| Capitol Briefing for the Month of September 2012 | |
| General Assembly Returns to Capitol for Annual Veto Session |
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JEFFERSON CITY - Lawmakers returned to Jefferson City for the Legislature’s annual veto session on Wednesday, Sept. 12. The session—constitutionally limited to 10 days—provides legislators an opportunity to override the governor’s veto of most measures passed during the regular legislative session. A motion to override a veto must be made by the primary sponsor of a bill in the originating chamber. If approved by a two-thirds majority in that body, it moves to the other chamber for consideration. Both the House and Senate must vote to overturn a governor’s veto by a two-thirds majority, or 23 votes in the Senate, and 109 in the House. Thirteen bills were up for consideration of an override this veto session. Of those, only Senate Bill 749 received a motion by the General Assembly for a veto override. The bill, sponsored by Sen. John Lamping, R-Ladue, provides protections for religious beliefs regarding the imposition of certain health care services, such as abortion, contraception or sterilization. The measure was in direct response to a mandate in the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that requires birth control be covered under medical insurance. The Legislature approved SB 749 during the final hours of the regular session in May. However, the governor vetoed the bill in July, claiming existing Missouri law already allowed employers to abstain from providing contraception coverage in their health plans. On Wednesday, Sept. 12, the Senate moved to override the governor’s veto in a 26-6 vote. The House also adopted the override motion, garnering the bare minimum 109 votes needed to overturn the governor’s action on SB 749. With this legislative action, most provisions in SB 749 became law. Other provisions in the bill not containing an emergency clause will take effect Oct. 12 It’s been nine years since the General Assembly voted to override a governor’s veto during a veto session. In 2003, the Legislature overturned the veto of three bills, including the legislation that authorized conceal and carry permits for firearms in Missouri. Click here to listen to “This Week in the Missouri Senate” from Sept. 20, which features a report on the veto override of SB 749. Former and Current Senators Honored Retired and retiring senators were honored during a ceremony held prior to the annual veto session on Wednesday, Sept. 12. Lawmakers took the opportunity to bid farewell to colleagues who were either voted out of office during the primary elections, are simply retiring from public service or were required to leave due to term limits. Senators recognized at the event include:
In 1992, Missouri joined 12 other states in passing term limits in their state legislatures, capping term lengths to eight years in each the House and Senate for a total of 16 years combined. Legislative Committees Meet in September Various committees met at the Capitol and around the state this month. Lawmakers often use the week of veto session to meet in Jefferson City and discuss issues in legislative committees. Joint Committee on Education During the 2012 regular session, the General Assembly approved House Bill 1731, which, among other provisions, tasked the Joint Committee on Education with creating a funding formula for distributing state money to colleges and universities. The move was part of a compromise reached after certain lawmakers opposed a $2 million funding increase for Southeast Missouri University included in a budget bill for Fiscal Year 2013. The funding bump, which was eventually increased to $3 million and divided among a handful of higher-ed institutions, led some legislators to question the equity of how the state divvies up funding for Missouri’s colleges and universities. The Joint Committee on Education conducted its first hearing of the interim on Tuesday, Sept. 11. The committee, chaired by Sen. David Pearce, R-Warrensburg, heard testimony from various education policy experts on the success of performance-based funding in other states and a pilot program in Missouri studying new methods of evaluating educators for quality and effectiveness. The committee will continue to meet throughout the interim to gather testimony at locations around the state. Other senators serving on the joint committee include Sen. Cunningham; Sen. Brian Nieves, R-Washington; Sen. Scott T. Rupp, R-Wentzville; Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia; Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal, D-University City; and Sen. Joseph Keaveny, D-St. Louis. Joint Interim Committee on Transportation Needs The Joint Interim Committee on Transportation Needs, co-chaired by Sen. Stouffer, met on Wednesday, Sept. 12. The committee, created with the passage of Senate Concurrent Resolution 26, will be examining future funding solutions regarding Missouri’s transportation infrastructure needs. The Missouri Department of Transportation has absorbed significant budget reductions in recent years, largely due to declining revenue. Among other topics, the committee will discuss Missouri’s current gas tax and the effect it has on