MOScout Daily Update: Kehoe Raises Big $$$ - Suit Aims at Policy Provisions in Budget Bills - Fitz on SLPS and more…
Quick Friday update…
Kehoe Banks $$$
Governor Mike Kehoe continues to build his re-election war-chest. Tipster says that he raised “over $600k” last night at a fundraiser at the Log Cabin Club.
The host committee, topped by Suzy & Beau Brauer and David Kemper, certainly had enough big names to deliver big dollars… Anne & Doug Albrecht, Debbie & Mark Belew, Jim Bennett, Bob Blitz, John Bommarito, Bob Brinkmann, Jan & John Brunner, Rebecca & Jeff Cook, Jack Danforth, Rick DeStefane, Ed Dowd, Cindy & Tim Drury, Lelia & David Farr, Mark Hadfield, Mimi & John Londoff, Heather & Kyle Lopez, Collin Mauldin & Steve Brauer, Jr., Katie & Kurt Mungenast, Noel & Eric Schreimann, Laura & Paul Shaughnessy, Kathryn & Menlo Smith, Thelma & Dave Steward, Adina & Dick Tracy, Linda & John Tracy, and Lynn Ann & Paul Vogel.
· What It Means: Despite his recent policy setbacks, the GOP donor class is firmly behind Kehoe.
Suit Challenges Policy Provisions in Budget Bills
A suit filed yesterday challenges policy provisions attached to budget bills claiming they’re unconstitutional. Read the suit here. The plaintiff, Johnda Boyce, asks that the policy provisions be struck down.
Among the examples cited…
· HB 2002 — Child-care rates. Caps child-care subsidy reimbursement rates, prohibits prospective payments, imposes documentation requirements for future rate studies, and orders a stakeholder review/report on subsidy rates and enhancements. The suit calls this administrative rate-setting and policymaking inserted into the budget.
· HB 2003 — Tuition for undocumented students. Bars public colleges from charging a student with unlawful immigration status less than the international-student tuition rate.
· HB 2003 — DEI restrictions at colleges. Bars state funding for higher-ed contracts, programs or positions focused solely on DEI and contains a broad definition restricting race-, ethnicity-, gender-identity- and sexual-orientation-related programs and training.
· HB 2005 — State IT overhaul. Requires a third-party review before certain major IT spending, legislative/Cabinet review of plans, and directs OA to establish a Chief Innovation and Technology Officer.
· HB 2006 — Vehicle checkpoints. Prohibits spending on checkpoints where motorists can be detained without individualized reasonable suspicion. The suit notes the bill also includes a nominal $1 appropriation for such checkpoints, which it alleges is merely a drafting device to support the prohibition.
· HB 2008 — State aircraft flight tracking. Requires a flight plan to be publicly available through a flight-tracking service whenever an elected official or state board/commission member flies on a state aircraft.
· HB 2009 — Gender-transition care in prisons. Bars spending on cross-sex hormones or gender-transition surgery undertaken for gender transition for people in state custody.
· HB 2010 — Medicaid and mental-health reimbursement policy. The suit challenges provisions that set provider reimbursement-rate ceilings, limit waiver slots and service hours, and impose recurring reporting requirements on DMH. It argues those are substantive Medicaid/health-policy and administrative rules that should not be enacted through an appropriations bill.
· HB 2011 — Medicaid expansion. Bars DSS from making program distributions related to the voter-approved Medicaid expansion provision in Article IV, Section 36(c), except for a specified section of the budget. The suit characterizes this as effectively nullifying Medicaid expansion through a budget rider.
And
The Post-Dispatch’s Kurt Erikson reports on another suit – this one filed by Jefferson County – taking aim municipalities’ ability to annex nearby land. Read his article here.
The legal challenge comes after city leaders in Jefferson County unsuccessfully lobbied Gov. Mike Kehoe to veto the portion of the legislation affecting the county… The original bill was designed to allow the city of St. Joseph to annex a city-owned airport that is not within the city’s limits or contiguous to its borders. Before it was approved, Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman, R-Arnold, worked to amend the bill to set new rules for annexation in Jefferson and St. Charles counties. The law says Jefferson County cities, towns and villages only would be allowed to annex land if 25 percent of the property is contiguous with its border, and only once every two years.
Catalyst Adds Anthropic
Just days after OpenAI (aka ChatGPT) engaged lobbyists in Missouri, Anthropic (aka Claude) hired Catalyst (Danny Pfeifer, Alex Eaton, Becky Lohmann, Greg Porter, David Willis, and Todd Richardson).
· It shows that tech firms, long focused on Washington policy, are aware that the lack of preemptive federal legislation leaves them vulnerable to state regulations.
Fitz on SLPS
State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick released his second audit of the St. Louis Public Schools, once again giving them a “poor” rating. See the audit here.
The Board of Education does not act as an effective governing body. The Board and former Superintendent Dr. Keisha Scarlett did not demonstrate a commitment to integrity and ethical values or a "tone at the top" necessary to effectively lead the district. The inadequate tone at the top, lack of internal communications, and deficient internal control monitoring has fostered a culture that lacked accountability and eroded public trust.
· But… the audit is backward-looking. A majority of the board has turned over since the audit.
Lobbyist Registrations
Catalyst added Anthropic PBC.
Olivia Wilson added St. Louis Arts Coalition.
Scott Penman and Madison Eacret deleted Safer + Simpler Missouri.
$5K+ Contributions
Her Health, Her Future PAC (pro-A3) - $500,000 from Drury Southwest Inc.
Her Health, Her Future PAC - $100,000 from Chris Archer.
Build Your KC - $10,000 from Legio XIII.
Seniors Count STL - $15,000 from Cardinal Ritter Senior Services.
Birthdays
Happy birthdays to Shamed Dogan, Percy Green II, and John Diehl.