A state representative says he didn’t really want the House to debate proposed changes to Missouri’s student transfer law in private.
Representative Josh Peters (D-St. Louis) said in a press release he planned to make a motion to use a rule that exists in the U.S. House of Representatives that allows members to make a motion to go into closed session for debate of issues in confidence. Missouri House Rule 119 states that the Missouri House is also governed by the rules of the U.S. House.
In the release, Peters said the transfer issue is important enough to conduct debate without interference from lobbyists, interest groups or senators. He says in the past, such groups have made a “mockery of having a serious, free and open debate.”
Once debate of the bill began, however, Peters made no such motion. He reportedly later said the press release was only meant to “send a message.”
