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Missouri Senate President Pro Tem to file slot machine legislation for 2020

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The Missouri Senate leader will file legislation in December in Jefferson City to increase penalties for alleged illegal slot machines, setting the slot machine issue up as a major one for the 2020 legislative session.

Missouri Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz (R-Sullivan) visits the House chamber on May 17, 2019 (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, told Missourinet on Wednesday that his legislation will enhance the penalties for the alleged illegal slot machines, which are also known as video lottery terminals (VLTs).

They can be found in bars, restaurants, gas stations and convenience stores.

Missouri’s first criminal case involving the alleged illegal slots will go to trial in December in western Missouri’s Platte County.

Pro Tem Schatz says the Missouri Gaming Commission has received multiple reports of sites that have these machines. The Missouri State Highway Patrol testified in October that the number of complaints it’s received about illegal gambling has increased from 39 in 2018 to at least 145 this year.

Most of those complaints are about alleged illegal slots.

A Missouri House gaming committee has held five hearings since August, and the slot machine issue has dominated discussion at three of them. House Special Interim Committee on Gaming Chairman Dan Shaul, R-Imperial, predicts the slot machine issue will end up at the Missouri Supreme Court. He told the audience during an October hearing that whichever side loses the Platte County case will appeal.

Schatz’s proposal will likely face some opposition. During a committee hearing last week in Jefferson City, representatives from convenience stories and restaurants testified they support legislation to allow the machines in their establishments.

The company that operates 74 Break Time convenience stores in Missouri says video lottery terminals have saved convenience stores in other states.

MFA Oil Company vice president James Greer of Columbia tells state lawmakers that Break Time would probably use the terminals in 25 of their 74 stores, if Missouri lawmakers approve legislation to do so.

“We are open to a separate room. We are open to a cordoned-off area, we will live with whatever rule comes out of that,” Greer testifies.

The co-owner of six St. Louis-area restaurants also wants Missouri lawmakers to allow the VLTs in establishments like his, saying it will help restaurants attract new customers and keep up with minimum wage increases. Webster Groves resident Chris Marshall, who co-owns Llywelyn’s Pub, testified last week before the House gaming committee, saying the machines can also help managers invest money in restaurant renovations.

“In documents I have seen, the average restaurant in Illinois that has five video game machines can average additional revenue of approximately $5,000 per month,” Marshall testifies.

He tells lawmakers he’s had to close a restaurant and diversify. Llywelyn’s Pub has six St. Louis locations: Soulard, Webster Groves, St. Peters, St. Charles, O’Fallon and Wildwood.

But opponents say the machines are illegal and are hurting public education.

The Missouri Gaming Association, which represents the state’s 13 casinos, opposes legalizing the VLTs, saying they are illegal and bypass Missouri voters.

And the Missouri Lottery has testified that alleged illegal slot machines are hurting public education in the Show-Me State. Lottery executive director May Scheve Reardon testified in September, telling lawmakers there’s a major issue with the alleged illegal slots along the I-44 corridor, from St. James to Lebanon.

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Blunt says trade dispute has hurt China’s economy more than America’s

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U.S. Senator Roy Blunt, R-Missouri, believes the trade dispute with China will be resolved, but says the belief that trade would change China will likely never materialize. Blunt says both the U.S. and China have reasons to sign a new trade agreement.

Blunt says trade dispute has hurt China’s economy more than America’s

“I don’t think we’re ever going to get back to where we were with China a decade ago when there was a sense that this was going to be smooth-sailing and the Chinese economy and their view of individual freedom was developing so rapidly that, before you knew it, we’d all be functioning the same way,” Blunt says in an interview with St. Joseph affiliate KFEQ. “I think we now see that’s not likely to happen. President Xi is president for life.”

Blunt insists the trade dispute has hurt the Chinese economy more than the American economy. He says China, because of its communist form of government, can better weather economic hardships than the United States.

“They can tolerate more unhappiness in their system, but nobody likes to tolerate unhappiness,” Blunt says. “So, President Xi should want to do this. President Trump should want to do this. I think we will see some things happen there, but not everything that probably we need to see happen and would eventually want to see happen.”