the state’s transportation needs. Ongoing conversations continue between MoDOT and state lawmakers over how Missouri will fund its transportation needs in the future. The joint committee will consider proposed solutions during its meeting, which will meet throughout the interim. The panel then must report its findings to the General Assembly by Jan. 1, 2013. Additional senators selected to serve on the panel include Sen. Lamping; Sen. Jay Wasson, R-Nixa; Sen. Mike Kehoe, R-Jefferson City; Sen. Keaveny; Sen. Ryan McKenna, D-Crystal City; and Sen. Shalonn "Kiki" Curls, D-Kansas City. Click here to listen to “This Week in the Missouri Senate” from Sept. 7, which features a report on Missouri’s transportation future. Joint Committee on the Missouri Criminal Code The Joint Interim Committee on the Missouri Criminal Code held its first meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 11. The committee was created with the passage of Senate Concurrent Resolution 28. The six-member panel includes Sen. Jolie Justus, D-Kansas City, co-chair, and Sen. Bob Dixon, R-Springfield, and Sen. Mike Parson, R-Bolivar. The committee is charged with conducting a comprehensive review of the state’s criminal code and recommendations for revising the code by the Missouri Bar Association, which based its findings on a four-year study. The Missouri criminal code was last rewritten in the 1970s, and the mid-1800s before that. The committee will hold hearings throughout September and early October. It must report its findings and any recommendations to the Legislature by Nov. 15. Click here to listen to “This Week in the Missouri Senate” from Sept. 13, which features a report on the Joint Interim Committee on the Missouri Criminal Code. Joint Committee on Child Abuse and Neglect The Joint Committee on Child Abuse and Neglect, chaired by Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, held its first organizational meeting at the Capitol on Wednesday, Sept. 25. The panel was established with the passage of Senate Bill 628 and is tasked with studying and analyzing the state child abuse and neglect reporting and investigation system and devising a plan to improve the process for removing a child from a home. The creation of the committee was part of an overall effort by the General Assembly in 2012 to address the issue of child abuse and neglect in Missouri and the state’s handling of these cases. The Legislature considered a measure this year to implement a mandatory reporting law in the state for those who witness the sexual abuse of a child. The session ended before the bill was given final approval. However, lawmakers did pass House Bill 1323, which enacts critical changes to how the Department of Social Services (DSS) handles hotline abuse calls, including requiring the Children’s Division to review cases of repeated hotline calls in a 72-hour time period to see if they meet the criteria to initiate a child abuse and neglect report, among other measures. The Joint Committee on Child Abuse and Neglect will also determine if additional personnel and resources are necessary to adequately protect children and improve their welfare, and it will address the need for additional foster care homes and study the quality of care provided to abused and neglected children in custody of the state. According to a monthly report issued by DSS, there were more than 5,000 incidents and children reported to the Children’s Division regarding suspected abuse and neglect during May 2012. More than 15,000 children were in the custody of the state at some point in 2011. Senators selected to serve on the panel include Sen. Dixon; Sen. Rob Schaaf, R-St. Joseph; Sen. Schaefer; Sen. Nieves; Sen. Curls; Sen. Justus; and Sen. Keaveny. Tax Credit Review Commission Reconvened Tax credits are an amount of money taxpayers or business entities can subtract from their tax liability to the state. These credits, also referred to as incentives, are often used by governments to encourage a particular activity within the state, from donating to food pantries to renovating historic buildings. Missouri has around 60 different tax credit programs. According to Missouri Senate Appropriations, in Fiscal year 1998, the state spent around $102 million on tax incentives. By Fiscal Year 2010, the cost had increased to more than $521 million. In response to the ballooning price of the programs, the governor created a 27-member tax credit review commission in 2010 to examine the state’s tax credit programs to gauge their effectiveness and return on investment. The report issued by the commission recommended eliminating a number of programs and reducing others, in particular the state’s two largest tax credits, Low Income Housing and Historic Preservation. Earlier this month, the governor reconvened the Tax Credit Review Commission to update its original report on Missouri’s tax credit programs. The governor’s action came on the heels of information released by the Missouri Department of Revenue showing the state spent a record $629 million on tax credits in Fiscal Year 2012. The commission has until Dec. 5 to make its recommendations. Sen. Wright-Jones, and Sen. Justus are among the members of the panel.
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