House Minority Leader Crystal Quade Archives

Missouri governor announces $210 million in additional budget restrictions

June 2, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

Citing the COVID-19 pandemic and the loss of 300,000 jobs between March and April, Missouri Governor Mike Parson (R) has announced an additional $210 million in budget withholds, including $131 million for the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE).

Missouri Governor Mike Parson announces $210 million in additional budget restrictions during a Statehouse media briefing on June 1, 2020 (photo courtesy of Governor Parson’s Flickr page)

The governor made the announcement during a media briefing on Monday afternoon at the Statehouse in Jefferson City.

Governor Parson says Missouri’s unemployment rate increased from 3.9 to 9.7 percent in April. He notes that the loss of 300,000 jobs is a decrease of more than ten percent.

“It goes without saying that COVID-19 has had severe impacts on our anticipated economic growth,” Parson says. “This is truly unlike anything we have ever experienced before, and we are now expecting significant revenue declines.”

The $131 million in budget withholds for DESE include $123 million for the school foundation formula and $7 million for school transportation.

“I have always been a strong supporter of education. These were extremely difficult decisions I never thought I would have to make in just a few months,” Parson tells Capitol reporters.

The budget restrictions announced on Monday are in addition to the two rounds announced by the governor in April, of $180 million and $47 million, respectively. In addition to DESE, the restrictions will impact the Office of Administration (OA), the state Department of Corrections, the Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS), the Department of Social Services (DSS) and other agencies.

Governor Parson was joined at the press conference by DESE Commissioner Margie Vandeven and other Cabinet members.

“It’s important to make these decisions now, so school districts can adjust before next school year. Our intent is to withhold now and avoid withholds once school begins,” says Parson.

The top Democrat in the Missouri House is blaming tax cuts approved by the GOP-controlled Legislature, for the education cuts.

“The governor’s devastating cuts to public education are as much a product of failed Republican tax policy as they are of the coronavirus pandemic,” House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, says in a written statement. “Every time Republicans chipped away at Missouri’s revenue base, Democrats warned these short-sighted decisions would pay a terrible dividend when the next economic downturn hit, and there always is a next one.”

The Missouri Legislature approved a $35.2 billion state operating budget in early May. The new fiscal year begins on July 1.

Missouri Legislature gives final approval to absentee ballot legislation; photo ID requirement stripped out

May 15, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

Absentee ballot legislation that expands voting by mail through the rest of 2020 is on its way to Missouri Governor Mike Parson’s desk, after receiving final approval from the House in Jefferson City on Friday evening.

State Rep. Dan Shaul, R-Imperial, speaks about absentee ballot legislation on the Missouri House floor in Jefferson City on May 15, 2020 (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

The final House vote was 121-24, and came with about 30 minutes to spare before the mandatory 6 p.m. adjournment.

State Rep. Dan Shaul, R-Imperial, who chairs the Missouri House Elections and Elected Officials Committee, is the bill sponsor.

There are two but separate options under the Shaul bill.

The first expands absentee voting to those 65 and older, or who are vulnerable to COVID-19. Elderly people are considered at greater risk. Notarization is not required for those 65 and older or who are vulnerable.

The second option expands voting by mail for everyone, but requires notarization.

Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, a Republican who campaigned on a platform of photo ID in 2016, tweeted his disappointment on Friday. He’s disappointed that the photo ID requirement was stripped out of the final bill.

But Secretary Ashcroft emphasized that his office will implement and follow the law.

The bill given final approval this evening also contains an emergency clause, which passed with bipartisan support. If Governor Parson signs it, it will be in effect for the August primary election.

House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, praises the bill, saying it is the result of compromise. Haahr tells Capitol reporters that the bill passed with bipartisan support, adding that it also faced criticism from lawmakers in both parties.

House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, agrees it’s a compromise. She says the bill on the governor’s desk will allow many Missourians who are concerned about the health risks from crowded polling places to cast an absentee ballot or to vote by mail.