Blunt says the optimistic outlook many U.S. leaders had that open trade would create an open China just hasn’t happened and likely won’t happen.

One trade agreement has been reached, but is pending Congressional approval.

Blunt is optimistic Congress will approve the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which is touted as vital to Missouri agriculture as well as business.
Blunt says it might seem odd, but the move by House Democrats to investigate and possibly impeach President Donald Trump could well pave the way for approval of the USMCA.

“The impeachment votes in the House make it even more likely that the Speaker’s going to decide that the 30 or 40 members that are going to have the hardest time casting that vote are the same 30 or 40 members that have the most need to have a vote on USMCA,” according to Blunt. “I think we have a real chance to get that done.”

Blunt holds out hope Congress will take up and pass the trade agreement before the end of the year.

Meanwhile, public impeachment hearings involving President Trump begin today.

By Brent Martin of Missourinet affiliate KFEQ in St. Joseph

Parson predicts executive order on apprenticeships will strengthen Missouri’s workforce (AUDIO)

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Missouri’s governor traveled to Columbia on Tuesday afternoon to sign an executive order creating an Office of Apprenticeship and Work-Based Learning, within the state Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development.

Governor Mike Parson speaks at the Apprenticeship Missouri Summit in Columbia on November 12, 2019, as Higher Education Commissioner Zora Mulligan listens (photo from Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth)

Governor Mike Parson (R) signed it during the Apprenticeship Missouri Summit, at the Drury Plaza East. The department hosted the summit.

“Through this office we will continue working to increase apprenticeships and work-based learning opportunities,” Parson says. “We have some of the hardest-working, talented individuals in the nation right here in the state of Missouri.”

The governor says the state must ensure Missourians are getting the skills and training they need to fill high-demand jobs.

He says apprenticeships play a key role in developing a workforce that’s prepared to meet future demands. Parson told the audience that Missouri has reached 10,000 new registered apprenticeships.

“We recently reached the milestone of being second in the nation for new apprenticeships, second in the United States of America Missouri is,” he said to applause from the audience of about 100.

He also notes Missouri ranks second in the nation for completed apprenticeships.

Parson says the more training and education Missourians have, the more productive they can be. Governor Parson spoke to Missourinet after the ceremony, saying the executive order he’s signed will strengthen the state’s workforce.

“You really establish this apprenticeship program from here on out, is what you’re really doing. You’re making everybody know that this is truly something we’re putting a huge emphasis on in the Department of Higher Education that we want to get done,” says Parson.

He says Missouri must continue to take action on workforce development, noting only 28 percent of Missourians have degrees and that 72 percent do not. He praises the Legislature’s bipartisan passage of “Fast Track,” which allows Missourians to receive advanced training in high-demand areas.

State Rep. Kathy Swan, R-Cape Girardeau, sponsored Fast Track.

Click here to listen to the full interview between Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth and Governor Mike Parson, which was recorded at the Apprenticeship Missouri Summit in Columbia on November 12, 2019:

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Missouri ranks second in nation in students completing apprenticeships

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Missouri is second in the nation in the number of people placed in apprenticeships. The state has reached a milestone of 10,000 new registered apprenticeships for Fiscal Year 2019. Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development Director Zora Mulligan calls apprenticeships one of the state’s best kept secrets.

Missouri ranks second in nation in students completing apprenticeships

“And that’s not scaled by population. So if you think about how we are in population, being number two in the nation is a pretty big deal,” she says.

Mulligan tells Missourinet the state does quite a bit of work in grant finding.

“One of the areas where grants have been most significant in moving us forward is in apprenticeships,” says Mulligan. “We’ve had good luck getting grants from the U.S. Department of Labor to really grow apprenticeship programs.”

Mulligan says federal grants have made a significant difference in moving Missouri forward in apprenticeships.

