| Capitol Briefing: Month of August 2014 | |
Majority of Senate Bills Become Law in August
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JEFFERSON CITY – Missouri’s Constitution (Article III, Section 29) states that no law passed by the General Assembly, except appropriations measures or bills containing an emergency clause, can take effect until 90 days after the Legislature constitutionally adjourns. Most of the bills passed by the General Assembly and signed by the governor, or allowed to lapse into law, took effect on Aug. 28. Some of the most notable measures that took effect include bills pertaining to public health, taxation, local governments and telecommunications, military affairs, education, and seniors and families. Bills Become Law in August A bill sponsored by Sen. Ryan Silvey, R-Kansas City, that ensures insurance companies provide affordable coverage for oral chemotherapy took effect on Aug. 28. Senate Bill 668 provides for a more affordable and accessible option to patients in need of this medication. Orally prescribed anti-cancer medications are in compliance with health benefit plans under the bill if they are offered at a rate that limits the total out-of-pocket costs to $75 for the 30-day period. Senate Bill 532, sponsored by Sen. Jamilah Nasheed, D-St. Louis, allows caregivers who are related either by blood, marriage or adoption, under a sworn statement, to consent to medical and educational services for a minor if the parent or guardian cannot be reached after a reasonable amount of attempts. The consent may also be presented in written form. In this act, the affidavit will expire after one year. Legislation sponsored by Sen. Dan Brown, R-Rolla, addresses those Missourians who receive screenings for breast cancer by requiring facilities that perform mammograms to provide additional information to patients if their mammogram demonstrates they have dense breast tissue. Under Senate Bill 639, this information will let patients know that dense breast tissue might hide abnormalities, and they could potentially benefit from supplemental screenings. House Bill 1603 designates the “jumping jack” as Missouri’s official exercise, which is thought to be named after Gen. John J. “Black Jack” Pershing, whose boyhood home is located in Laclede, Mo. The general is credited with inventing the jumping jack as a drill exercise for cadets while he was a military leader at West Point. The legislation was handled in the Senate by Sen. Rob Schaaf, R-St. Joseph. House Bill 1426, handled in the Senate by Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Glendale, allows counties to create a voluntary registry of individuals with health-related ailments for emergency purposes. This act provides assistance to those individuals in case of a disaster or emergency. Any personal identifying information provided for the registry will not be used in public records. However, in the result that an emergency or disaster occurs, any person listed on that registry list will be included in a public incident report. Senator Gary Romine, R-Farmington, carried House Bill 1459 in the upper chamber. The bill creates a new tax credit for donations to innovation campuses. An innovation campus is a partnership between a Missouri high school, a four-year college or university, a business, and a two-year higher education institute that places focus on the subjects of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. For a donation to be eligible, it must be used toward the STEM fields. The tax credit is nonrefundable, transferable, can be carried on for four years and is equal to 50 percent of the taxpayer’s donation to an innovation campus. This bill will sunset Aug. 28, 2020. An act that extends allocations of tax revenues from nonresident entertainers and athletes until Dec. 31, 2020, was handled in the Senate by Sen. Schaaf. House Bill 1237 will funnel this revenue to the Missouri Arts Council Trust Fund, the Missouri Humanities Council Trust Fund, the Missouri State Library Networking Fund, the Missouri Public Television Broadcasting Corporation Special Fund, and the Missouri Historic Preservation Revolving Fund. Missouri currently applies income tax to amounts earned by athletes and entertainers like all other professions. The state also applies withholding tax to the amounts paid to nonresident athletes and entertainers. Under HB 1237, the measure would extend the allocation of tax revenues from the nonresident entertainer and athlete tax until 2020. The act also specifies that such allocations are subject to appropriations. Senator David Sater, R-Cassville, sponsored Senate Bill 600, which changes provisions regarding license plates honoring veterans. This act also expands medallion programs to include veterans who served in World War II, the Korean Conflict or the Vietnam War as a member of the Missouri National Guard, regardless of whether they are a resident of Missouri. In addition, it creates medallion programs for certain veterans who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom, New Dawn, Desert Shield, and Desert Storm. Under this bill, schools will be required to conduct educational programs and activities as part of Veterans Day celebrations. House Bill 1372, carried through the upper chamber by Sen. Will Kraus, R-Lee’s Summit, revises the previously enacted “Spc. Edward Lee Myers’ Law” passed by the General Assembly in 2006. Under current law, it is a class B misdemeanor for a person to picket or protest within 300 feet of a funeral — one hour before to one hour after. House Bill 1372 creates a new section of law for the offense, specifying the