And the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) wants lawmakers to go further in the future. In a statement to Missourinet, the ACLU notes the measures approved by lawmakers will expire at the end of 2020.

“We are glad to see the Missouri Legislature act to expand the right to vote, we hope they will continue to do so in sessions to come,” the ACLU says, in the statement.

Missouri PDMP debate personal for Rehder: Don’t judge “unless you’ve walked a mile in their moccasins”

May 11, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

Legislation that would create a prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) is now heading to a Missouri House-Senate conference committee in Jefferson City, for negotiations.

State Rep. Holly Rehder, R-Scott City, speaks about her PDMP legislation on the Missouri House floor in Jefferson City on May 11, 2020 (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Missouri is the only state in the nation without a PDMP, which is an electronic database that collects data on controlled substance prescriptions within a state.

While both chambers have approved PDMP this session, they’ve approved different versions. The Senate version contains a provision about fentanyl that isn’t in the House bill.

Monday’s House floor debate was emotional, as the bill sponsor delivered a passionate speech on why she believes PDMP is needed. State Rep. Holly Rehder, R-Scott City, urged colleagues to not judge people “unless you’ve walked a mile in their moccasins.”

“Many demeaning things have been said on this (House) floor over the years about those who are addicted,” Rehder says. “Things like, an addict will always get their fix, regardless of what we try to do to help.”

Rehder revealed to colleagues on Monday that her late mother and late sister were both sexually assaulted multiple times, and turned to prescription drugs for their pain.

She also says that many homeless veterans are addicted to some drugs, for their pain.

Not everyone in the House supported Rehder’s call to send the bill to a conference committee for negotiations.

State Rep. Justin Hill, R-Lake St. Louis, has privacy and other concerns about the bill. Hill, who’s been a vocal PDMP opponent, says House Republicans are divided 50-50 on the issue.

The Missouri House approved the bill in February by a bipartisan 95-56 vote, with every House Democrat voting for it. All 56 “no” votes came from Rehder’s fellow Republicans.

Hill opposes sending it to conference.

“And now we (the full House) are going to give our power to a select few to decide if this bill is going to be the bill that we pass this year,” says Hill.

State Rep. Tony Lovasco, R-O’Fallon, also urged against sending the bill to conference. He says 87 percent of Missouri is already covered by PDMP.

“Let’s have this discussion next year,” Lovasco says.

In the end, the House voted 110-33 on Monday to send Rehder’s bill to conference.

Time is the biggest factor now, and could be the biggest obstacle to the bill. The Legislature must adjourn by Friday evening at 6, under the state Constitution.

Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, tells Missourinet he’s optimistic.

“It’s always a coin toss on any bill this time in session. Any Senator can easily stop a piece of legislation,” Schatz says. “But I do think any bill that is still moving could potentially pass. We put a lot of effort into this early in session, and it would be disappointing if it fails.”

Pro Tem Schatz supports PDMP, as does Senate Majority Leader Caleb Rowden, R-Columbia, House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, and House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield.

Missouri House to vote on final approval of state operating budget on Wednesday

April 29, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

The Missouri House is expected to give final approval to a proposed $34.9 billion state operating budget Wednesday in Jefferson City.

State Reps. Mike Haffner, R-Pleasant Hill, and Dean Dohrman, R-La Monte, (standing) discuss the state budget on April 27, 2020 in Jefferson City (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

The House will gavel-in Wednesday morning at 10, and House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith, R-Carthage, tells Missourinet they’ll take up the budget at that time. He notes the Legislature must approve a balanced budget by May 8, under the state Constitution.

“It is the one constitutional duty of the Missouri General Assembly, and not only that but to pass a balanced budget and one that is on time,” Smith says.

The House voted to give initial budget approval on Monday. The proposed budget includes about $10 billion in general revenue, $14.5 billion in federal funding and another $10.3 billion in other funds.