Mulligan’s department is hosting the second annual Apprenticeship Missouri Summit today in Columbia at the Drury Inn. During a ceremony there today, Governor Parson plans to sign an executive order about apprenticeships. Missourinet will be there and have more on the story later.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

U.S. Agriculture Secretary heading to Kansas City on Friday; Graves praises relocation plan (AUDIO)

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A congressman who represents 36 northern Missouri counties is praising USDA’s selection of Kansas City as the site for two major USDA facilities.

U.S. Rep. Sam Graves, R-Tarkio, farms in northwest Missouri’s Atchison County in October 2019 (photo courtesy of Congressman Graves’ office)

U.S. Rep. Sam Graves, R-Tarkio, a sixth-generation family farmer, says 90 percent of USDA employees are already outside of Washington. Graves’ sprawling district includes the northern Kansas City suburbs.

“The closer we can get USDA’s core or headquarter staff to agriculture, the better,” Graves says.

USDA will relocate its Economic Research Service (ERS) and its National Institute of Food and Agriculture Policy (NIFA) agencies to Pennsylvania Avenue in Kansas City.

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue will travel to the location on Friday morning to hold an event with Missouri Governor Mike Parson, Senator Roy Blunt, state Department of Agriculture (MDA) Director Chris Chinn, state Department of Economic Development Director Rob Dixon and others.

Congressman Graves praises the relocation plan, saying it will decentralize USDA.

“When you put too many bureaucrats for an agency inside the Beltway, inside Washington D.C. where they’re not out there interacting with the very people that they are supposed to be serving, then you get into some serious problems,” says Graves.

He says USDA’s decision puts the agencies closer to constituencies.

Graves also predicts the decision will have a “ripple effect” two to three counties deep. He says the average wages for the approximately 550 positions are between $80,000 and $100,000.

“Buying homes, renting apartments, buying gas, buying groceries, buying new televisions, whatever the case may be,” Graves says.

He also emphasizes that the issue has been bipartisan, noting that he’s been working closely with U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Kansas City.

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas (D) has also praised the plan and the bipartisan regional efforts to land the jobs. Mayor Lucas notes Kansas City is an essential part of the animal health corridor.

Click here to listen to the full interview between Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth and U.S. Rep. Sam Graves, R-Tarkio, which was recorded on November 1, 2019:

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Winter storm briefly closes interstate in western Missouri (AUDIO)

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Winter weather briefly closed heavily-traveled southbound I-49 in western Missouri’s Belton on Monday morning, because of numerous slide offs and unsafe driving conditions.

The National Weather Service (NWS) in St. Louis is warning about deteriorating conditions on bridges and overpasses (November 11, 2019 map courtesy of NWS St. Louis Twitter)

National Weather Service (NWS) Pleasant Hill meteorologist Jonathan Kurtz notes it’s rare for a storm to close an interstate.

“It happens from time to time when you get these pretty strong intense bursts of snow,” Kurtz says. “And we have had two rounds here in the Kansas City metro, and two pretty strong lines have come through.”

I-49, which has re-opened, is a major route for truckers, and runs in Missouri from just south of Kansas City to southwest Missouri’s McDonald County.

Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) spokeswoman Sally Oxenhandler tells Missourinet that southbound I-49 at 163rd Street in Cass County was closed for about 20 minutes today.

Kurtz says conditions on the interstate quickly deteriorated.

“I-49 was only closed for a little bit of time there due to some slick roads there,” says Kurtz. “And snow started to accumulate pretty fast. Once it started hitting the ground, it only took about 20 to 30 minutes for the road to start to get snow-covered.”

Missouri state troopers responded to several slide-offs on Highway 50 in western Missouri’s Knob Noster on November 11, 2019 (photo from Missourinet’s Ashley Byrd)

The National Weather Service is warning Missourians that the snow and falling temperatures will lead to deteriorating conditions on bridges and overpasses for your evening commute. Mr. Kurtz is urging motorists to slow down.

“My drive in was pretty slick as well, and you just have to give yourself plenty of time. And we can kind of be thrown off, especially when the day before we had highs in the 50’s,” Kurtz says.

