MOScout Daily Update: Solor Ban Hearing - January Revenues Drop - Special School Adds Lobbyists - Highway Complaints and more…

One building denizen noted an oddity yesterday: the Senate brought a bill up for debate before the House this year.

·       However, it’s unlikely the Senate will pass a bill before the House. We’ll see…

Hardwick’s VLT Voted Out of Committee

Rep. Bill Hardwick’s VLT bill was voted out of the House Emerging Issues Committee yesterday after he introduced a substitute with several changes.

·       Still, the vote, 8-5, showed that there’s definitely some resistance to the proposal.

Special School District Adds Lobbyists

Special School District of St. Louis County has been adding lobbyists.  Their core lobbyists of Gamble & Schlemeier and Trent Watson is now augmented with the addition of David Barklage, Andy Arnold and Troy Stremming.

·       It could be defensive reinforcements as the increasingly tight budget puts everyone potentially in harm’s way.  The Special School District, like all public schools, receives millions in state aid.

·       But also, Rep. Brad Christ has introduced a bill to allow districts to “opt-out” of special school districts. See HB 2933 here.

Driving the Day: O’Laughlin’s Solar Ban

Sens. Cindy O’Laughlin and Sandy Crawford have bills to put a moratorium on new solar projects until a more robust regulatory structure is in place.

They’ll get their hearing today in the Senate Commerce Committee (10AM).

·       Presumably this means we’ll hear testimony from former Sen. Jon Dolan, now the executive director of MOSEIA, the Missouri Solar Energy Industries Association.  He’s always entertaining.

January Revenues Retreat

According to the daily revenue reports, it looks like January’s state tax receipts fell by 7.6%, nearly $100 million, compared to January 2025. 

·       That brings fiscal-year-to-date tax revenues to just 1.4% ahead of last year.

Brattin’s Cole County Court Bill Advances

Missouri Independent has an article up about Sen. Rick Brattin’s SB 856.  It would move Cole County to the Eastern District of the Missouri Court of Appeals.  Read the MOIndy article here.

·       In the initial committee hearing Brattin said he had a substitute which would include changes to the Sunshine law to shield legislators’ “work product” from public view.  Interestingly, that doesn’t seem to have inserted after all.  I wonder if the Missouri Supreme Court’s ruling made him reconsider adding a second subject to the bill.

I-0, and The Most Dangerous Stretch of Interstate

Listening to House Budget hearings as they run through the various departments’ budget requests is always interesting because they give state representatives a chance to air what’s bugging their constituents.  From yesterday’s MoDOT’s hearing…

·       Rep. Don Mayhew spoke about what he believes is “the absolute most dangerous stretch of interstate in the probably the continental United States Of America.”  Lebanon to Rolla. I noticed on your pavement condition map, you guys still call that good pavement. I would really love it if you would come take a ride with me on I 44 from Lebanon to Rolla. And then you can tell me how that pavement qualifies as good.

·       Rep. Louis Riggs shook his fist about the promised interstate to Hannibal that’s never arrived.  “I love it when everybody in here is talking about I-44, I-57, I-55, I-270, I-374, I-67.  I don’t care. I-35, I-29, I-49. I come from an area the state's got no interstate access except for, a minute and a half of I-72 coming in at Hannibal to the 61 where it dies.”

Rural USA Vs Data Centers

The Wall Street Journal reports on rural America’s skepticism toward data centers.  Read it here.

·       Fearing rising utility costs, job losses and privacy violations, locals blocked or delayed about 20 projects around the country representing nearly $100 billion in combined investment in the second quarter of last year, according to Data Center Watch, a research firm tracking the fights.

·       Many of them belong to tech giants including Meta and Amazon.com, fueling battles from Indiana to Oklahoma. Trump’s industry-friendly AI strategy has received criticism from other Republicans including former strategist Steve Bannon and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who fought a recent executive order aimed at challenging states that pass AI regulations.

·       Sen. Josh Hawley (R., Mo.) has also criticized AI companies. “People [are] being subjected to rolling brownouts, because the Silicon Valley data center that is now plumped down in rural Missouri is sucking up all the energy,” Hawley said recently.

On the Move

·       Frank Plescia has joined CropLife America (an AG trade association as Director of State Government Affairs.  He’s covering the Central US (including Missouri). 

·       Dan Shaul is now President and CEO of the Midwest Retail & Grocery Alliance. He is still also the Executive Director of Missouri Grocers Association.

Also On the Move

First Billy, now Ed?  The Washington Post reports that “top Justice Department officials have stripped Ed Martin of the bulk of his expansive responsibilities, leaving the staunch ally of President Donald Trump on the sidelines of many of the controversial investigations he has championed, according to two people familiar with the personnel move.”

New Committees

·       Former Rep. Joe Runions formed a committee to run for Grandview Alderperson.

·       Former Rep. Neal St. Onge formed a committee to run for the Warren County Ambulance District Board.

$5K+ Contributions

MFR PAC - $25,000 from C3 Industries LLC.

MO Renewable Fuels Association Political Action Committee - $10,000 from Missouri Corn Growers Association Inc.

Lobbyist Registrations

Rodney Boyd, Kate Casas, Brian Grace and Kelvin Simmons added Rivian Automotive LLC.

Brian Colby added Missouri Budget Project.

Jay Hahn and Ryan DeBoef added Alpha-gal Alliance Action Fund.

Catalyst added Related Digital.

James Harris added Byte Federal.

Mark Mendoza added Emergent BioSolutions Inc.

Heath Clarkston, Doug Nelson, and Michael Henderson added Panorama Education.

Troy Stremming added Special School District of St. Louis County. 

Zachary Naasz and Matthew Yale added Sazerac Company, Inc.  

Joseph DaVault deleted Missouri Alliance For Animal Legislation.

Happy Birthday

Happy birthdays to Rep. Phil Amato, Justin Alferman, Jason Crowell, Kent Hampton, Dave Hinson, and Warren Love.