rep. Emily Weber.

·       Budget Committee: Rep. Betsy Fogle.

·       Consent and Procedure Committee: Rep. LaDonna Appelbaum.

·       Conservation and Natural Resources Committee: Rep. Michael Burton.

·       Corrections and Public Institutions Committee: Rep. Kimberly-Ann Collins.

·       Economic Development Committee: Rep. Michael Johnson.

·       Insurance Committee: Rep. Steve Butz.

·       Judiciary Committee: Rep. David Tyson Smith.

·       Legislative Review Committee: Rep. Marlene Terry.

·       Local Government Committee: Rep. Bridget Walsh Moore.

·       Pensions Committee: Rep. Doug Clemens.

·       Rules - Administrative Committee: Rep. Ian Mackey.

·       Rules - Legislative Committee: Rep. LaKeySha Bosley.

·       Transportation Committee: Rep. Michael Johnson.

·       Utilities Committee: Rep. Keri Ingle.

·       Veterans and Armed Forces Committee: Rep. Stephanie Boykin.

·       Ways and Means Committee: Rep. Del Taylor.

·       Subcommittee on Appropriations - Agriculture, Conservation, Natural Resources, and Economic Development: Rep. Del Taylor.

·       Subcommittee on Appropriations - Education: Rep. Kathy Steinhoff.

·       Subcommittee on Appropriations - General Administration: Rep. Stephanie Hein.

·       Subcommittee on Appropriations - Health, Mental Health, and Social Services: Rep. Betsy Fogle.

·       Subcommittee on Appropriations - Public Safety, Corrections, Transportation, and Revenue: Rep. Raychel Proudie.

And

Democratic freshmen Reps. Melissa Douglas, and Marty Murray landed spots on the coveted Budget Committee.  It’s a big deal because it’s place where you can direct some money back to your district and influence spending – even as a member of the superminority.

Benton Audit

State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick released an audit of Benton County detailing apparent misdeeds.  See the report here.  Among the findings…

·       The Public Administrator paid her family's accounting and tax business a total of $4,075 from the accounts of 38 wards during 2022 and 2023 for tax preparation services.

·       The county does not report personal commissions received by the County Collector for the collection of city taxes as employee compensation to the Internal Revenue Service. The County Collector paid himself commissions totaling $7,596 for the collection of city taxes during the fiscal year ended February 29, 2024, outside of the county payroll process.

·       The County Commission authorized mid-term salary increases totaling $15,945 to the Sheriff in violation of constitutional provisions.

·       The county did not sufficiently reduce the property tax levy in its sales tax rollback calculations to offset 50 percent of sales tax money received in 2020 through 2022 by approximately $200,000.

Benton County is represented by Sen. Sandy Crawford, and Reps. Rodger Reedy and Jim Kalberloh.

$5K+ Contributions

A Brighter Future for St Louis PAC - $10,000 from David Kemper.

A Brighter Future for St Louis PAC - $10,000 from Robert Vitale.

Missouri Alliance PAC (pro-Patterson) - $10,000 from MO Soybean Association.

Old McDonald PAC (pro-Deaton) - $10,000 from Big River Gaming LLC.

Lobbyist Registrations

David Crawford added Code for America Labs, Inc.

Thomas Robbins, and Alec Rosenblum added MMDWA LLC.

Jim Gwinner deleted Forbes Tate Partners (on behalf of Indivior).

Birthdays

Happy birthday to Kyle Aubuchon, Jordan Overstreet, Steve Walker, and Ken Jacob.