JEFFERSON CITY- The results of Election Day held in early November include 12 new members who will take their oath of office in January to serve as Missouri state senators.  In addition, majority and minority caucuses in the Senate met this month to elect new leadership, including the nomination of a new Senate President Pro Tempor.

Newly Elected Senators

Nearly half of the members who will comprise the Missouri Senate in 2013 are new to the upper chamber.  However, 10 of the 12 new senators have previous experience serving as lawmakers in the Missouri House of Representatives.  Note: The counties linked below represent the new districts drawn as a result of the 2010 census.

• Sen.-elect Scott Sifton, D-St. Louis, will serve the citizens of the 1st Senatorial District, currently held by Sen. Jim Lembke, R-St. Louis.  District 1 includes portions of St. Louis County and St. Louis City.
• Sen.-elect Gary Romine, R-Farmington, will represent the 3rd District — located in eastern Missouri — in the Senate.  Sen. Kevin Engler, R-Farmington, currently serves the counties that make up this district.  He has been elected to serve the 116th District in the House of Representatives next year.
• Sen.-elect Jamilah Nasheed, D-St. Louis, will represent the people of the 5th Senatorial District, currently held by Sen. Robin Wright-Jones, D-St. Louis.  District 5 includes the eastern portion of St. Louis City.
• Sen.-elect Jason Holsman, D-Kansas City, will serve the newly drawn 7th District in the Missouri Senate, which contains a southwest section of Jackson County.  District 7, which currently comprises a northwest portion of St. Louis County, is represented by Sen. Jane Cunningham, R-Chesterfield.
• Sen.-elect Paul LeVota, D-Independence, will represent the 11th Senatorial District, currently held by Sen. Victor Callahan, D-Independence, who is leaving office due to term limits.  District 11 comprises the northern portion of Jackson County.
• Sen. Timothy Green, D-Spanish Lake, is also leaving the Missouri Senate as a result of term limits.  Sen.-elect Gina Walsh, D- Bellefontaine Neighbors, will take his place in the upper chamber, representing the citizens of the 13th District, which includes the northern portion of St. Louis County.
• Sen.-elect Ryan Silvey, R-Kansas City, will serve the citizens of the 17th Senatorial District, currently represented by term-limited Sen. Luann Ridgeway, R-Smithville.  District 17 includes the southwestern part of Clay County.
• Sen.-elect Doug Libla, R-Poplar Bluff, will represent the eight counties in southeast Missouri that comprise the 25th Senatorial District.  Senate President Pro Tem Robert N. Mayer, R-Dexter, who has been elected to serve as judge for the 35th Circuit Court, currently serves District 25.
• Sen.-elect Wayne Wallingford, R-Cape Girardeau, will take the place of Sen. Jason Crowell, a Republican who also resides in Cape Girardeau.  He is ineligible to run for re-election due to term limits.  Sen.-elect Wallingford will serve the six counties in southeast Missouri that make up District 27 in the Missouri Senate.
• Sen. Jack Goodman, R-Mount Vernon, is also barred from running for re-election as a result of term limits.  Sen.-elect David Sater, R-Cassville, will represent the five counties in southwest Missouri that make up the 29th Senatorial District.
• District 31, vacated by Sen. David Pearce, R-Harrisonville, who won re-election to serve the 21st Senatorial District, will be represented by Sen.-elect Ed Emery, R-Lamar.  District 31 includes five counties in eastern Missouri.
• Sen.-elect Mike Cunningham, R-Rogersville, will represent the citizens of the 33rd Senatorial District, currently served by term-limited Sen. Chuck Purgason, R-Caulfield.  Eight counties comprise this southern Senatorial district.

The current party breakdown in the Missouri Senate is 26-8.  Once the 2013 legislative session convenes in January, the ratio will change to 24-10.

Senate-Proposed Ballot Measures Receive Voter Action

Two of the four ballot measures that appeared before voters in the November general election were prompted by legislation passed by the Missouri Senate during the 2012 legislative session.

Senate Joint Resolution 51, sponsored by Sen. Lembke, would have changed the nonpartisan selection process of Missouri Supreme Court and Court of Appeals judges.  More than 75 percent of Missouri voters voted against Constitutional Amendment 3.

However, voters in the Show-Me State gave their approval to Proposition E by more than a 60 percent margin.  Prompted by Senate Bill 464, which was sponsored by Sen. Rob Schaaf, R-St. Joseph, the proposition amends Missouri law to prohibit the governor or any Missouri state agency from establishing or operating state-based health insurance exchanges unless authorized by a vote of the people or by the General Assembly.

Click here to listen to This Week in the Missouri Senate from Nov. 1, 2012, which reviews these ballot measures passed by the Missouri General Assembly.

Senate Leaders Selected

Shortly after the general election, lawmakers gathered in Jefferson City to nominate and elect various leadership positions within each party’s caucus. 

The Senate Majority Caucus elected Sen. Tom Dempsey, R-St. Charles, to serve as President Pro Tem.  This member of the legislative body must be elected by the entire Senate in January and is responsible for managing procedural functions and ruling on parliamentary matters.

The majority caucus also selected Sen. Ron Richard, R-Joplin, as majority floor leader; Sen. Mike Kehoe, R-Jefferson City, as assistant majority floor leader; Sen. Brian Nieves, R-Washington, as majority caucus whip; Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Glendale, as majority caucus chairman; and Sen. Jay Wasson, R-Nixa, as majority caucus secretary.