Snow is expected to end in Jefferson City by 4 p.m. Monday and in southeast Missouri’s Farmington by 6 p.m. The NWS is urging motorists and anyone heading outside to dress in layers.

Northwest Missouri’s St. Joseph has received about an inch of snow, while mid-Missouri’s Columbia has seen about an inch as well. There’s an inch-and-a-half on the ground in northeast Missouri’s Foley.

Several schools in mid-Missouri and in the Ozarks have dismissed early because of the storm. Westminster College in mid-Missouri’s Fulton has also dismissed classes early.

Click here to listen to the full interview between Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth and National Weather Service (NWS) Pleasant Hill meteorologist Jonathan Kurtz, which was recorded on November 11, 2019:

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Missouri vaping related illness cases continue to climb

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As of Thursday, 33 confirmed or probable vaping associated illnesses and one vaping related death have been reported to the state. Of the cases reported, more than half involve users ages 15-24.

Missouri vaping related illness cases continue to climb

Gov. Mike Parson has ordered three state agencies to develop a statewide public service campaign about the dangers of vaping among youth. The state is also doing random compliance checks this month at Missouri retailers who sell e-cigarette products. Those under the age of 18 are banned from buying nicotine vaping products in Missouri.

St. Joseph in northwest Missouri has banned all indoor use of e-cigarettes. The Smithville Board of Aldermen in western Missouri is debating whether to pull flavored electronic cigarette products from store shelves. The Columbia City Council in central Missouri is also considering a temporary ban on flavored vaping products.

Critics of vaping say kids are attracted to flavored e-cigarette products. Smithville Mayor Damien Boley tells Kansas City station KCTV the number of kids caught with vape products at school is on the rise, including students all the way down to the third-grade level.

Here is the latest information about vaping figures provided by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services:

 

Missouri Vaping Associated Pulmonary Illness Cases

As of November 7, 2019
Status Sex Age Region
Confirmed or Probable 33 Male 25 15-24 19 Central 4
Female 8 25-34  7 Eastern 15
Deaths* 1   35-44 3 Northwest 9
*Death Included in the number of cases 45-54 3 Southeast 1
55-64 1 Southwest 4
65-74
75-84

Last month, State Department of Health and Senior Services Director Randall Williams said Missouri’s vaping related illness cases reflect the national trend in the use of illegal vaping cartridges.

“If you look nationally, about 70% of those are associated with THC and illegal cartridges. The other 30% is unknown,” said Williams.

As of November 5, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say 2,051 cases of e-cigarette use associated lung problems have been reported to the CDC from 49 states and the District of Columbia. Thirty-nine deaths have been confirmed in 24 states.

MLB: Missourians expected to wager $5.5 billion on sports, if it’s legalized

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A representative from Major League Baseball (MLB) predicts Missourians will spend billions of dollars annually to bet on sports, if it’s legalized.

Missouri House Special Interim Committee on Gaming Chairman Dan Shaul, R-Imperial, speaks during a hearing on August 22, 2019 (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Jeremy Kudon traveled to Jefferson City to testify Thursday before the Missouri House Special Interim Committee on Gaming.

“According to the AGA’s Oxford report, Missouri bettors are expected to wager over $5.5 billion on sports, that’s about where New Jersey is right now,” Kudon testifies.

The AGA is the American Gaming Association. Kudon predicts casino operators would make about $376 million a year from that, and that Missouri would receive approximately $37 million annually in taxes.

Kudon also expresses some concerns, noting that MLB opposes allowing betting on spring training games.

“Where the Cardinals may have a plan for (pitcher) Adam Wainwright to throw curve balls the entire first inning, that’s a real-life thing,” Kudon tells lawmakers.

Kudon says he wants to see a bill that creates the best possible legal sports betting framework for Missouri. Kudon also represents the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the PGA Golf Tour.

The “St. Louis Post-Dispatch” has reported that at least 18 other states and the District of Columbia allow residents 21 and older to bet on collegiate and professional sports.