The House Budget Committee’s ranking Democrat, State Rep. Kip Kendrick, D-Columbia, spoke about the budget on the House floor on Monday. He expresses his frustration, saying the process has been rushed. Kendrick wants lawmakers to wait for a special session this summer.

“This (state operating) budget is being rushed. It’s being rushed in a pretty profound manner,” says Kendrick.

Kendrick says waiting until a special session this summer would give state lawmakers and the governor’s office a better forecast for state revenue projections. He emphasizes that he is not expressing frustration with Chairman Smith.

House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, also spoke on the floor on Monday. She also prefers waiting for a special session this summer to approve the budget, and notes Governor Mike Parson (R) made comments at recent media briefings indicating that was a possibility.

House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan and other leaders in the GOP-controlled Legislature say it’s important to keep state government funded and services operating without interruption.

The next fiscal year begins on July 1.

As for Chairman Smith, he tells Leader Quade the House will likely return to the Capitol this summer, for a special session on another supplemental budget.

“And what we are doing today (Monday) I think is taking a snapshot of where we are today, based on what we can know, which is not a great deal, of how the state budget will be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic,” Smith says.

Lawmakers and staff members are being encouraged to wear their masks today, and to continue to practice social distancing protocols.

Missouri lawmakers approve $6.2 billion supplemental to battle the coronavirus

April 8, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

The Missouri Legislature voted Wednesday in Jefferson City to approve a historic $6.2 billion emergency relief package to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed at least 58 Missourians and has cost thousands of jobs across the state.

A masked Missouri House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, strikes the gavel to begin House proceedings on the COVID-19 supplemental on April 8, 2020, with empty galleries (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

The Senate approved the bill first, before the House took it up and approved it on a 147-4 vote. Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, tells Missourinet that he and House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, have signed the supplemental budget, sending it to the governor’s desk.

The House debate was unlike anything that’s ever been seen in the chamber, with Speaker Haahr wearing a mask and the chamber limited to ten people at one time. There were no visitors sitting in the upper galleries, which normally are full of lobbyists, schoolchildren and the general public.

State Rep. David Wood, R-Versailles, says the supplemental includes additional funding for suicide prevention and mental health.

“When you put people into a stressful situation and forcing them to stay home without a paycheck and wondering how they’re going to make it to the next month, that leads to some very serious consequences,” Wood says.

Governor Mike Parson says more than 100,000 Missourians have filed for unemployment this past week.

State Rep. Kip Kendrick, D-Columbia, the ranking Democrat on the House Budget Committee, says local health departments across Missouri are critical to containing COVID-19.

State Rep. Kip Kendrick, D-Columbia, speaks in support of the COVID-19 supplemental budget on April 8, 2020 in Jefferson City (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

“We would ask that the executive branch remember the local health departments who are really underfunded at the state level, across the board,” Kendrick says.

The supplemental also includes $90 million for nursing homes to help with infection control. The state Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) says Missouri has 3,327 COVID-19 cases and 58 deaths.

While the House vote was bipartisan, Wednesday’s floor debate did become heated briefly when Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, said Republicans reacted with scorn, when House Democrats tried to increase funding for the coronavirus outbreak three weeks ago.

“When we (House Democrats) warned that the $33 million in pandemic spending authority then included in the supplemental appropriations bill was woefully insufficient, folks on the other side accused us of political exploitation and shameful behavior,” Quade says.

But House Majority Leader Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, fired back, accusing Democrats of politicizing the issue.

“There is no action we could have taken three weeks ago that would have kept us from being here today,” says Vescovo. “The truth is, the only people playing politics with this very serious issue are the ones on the other side of the aisle, Mr. Speaker.”

Wednesday’s House vote featured members wearing masks and going into the chamber to vote, four at a time. Only a few House microphones were used, and the chamber’s back door was kept open, so members did not have to touch door knobs.

