Summer in the District
The Missouri Legislature is in session less than five months each year, but the work of a state senator doesn’t end when the General Assembly adjourns in May. In my case, I’ve spent the past few weeks traveling throughout the district, visiting with community leaders and listening to constituents. It’s been a busy summer. Here’s just a few of the activities that I’ve been involved in while serving the residents of the 34th Senatorial District.
Bills Become Laws – I had the privilege to be at the State Capitol for the governor signing some of my legislative priorities into law recently. On July 10, the governor signed my Senate Bill 224. This measure streamlines the legal process of discovery and reduces the chance that lawsuits will drag on endlessly. It ensures individuals and small businesses facing frivolous lawsuits have their cases dealt with quickly, and people who are legitimately wronged get their day in court sooner.
The governor also signed House Bill 959. I attached two important amendments to this bill when it came before the Senate. One requires companies holding real estate in St. Joseph to disclose a person responsible for maintaining the property. This provision strengthens the city’s ability to deal with abandoned properties and will increase the effectiveness of another bill I carried in the senate, House Bill 821, which authorizes the creation of a land bank in St. Joseph. The other amendment gives greater flexibility to multi-generation, family-owned businesses in setting up the company’s management. This will help keep family-owned business family owned and located in Missouri.
In late July, I joined Missouri’s attorney general and a host of community leaders in celebrating the enactment of Senate Bill 87. The bill includes an amendment I sponsored to establish the Kansas City Regional Law Enforcement Memorial Foundation Fund. Missouri taxpayers will be able to direct a portion of their state tax refund toward the fund to help pay for the creation of a memorial garden to honor fallen police officers. The memorial will be located adjacent to the Kansas City Police Department’s Regional Police Academy and honor the sacrifice of the brave men and women who lost their lives protecting us. I’m happy the Missouri General Assembly was able to play a small role in helping to find an additional funding source for this worthy project.
Thanking our Protectors – On July 18, I had the pleasure of visiting with members of the Missouri Air National Guard’s 139th Airlift Wing and thanking them for their service to our state and nation, particularly their efforts helping communities affected by recent flooding. The unit is based at Rosecrans Memorial Airport in St. Joseph, which is also home to the Advanced Airlift Tactics Training Center and the 241st Air Traffic Control Squadron. The 139th Air Wing flies the C-130 Hercules and is one of two flying wings of the Missouri Air National Guard. I’m proud to have such a wonderful group of brave men and women in my district.
Opioid Summit – The devastating epidemic of opioid addiction continues to impact the lives of Missourians. Recently, the St. Joseph Health Department and the Buchanan County Opioid Task Force hosted the Northwest Missouri Opioid Summit. I was pleased to participate in the event and update attendees on efforts to adopt a statewide prescription drug monitoring program. Sadly, Missouri is the only state in the nation without a statewide PDMP. In 2018, overdoses surpassed car accidents as a leading non-natural cause of death in Missouri. The majority of those overdoses involved prescription drugs. This is an epidemic that is stealing the lives of Missourians. As a state, our No. 1 priority should be protecting the safety of our citizens. There is more we must do to curb this public health crisis.
Welcoming MWSU’s New Leader – In mid-July, the Heartland Foundation welcomed Matthew Wilson as the new president of Missouri Western State University. I was honored to present a resolution from the Missouri Senate to Mr. Wilson, who comes to MWSU from the University of Akron, where he was a law professor and served as the dean of the law school there.
Governor visits Parkville – July 25 was National Hire a Veteran Day and the governor marked the occasion with a visit to Park University in Parkville for a roundtable discussion on workforce development. In particular, we learned about ways military members can transfer their skills and credentials into college credit. It was great to accompany the governor and share in learning about all the wonderful things happening at the school.
Are You Ready for Football? – It was great to see the Kansas City Chiefs take the field during training camp on the campus of Missouri Western State University. We had great weather as thousands of fans turned out to watch our team arrive on the first day of camp. In the coming weeks we’ll be watching the entire team come together and prepare for what we hope will be a championship season. On a related note, the Missouri Legislature passed a resolution this year naming the Chiefs as the official professional football team of the state of Missouri. Go Chiefs!
It is my great honor to represent the citizens of Platte and Buchanan counties in the Missouri Senate. Please contact my office at 573-751-2183, or visit www.senate.mo.gov/luetkemeyer.