State Reps. Robert Ross, R-Yukon, and Cody Smith, R-Carthage, filed sports wagering bills in 2019, but the bills died because of a lack of consensus in the Legislature. Ross, who serves on the interim committee, tells Missourinet he plans to file a similar but improved bill for 2020.

The National Football League (NFL) Players Association and the National Hockey League (NHL) Players Association also testified before the committee on Thursday.

The NFL Players Association is calling on Missouri to establish a hotline for players to call, if the state legalizes sports wagering. Players Association counsel Joe Briggs expressed some security concerns for players, during his testimony.

“So if I’m sitting at home and someone tries to drop a bag of cash on my doorstep to try to make sure that I play a certain way or not next week, who do I pick up the phone and call.” Briggs testified.

Briggs tells state lawmakers the hotline could be run by Attorney General Eric Schmitt’s office, the Missouri State Highway Patrol or the Gaming Commission.

While the bulk of Thursday’s hearing involved sports wagering, the committee also heard some testimony about alleged illegal slot machines. That’s been a major issue at previous hearings.

Committee Chairman Dan Shaul, R-Imperial, tells Missourinet the committee plans to submit a report to House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, by December 1.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

About 120 new jobs headed to southwest Missouri

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Bass Pro Shops – Image courtesy of Bass Pro Shops

Nearly 120 jobs are being relocated to southwest Missouri’s Springfield from Bass Pro Shops’ Cabela’s operation in Sidney, Nebraska. The timeline of when these jobs will be moved is unknown.

The company says employees who choose not to move to Springfield will be offered severance, as well as outplacement aid.

Cabela’s once employed around 2,000 people at its headquarters in Sidney before being bought by Bass Pro.

By Don Louzader of Missourinet affiliate KSGF in Springfield

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Major League Baseball to testify Thursday at Missouri Capitol (AUDIO)

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A representative from Major League Baseball will testify Thursday before a Missouri House gaming committee in Jefferson City about sports wagering legislation.

State Rep. Robert Ross, R-Yukon, speaks during an August 22, 2019 hearing of the Missouri House Special Interim Committee on Gaming (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Jeremy Kudon of Major League Baseball is traveling from New York to Jefferson City to testify before the House Special Interim Committee on Gaming. Committee Chairman Dan Shaul, R-Imperial, tells Missourinet that he expects an informative presentation.

“MLB will be here (the Missouri Capitol) on November 7th and they’ll talk about their role in sports betting, and what they’d like to see and what they’ve done in other states,” Shaul says.

Gaming executive Chris Krafcik of San Francisco-based Eilers and Krejcik Gaming testified before the committee in October that legalizing sports betting at Missouri casinos and via mobile devices would generate about $289 million annually in revenue.

Multiple gaming executives testified in October that they want to make sure that legalized sports betting in Missouri is easy to use, secure and is fair for the consumer.

State Reps. Robert Ross, R-Yukon, and Cody Smith, R-Carthage, filed sports wagering bills in 2019, but the bills died because of a lack of consensus in the Legislature. Representative Ross, who serves on the interim committee, tells Missourinet he plans to file a similar but improved bill for 2020.

The “St. Louis Post-Dispatch” has reported that at least 18 other states and the District of Columbia allow residents 21 and older to bet on collegiate and professional sports.

Las Vegas-based Boyd Gaming, which operates the Ameristar Kansas City and St. Charles casinos, testified last month for legislation to legalize sports betting in Missouri. Boyd Gaming’s Ryan Soultz tells lawmakers Missouri is losing tax revenue to other states, citing customers in the Kansas City area.

“We’ve heard from some customers that are making the drive up to Iowa for football Saturdays and football Sundays because we don’t have a sports book here,” Soultz testifies.

The House Special Interim Committee on Gaming meets Thursday at noon. This is the committee’s final hearing. They plan to submit a report to the full House by December 1.

Click here to listen to the full interview between Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth and House Special Interim Committee on Gaming Chairman Dan Shaul, R-Imperial, which was recorded on October 24, 2019 at the Statehouse in Jefferson City:

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