House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith, R-Carthage, notes the supplemental increased from $413 million a few weeks ago to the current total of $6.2 billion.

Chairman Smith says the supplemental budget also includes about $300 million in funding for K-12 schools to handle COVID-19 related expenses. He says it also includes $12 million for Head Start.

During his floor speech, Smith warned against partisanship, saying Missourians have died from the coronavirus and that others are hurting and need help.

Across the chamber in the Senate, Pro Tem Schatz (R) and Senate Minority Leader John Rizzo, D-Independence, also praise the supplemental’s importance.

Rizzo says the relief package is the most robust funding for progressive policies that Missouri has ever seen. He notes it includes $40 million for food banks and Meals on Wheels.

Parson suspends late penalties for concealed carry license renewals

April 3, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

Gov. Mike Parson has signed an executive order suspending late penalties for concealed carry license renewals. During Thursday’s Capitol press conference, Parson says the order waives the requirement that sheriffs enforce the penalties.

Gov. Mike Parson (Photos courtesy of Parson’s Flickr page)

“These people should not be penalized for staying home like they’ve been asked to,” says Parson. “This executive order not only promotes public health and social distancing, but also frees up local law enforcement offices from administrative tasks.”

Missouri House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, issued a statement condemning Parson’s move.

“If the governor had issued his executive order on conceal-carry permits a day earlier, I would have thought it was a bad April Fools’ Day joke. The fact that the governor thinks this is a priority is beyond disappointing and gives further ammunition to critics who say he isn’t doing what needs to be done to stop the spread of COVID-19 in Missouri.”

Click here to view the executive order.

House Democrats submit recommendations for COVID-19 response

March 12, 2020 By Missourinet Contributor

In a press conference at the State Capitol Thursday, Missouri House Minority Leader Quade says Democrats would like to see the state take the following coronavirus actions. House Speaker Elliah Haahr tells Missourinet he has not had a chance to review them.

COVID-19 CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE

Request the governor call a state of emergency under Article IV, Section 27a, so that the General Assembly can access the Budget Reserve Fund for the emergency resources necessary to respond to this public health crisis.
Provide state funding to reimburse medical providers for treatment provided to non-insured individuals over the next month.
Provide additional funding to county health departments.
Authorize mandatory paid sick leave for companies with 50 or more employees, with a six-month sunset provision.
Provide additional funding for non-profit organizations that provide food to children in the event schools are closed.
Furlough non-violent prisoners from the Missouri Department of Corrections.
Implement an emergency rule authorizing the Missouri Department of Commerce and Insurance to require insurance providers to cover COVID-19 testing.
Provide economic protections to hourly state employees.
Implement an emergency rule authorizing the Department of Health and Senior Services to erect temporary hospitals and quarantine facilities.
Provide additional funding for mobile testing units.
Direct the Missouri Department of Social Services to refrain from implementing new SNAP rules that are set to take effect April 1 and will cost many families access to nutritional food.
Implement and emergency order suspending utility services from being shut off.
Implement an emergency order suspending home evictions.
Cancel plans to implement Medicaid rate cuts for hospitals and other health care providers.

Missouri House committee could vote this week on measure targeting trans athletes

February 24, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

The Missouri House General Laws Committee could vote this week on a proposed public vote targeting transgender high school athletes. If approved by voters, transgender students would have to participate in sports according to the sex on their birth certificate. The resolution aims to change the Missouri Constitution.

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)

During a public hearing, State Representative Robert Ross, R-Yukon, says the proposed ballot measure would also mean females could no longer play football with their male teammates, for instance. He says his measure, HJR 82, is meant to be fair to all high school athletes.

“Some of the female athletes who are stars in their own right were knocked out of competition or the ability to proceed on then ultimately scholarships based on some males being allowed to compete against them,” he says.

On the flip side, House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, points to a famous Connecticut lawsuit arguing trans athletes have deprived heterosexual females of titles and scholarships.

