Legislation expanding the Quality Jobs bill has cleared the Missouri House and has moved onto the Senate. where it could run into some opposition. Senator Jason Crowell (R-Cape Girardeau) says that while he liked the original Quality Jobs Act and does not object to expanding that program, the bill that came out of the House is loaded with goodies for special interests.
Crowell says that while Quality Jobs has a proven track record and a return on investment, this legislation – which he calls an earmark bill – does no. He says it is similar to what often comes out of Capitol Hill in Washington.
“I want to see a true return on investment that will create jobs,” says Crowell. “Not just make campaign contributors happy that we’ve given ’em tax credits. We do not need a bailout in the state of Missouri – What we need is a good partnership between the State of Missouri, local governmental entities, and employers to create jobs”
Crowell expects the House version to go through some big modifications as it makes its way through the Senate: “We’ve got a fiscal note on that bill that says anywhere from $316,000 to unknown. Now, how anyone votes on something with a fiscal note that says $316,000 to unknown and hasn’t had a better grasp and demand of what is the unknown is beyond me. But we in the Senate are going to get better grasp of what the fiscal impact is.”
Download/Listen: Steve Walsh report (:60 MP3)
