Missourinet Sullivan affiliate KTUI Archives

What we’re watching this week in the Missouri Legislature: PDMP, budget, foster care and human cloning

April 5, 2021 By Brian Hauswirth

Legislation that would create a prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) is expected to receive final approval from the Missouri Senate in Jefferson City on Tuesday.

Senate Majority Leader Caleb Rowden (R-Columbia) tells Missourinet that the PDMP issue should come up tomorrow. That’s when state lawmakers return to Jefferson City, following the Easter break.

State Rep. Robert Sauls (D-Independence) speaks on the Missouri House floor in Jefferson City on March 31, 2021 (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

The Senate voted to give initial approval to PDMP last week, and it had bipartisan support. Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz (R-Sullivan), who voted for Senate Bill 63, tells Missourinet Sullivan affiliate KTUI that informed doctors make better decisions.

“49 states currently have a PDMP, and actually it just provides a layer of protection against drug and dependency and dangerous drug interactions,” Schatz tells KTUI.

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

Opponents of Senate Bill 63, including State Sen. Mike Moon (R-Ash Grove), worry about potential data breaches.

Pro Tem Schatz also says the state operating budget will get a lot of attention in his chamber during the next five weeks. The House has approved a $34.1 billion budget, that does not include funding for Medicaid expansion. The budget now heads to the Senate.

“The governor had made recommendations. The House has made their modifications to it and now it’s our turn to work through the things that we think are priorities in funding in this state,” says Schatz.

The state Constitution requires Missouri lawmakers to approve a balanced budget, by early May.

State Rep. Sara Walsh (R-Ashland) speaks on the Missouri House floor in Jefferson City on March 22, 2021 (photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Across the Capitol Rotunda in the Missouri House, the Budget Committee meets Tuesday afternoon at 12:30 to hear testimony from Committee Chairman Cody Smith (R-Carthage) about his budget proposal to use Medicaid expansion funding for other programs.

Medicaid is formally known as MO HealthNet, and it’s a federal and state program that assists with medical costs for residents with limited incomes. 53 percent of Missouri voters approved Medicaid expansion in August, although it failed in 105 of the state’s 114 counties. Rural House members from those districts led the opposition to Medicaid expansion last week. Amendment Two supporters say the measure expands Medicaid for residents between the ages of 19 and 64 with an income level at or below 133 percent of the federal poverty level.

Chairman Smith says Medicaid expansion would help able bodied adults, many who choose not to work. He’s filed a bill to use the $1.9 billion to instead support seniors in nursing homes, to provide care for the developmentally disabled and to expand mental health programs. It would also increase k-12 school transportation funding. That proposal will be outlined on Tuesday.

Meantime, the Missouri House Emerging Issues Committee meets Tuesday evening at 5, to hear a foster care proposal from State Rep. Robert Sauls (D-Independence). House Bill 1335 would prevent children from being aged out of foster care during a pandemic.

“During uncertain and difficult times, our most vulnerable children shouldn’t have to worry about homelessness,” Representative Sauls tells Missourinet. “That’s why I sponsored HB 1335. I want to make sure that during a moment of crisis, the children of Missouri have the stability that they need.”

Foster care continues to be a bipartisan issue at the Missouri Capitol. It’s also a top priority for House Speaker Rob Vescovo (R-Arnold).

The human cloning issue will also come up this week in a House committee. The Children and Families Committee will hear testimony on Wednesday morning from State Rep. Sara Walsh (R-Ashland), which would prohibit public expenditure of public funds for research projects involving abortion services and human cloning.

Walsh’s proposal is House Bill 852.

Look for several late nights in Missouri Senate this week; House to begin discussion on congressional redistricting

March 8, 2021 By Brian Hauswirth

The Missouri Senate will likely be in session for some late nights this week in Jefferson City, as lawmakers wrap up the first half of the 2021 legislative session.

Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz speaks to Missourinet in 2020 (January 2020 file photo from Missourinet’s Ashley Byrd)

Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, tells Missourinet Sullivan affiliate KTUI that senators will debate several key issues on the floor this week.

“I think education (school choice legislation), tax policy, motor fuel tax, and again I would anticipate that we will spend several long nights and when we break, people (state senators and staff) will probably be exhausted and ready for a break,” Schatz tells KTUI.

The Pro Tem reiterated that on Saturday to Missourinet. While education reform is a top priority for several GOP state senators, Democrats worry about the impact on public schools.

Increasing transportation funding has been a top priority for Schatz, who notes Missouri’s 17-cent per gallon gasoline tax has remained the same since 1996.

Schatz’s Senate Bill 262 would increase Missouri’s gasoline tax by 15 cents per gallon, by 2027. It also includes a provision for an exemption and refund.

The Missouri House will also be busy this week, both on the floor and in numerous committees.

The House is expected to debate a proposed constitutional amendment this week that involves initiative petitions.

HJR 22 is sponsored by State Rep. J. Eggleston, R-Maysville. If approved by lawmakers this year and if voters approve it, it would require sponsors of initiative petitions proposing constitutional amendments to collect signatures of 12 percent of registered voters in each of Missouri’s eight congressional districts and to submit those petitions to the Legislature for consideration, similar to a bill. The governor’s signature would not be required.

Supporters say the Missouri Constitution is about ten times larger than its federal counterpart, and that many states don’t allow use of initiatives to amend their constitutions. Supporters of Eggleston’s bill include Missouri Farm Bureau and the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association.

Opponents of the Eggleston bill say it would prevent the will of the people from becoming law. They also say the initiative process is difficult as it is. Opponents include the Missouri AFL-CIO and the Missouri Coalition for the Environment.

State Rep. Dan Shaul (R-Imperial), who chairs the Missouri House Special Committee on Redistricting, speaks on the House floor in Jefferson City on May 15, 2020 (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

Congressional redistricting will also be discussed this week in Jefferson City.

The Missouri House Special Committee on Redistricting will hold its organizational meeting Tuesday morning at 9. Congressional redistricting is done every ten years, after the U.S. Census is completed. State Rep. Dan Shaul, R-Imperial, chairs the committee, and State Rep. Jerome Barnes, D-Raytown, is the ranking Democrat.

Chairman Shaul tells Missourinet that Tuesday’s meeting is to let committee members know what expectations are for themselves and for the committee, to help them understand the process. The committee won’t meet again until after the legislative spring break.

Legislation involving the Missouri Lottery will also be heard this week, in committee.

The House General Laws Committee meets Monday evening to hear a bill from State Rep. Jay Mosley, D-Florissant, which would give Missouri Lottery winners the option of not having their names published by the Lottery.

Representative Mosley has filed this bill several times, telling Missourinet last year it’s a safety issue.

“I want people to feel safe when they win. I want them to experience their winnings in the best possible fashion,” Mosley said last February.

Mosley worries Missouri Lottery winners could be targeted by people who read about their win, or approached by family members who want money.