“The young cisgender woman who was suing based on a transgender youth that she was competing against actually beat that transgender youth in track just not long ago,” she says.

Representative Tracy McCreery, D- Olivette, says playing sports teaches kids cooperation, team spirit and can keep them out of trouble. She says competition is competition.

“I feel like maybe I’ve done some harm to the guys cross country team from the mid 1980s because I beat every single one of them in cross country,” she says. “And so I feel really bad about that now. I didn’t realize that – wow, I didn’t realize that.”

Rep. Tracy McCreery (D-Olivette
Photo courtesy; Tim Bommel)

“It’s a lot more than just whatever the sport that these kids are learning,” Ross fires back. “They’re learning life lessons, frankly by competing within these sports.”

Alissa Johnson of public policy group Concerned Women For America spoke in favor of the proposed ballot measure.

“This isn’t about whether or not people are compassionate,” she says. “I believe this is like Representative Ross said – this is an issue of fairness in sports.”

Brandon Boulware of Kansas City says the resolution would squash his 10-year-old transgender daughter’s spirit.

“All those kids who I feared would tease her – they have embraced her. This is a nonissue for them. This is an issue for adults. It’s not an issue for kids. It will mean my daughter cannot play on her girls volleyball team anymore,” he says. “It will mean my daughter will not have the opportunity that all of us had – to play on a team, to belong to something bigger, greater than ourselves.”

The Missouri Senate Education Committee will hold a public hearing on Tuesday about a similar measure, SJR 50, sponsored by Shelbina Republican Cindy O’Laughlin. She chairs the committee.

State urges Missouri parents who lost Medicaid to re-apply kids for coverage

February 21, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

The state wants Missouri parents who have had their Medicaid coverage cancelled to fill out an application and see if their kids still qualify. The request applies to those who have lost coverage since August 2018.

Representative David Wood (courtesy; Tim Bommel, Missouri House Communications)

State Representative David Wood, R-Versailles, says about 120,000 Missourians are no longer getting Medicaid due to a federal healthcare law change and an improving economy. But he says about 90,000 of those are children who are probably still eligible for coverage through the Children’s Health Insurance Program commonly called CHIP.

“Now did the Department (of Social Services) do a very good job of explaining that when they gave the cancellation of their coverage? Probably not. We could’ve done better,” says Wood, who heads a House budget committee involving social services. “Our enrollment processes could be easier. Our phone center could do a better job of answering calls, but we’re not in the business of taking off people that are covered just trying to save money. We want to cover everybody that qualifies.”

Missouri’s Medicaid budget is about $10 billion, accounting for more than one-third of the state’s $30 billion operating budget.

Wood says the Department of Social Services’ issues should not be viewed as a big conspiracy.

“It’s not that the Governor Nixon administration put on a whole bunch of kids because they could or the Governor Parson administration has taken them off just to try and save money. The reality is we had a lot of applications come in. We didn’t do a good job of verifying the incomes. We are now verifying the incomes and doing a better job so those people are dropping off the rolls. But if they’d re-apply under a different category, some of them would still be covered.”

Missourians can re-apply online, by calling the state Department of Social Services, or by going to an office in your county.

During a press conference this week, House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, says she wants Gov. Mike Parson, a Republican, to freeze cancellations of Medicaid coverage until she says the matter is cleared up.

“After a year of work on this issue and with a bipartisan desire for action, we have the chance during the coming weeks to do right by Missouri’s children and I hope the Republican leadership will make this a priority,” says Quade. “Pausing this disenrollment is vital to making sure that we can figure out exactly what is going on. We need to be doing everything in our power to make sure that those kids who qualify have healthcare coverage.”

Rep. Deb Lavender, D-Kirkwood, says the state should automatically re-enroll the kids affected.