Leadership positions within the minority caucus include Sen. Jolie Justus, D-Kansas City, as minority floor leader; Sen. Shalonn “Kiki” Curls, D-Kansas City, as assistant minority floor leader; Sen. Joseph Keaveny, D-St. Louis, as minority caucus chairman; and Sen.-elect Walsh as minority caucus secretary.

Click here to read more about the leadership positions listed above.  This Week in the Missouri Senate from Nov. 15, 2012, also reviews the new leaders chosen for the upcoming legislative session.

Prefiling of Senate Bills

Several steps are taken to prepare for each new regular session, including the numbering of prefiled legislation.  Senators may begin prefiling bills for the next legislative session starting July 1.  However, it is not until Dec. 1 when these measures receive their bill numbers.  A complete list of prefiled bills in the Missouri Senate will be available online (www.senate.mo.gov) in early December.

Committee Work Continues

In the waning months of 2012, legislative committees continue their work on issues ranging from Missouri’s criminal code and state employee wages, to education and immigration.

The Joint Interim Committee on the Missouri Criminal Code, co-chaired by Sen. Justus, held its last meeting in early November.  The panel, which also includes Sen. Bob Dixon, R-Springfield; Sen. Mike Parson, R-Bolivar; and three members from the House of Representatives, was established to conduct a comprehensive review of the Missouri Criminal Code and consider recommendations submitted by the Missouri Bar Association. The joint interim committee was also responsible for making recommendations for improving the cohesiveness, consistency, and effectiveness of the Show-Me State’s criminal laws.  The committee’s recommendations and findings were due to the General Assembly in mid-November, and the panel has since been terminated.  More on the Joint Interim Committee on the Missouri Criminal Code’s final recommendations will be included in the December 2012 Capitol Briefing.

Responsible for studying and developing strategies for increasing the wages of Missouri’s state employees, the Joint Interim Committee on State Employee Wages also met this month.  Committee members include Sen. Kehoe, Sen. Wasson, and Sen. Keaveny, as well as three members from the House.  The panel will dissolve at the end of December 2014 and must present a long-term strategic plan for increasing state employee wages to the governor, the House Budget Committee and the Senate Appropriations Committee by Jan. 31, 2015.

Click here to listen to This Week in the Missouri Senate from Nov. 30, 2012.  The program reviews work conducted by the Joint Interim Committee on State Employee Wages.

The Joint Committee on Education was another joint panel that held a meeting in November.  Chaired by Sen. Pearce, the committee is responsible for several education-related items, including reviewing and monitoring the progress of education in Missouri’s public schools and higher education institutions, and receiving reports from the Commissioners of Education and Higher Education concerning these institutions, among others.  This particular committee hearing, held at the Missouri University of Science and Technology in Rolla, focused on higher education funding.  Sen. Cunningham; Sen. Nieves; Sen. Scott T. Rupp, R-St. Charles; Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia; Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal, D-University City; and Sen. Keaveny, join seven members from the House to serve on this joint committee.

Click here to listen to This Week in the Missouri Senate from Nov. 21, 2012.  The program reviews work conducted by the Joint Committee on Education.

Finally, the Blue Ribbon Panel on Immigration, chaired by Sen. John Lamping, R-Ladue, rounded out the committee hearing schedule for November.  Responsible for studying Missouri’s current immigration policies and making recommendations to strengthen these laws in in the Show-Me State, members on the panel discuss the eligibility of public and education benefits, proof of citizenship or lawful presence for driving privileges, and the involvement of state contracts.  The hearing was held this month in Kansas City.  Committee members, who include Sen. Will Kraus, R-Lee’s Summit; Sen. Kehoe; Sen. Chappelle-Nadal; and Sen. Curls, must issue a report to the President Pro Tem no later than Jan. 31, 2013.

The 97th General Assembly, First Regular Session, will convene Jan. 9, 2013.

To follow these and other issues facing the Missouri Senate, visit www.senate.mo.gov. Visitors can track legislation considered by the General Assembly during the 2012 legislative session, learn more about their legislative district, and, when the Legislature is in session, listen to streaming audio of legislative debate as it happens.

For more legislative news, please visit the Senate Newsroom. There you will find various audio and video programs and other services, such as:  

• Missouri Legislative Update (MLU) – A video program produced periodically throughout the year that provides an overview of the news in the Missouri Senate and House of Representatives. The program features news interviews with lawmakers and stories on issues concerning Missourians.
• Capital Dialogue – Missourinet's Bob Priddy hosts this monthly half-hour roundtable program bringing legislators together from the Missouri Senate and House of Representatives from different political parties to discuss their positions on specific issues and legislation.
• This Week in the Missouri Senate – A weekly five-minute audio program that wraps up the week’s news in the Missouri Senate. Programs are posted online every Friday in .mp3 format.
• Senate Minute – A condensed, one-minute audio report of current Senate news. Programs are posted in .mp3 format and are available through podcast.
• Daily Audio / Video Clips – Throughout the year, the Senate Newsroom posts broadcast-quality audio and video highlights from Senate committee hearings, floor debate, press conferences and other legislative events.  Please note: Clips linked to this Capitol Briefing are only available for the legislative week referenced in the publication.
• Daily News Clips – The Senate Newsroom compiles daily news clips from various print and online publications that cover issues relating to the Legislature and state government. An archive of past clips is maintained online and is offered as a subscription service.

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