types of establishments where funeral or burial services may be held, providing a definition for “other protest activities,” and modifying the definition of funeral. Committee Meeting Scheduled for September A number of interim committees are scheduled to meet in September, many coinciding with the annual veto session, which is scheduled to begin on Sept. 10 at noon. The Senate Interim Committee on Tax Administration Practices will hold a public meeting at the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce, located at 202 S. John Q Hammons Parkway in the Bill Foster North Room on Wednesday, Sept. 3, at 1 p.m. The committee is also scheduled to meet on Tuesday, Sept. 9, at the Capitol in the Senate Lounge at 1 p.m. The committee is chaired by Sen. Kraus. Other members serving include Sen. Wayne Wallingford, R-Cape Girardeau; Sen. Bob Dixon, R-Springfield; Sen. Ed Emery, R-Lamar; Sen. Schmitt; Sen. Scott Sifton, D-St. Louis; and Sen. Paul LeVota, D-Independence. The group is responsible for investigating the processes and policies used by the Missouri Department of Revenue to interpret, enact and enforce tax statutes. The committee is also tasked with uncovering potential conflicts or inconsistencies with the administration of tax law. The group will report its findings and recommendations to the Senate President Pro Tem no later than Dec. 31, 2014. During the 2014 session, the Legislature passed Senate Bill 621, which, among other provisions, created the Joint Committee on the Justice System. The committee is scheduled to hold its first meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 9, at 10 a.m. in the Senate Lounge. Senators serving on the committee include Sen. Dixon; Sen. Jolie Justus, D-Kansas City; Sen. Joseph Keaveny, D-St. Louis; and Sen. Schmitt. The Missouri Lead Industry Employment, Economic Development and Environmental Remediation Task Force, chaired by Sen. Romine, will meet on Tuesday, Sept. 9, at 10 a.m. in Senate Committee Room 1 at the Capitol. The group was created through the passage of Senate Concurrent Resolution 19 during the 2014 session. The Senate Select Committee on Capital Improvements will meet on Tuesday, Sept. 9, at 3:30 p.m. in Senate Committee Room 1 at the Capitol. The group is chaired by Sen. Mike Kehoe, R-Jefferson City, and charged with monitoring proposed state-funded capital improvement projects, new construction on state buildings, and leases and proposed leases of real property funded with taxpayer dollars. Additionally, the Joint Committee on Solid Waste Management District Operations will hold a hearing on Wednesday, Sept. 17, at 1 p.m. in the Senate Lounge at the Capitol. The committee was created through the passage of Senate Concurrent Resolution 17 during the 2014 session. Testimony will be taken. In order to allow time for each to testify, please contact Sen. Wallingford’s office if you plan to testify. For a complete list of scheduled committee meetings, click here or visit the official Senate website and click on the links under the “Hearings” section on the right side of the page. On Wednesday, Sept. 10, lawmakers will gather in Jefferson City for the annual veto session. Article III, Section 32 of the Missouri Constitution requires the General Assembly to meet for a period not to surpass 10 calendar days if the governor vetoes any bills passed by the House and Senate during the regular legislative session. A two-thirds majority in both chambers—23 votes in the Senate and 109 votes in the House—is required to override the governor’s veto. This year, the Legislature will have the opportunity to discuss any or all of the 32 House and Senate bills that were vetoed. Senate Bill 509 received the necessary votes to override the governor’s veto on May 6. Here are some of the bills that may be reconsidered during this year’s veto session. Senate Bill 493, sponsored by Sen. Pearce, R-Warrensburg, addresses Missouri’s school accreditation and student transfer process. The measure changes how the state assigns classification designations to individual schools throughout the state, naming them as unaccredited, provisionally accredited, accredited or accredited with distinction. The bill creates three regional authorities (St. Louis region, Kansas City area, the rest of the state) to oversee student transfers in Missouri and revises the number of required school days per year to 1,044 school hours per year. Senate Bill 493 also allows voters in certain parts of the state to decide if students from an unaccredited district may transfer to a nonsectarian private school located in the district. Vetoed June 24, 2014. Sponsored by Sen. Emery, Senate Bill 523 prohibits school districts from requiring students to use identification devices, such as a student ID badge, that utilize radio frequency identification (RFID) technology to identify students, transmit information regarding students, or monitor or track students’ locations. Vetoed July 9, 2014. Under current law, property in certain counties and cities is considered a nuisance if it adversely affects the property values of a neighborhood due to neglect or violation of a code or standard, as well as other reasons. Senate Bill 731, sponsored by Sen. Nasheed, states that property is also a nuisance if it affects the value of any property in the neighborhood and adds the action of failure to reasonably maintain the property and violation of ordinances to the list of actions that lead to liability for the nuisance. Vetoed July 7, 2014. Look for next month’s Capitol Briefing for a summary of this year’s veto session.
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