“Why we are asking the parents to pick up for our mistake doesn’t make sense to me. We know that 300 kids were put back on without any hesitation and yet the overall number is still down,” she says. “If we know children who’ve been kick off are being put on almost automatically once there’s a process, then why are the numbers still going down? I think more children have been kicked off of healthcare than we realize.”

Missourinet asked Parson’s office for a response yesterday, but one was not given by deadline time.

Wood says Missouri’s process to enroll should be simplified. The state’s public assistance application is 63 pages – making it the second longest in the country.

A company is reviewing Missouri’s enrollment measures and releasing its results to the state this month. Wood says then the work will begin to make changes.

Meanwhile, State Representative Mary Elizabeth Coleman, R-Arnold, is proposing to reduce the enrollment paperwork to one page. A House committee unanimously passed her bill this week. House Bill 1960 heads to another committee for consideration.

View state data about the number of Missourians receiving public assistance.

PDMP legislation could get final Missouri House approval on Monday

February 16, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

The Missouri House is expected to give final approval to prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) legislation this week in Jefferson City, possibly as early as Monday afternoon.

State Rep. Holly Rehder, R-Scott City, briefs Capitol reporters on February 13, 2020 in Jefferson City. House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, and Speaker Pro Tem John Wiemann, R-O’Fallon, look on (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Missouri is the only state in the nation without a PDMP, which is an electronic database that collects data on controlled substance prescriptions within a state. State Rep. Holly Rehder, R-Scott City, the bill sponsor, says we must listen to addiction specialists and doctors.

“We have to allow our recovery people to be the ones that tell us what they need for the tools in their toolbox, not those of us in the Legislature,” Rehder tells Capitol reporters.

The House voted last week 95-56 to give initial approval to the bill. Rehder’s bill had bipartisan support, with every House Democrat voting for it, including House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield.

The debate took about five hours and was emotional at times, as Representative Rehder talked about getting her grandchild out of a meth lab. She also talked about the impact the opioid epidemic is taking on Missouri families.

House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, voted for Rehder’s bill, as he has every year. He’s a longtime PDMP supporter.

The 56 no votes came from Republicans, including House Speaker Pro Tem John Wiemann, R-O’Fallon, and House Majority Leader Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold.

State Rep. Justin Hill, R-Lake St. Louis, criticizes PDMP legislation on the Missouri House floor on February 12, 2020 (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

State Rep. Justin Hill, R-Lake St. Louis, and other PDMP opponents say it would not stop illegal drug problems.

As for Rehder, she says Missouri Senate leaders would like to get it off the table earlier this session. She notes Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, and Senate Majority Leader Caleb Rowden, R-Columbia, back PDMP.

“I’m so hopeful that possibly it will come to the floor early (this year) in the Senate and that it will be allowed the time for a filibuster,” says Rehder.

Rehder’s 2019 bill was approved by the House on a bipartisan 103-53 vote, but it died in the Senate, primarily because of opposition from State Sen. Denny Hoskins, R-Warrensburg, and other members of the Senate Conservative Caucus.

Hoskins, who has privacy concerns, tells Missourinet that state government databases haven’t worked in other states. He says PDMP “has a long way to go to become law.”

“I’m not in favor of passing a bill that doesn’t work just to say we’ve ‘done something.’ Simply said, state government databases have not worked well in other states that have them. I, as well as many of my Senate colleagues, have concerns about this legislation as currently drafted. The Conservative Caucus has some ideas on how to make this House bill better to protect the privacy of Missouri citizens and we look forward to working on the bill during the upcoming weeks,” Senator Hoskins said on Sunday.

Rehder disagrees with Hoskins’ privacy concerns, saying 49 other states have PDMP. She says Missouri needs to battle drug addiction problems on the front end, and that PDMP gives physicians and medical professionals easier access.

Before Thursday’s adjournment, Floor Leader Vescovo told House members to be ready for PDMP on Monday afternoon. The House gavels-in at 4 p.m.