• Home
  • News
    • Business
    • Crime / Courts
    • Health / Medicine
    • Legislature
    • Politics / Govt
  • Sports
    • The Bill Pollock Show
  • Contact Us
    • Reporters
  • Affiliates
    • Affiliate Support

Missourinet

Your source for Missouri News and Sports

You are here: Home / Archives for O’Fallon

Proposed Missouri constitutional amendment is aimed at helping disabled veterans

February 25, 2021 By Brian Hauswirth

A proposed constitutional amendment aimed at preventing the approximately 13,000 Missouri veterans who are 100-percent disabled from paying real property taxes is backed by a St. Charles County veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

State Rep. Dave Griffith, R-Jefferson City, speaks on the Missouri House floor in Jefferson City on February 11, 2020 (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

O’Fallon resident Charles Frederickson served six tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. He traveled to Jefferson City on Wednesday afternoon to testify for legislation sponsored by State Rep. Dave Griffith, R-Jefferson City. Mr. Frederickson has a total service-connected disability, and testifies he cannot find a job and made only $400 last year.

“If my (property) taxes can double in just four years, or I’m sorry ten years, you can imagine my income is not doubling in ten years,” Frederickson testifies.

Frederickson also has a daughter, who’s been battling a brain tumor. He testified for House Veterans Committee Chairman Griffith’s proposed constitutional amendment, which would exempt from taxation all real property used as a homestead for any veteran with a total service-connected disability.

Representative Griffith also testified before the House Ways and Means Committee, telling Chairman Rep. Wayne Wallingford, R-Cape Girardeau, that there are 13,153 Missouri veterans who have a total service-connected disability. Griffith praises Frederickson and Missouri’s other disabled veterans.

“These men and women that are 100 percent disabled, they got that way for a reason,” Griffith testifies. “We need to honor them, we need to show them the appreciation that we have for the sacrifice they made and the disability they live with everyday.”

Griffith has filed House Joint Resolution 32, which is three pages. If Missouri lawmakers approve Griffith’s measure, it would go to the statewide ballot in 2022.

Copyright © 2021 · Missourinet

Filed Under: Elections, Health / Medicine, Legislature, Military, News Tagged With: Afghanistan, Charles Frederickson, disabled veterans in Missouri, House Joint Resolution 32, Iraq, Jefferson City, Missouri House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Wayne Wallingford, O'Fallon, proposed Missouri constitutional amendment, State Rep. Dave Griffith

Missouri House GOP leaders will handle crime bills as single-subject bills; full House to return August 24

August 11, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

The top three Republican leaders in Missouri’s GOP-controlled House say they intend to simplify the process during the special session on violent crime, with single-subject bills.

Missouri House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, addresses Capitol reporters on May 15, 2020 in Jefferson City (Tim Bommel at House Communications)

All Missouri House committee hearings originally scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday have been canceled, and the full House isn’t scheduled to return to Jefferson City until Monday August 24.

“In an effort to protect the integrity of the lawmaking process, and to ensure these important issues are thoroughly vetted, we intend to simplify the process with single-subject bills so we can focus on the merits of each bill individually to produce legislation that makes our streets and neighborhoods safer. Given the fact the governor expanded the call as one of our committees (the House Judiciary Committee) was considering the bill he originally proposed, we think it’s important to take a step back and give additional thought and attention to each part of the plan. This will provide a more deliberative process that will allow us to craft the kind of policy that will better protect Missourians from the scourge of violent crime,” the statement from House Speaker Elijah Haahr, R-Springfield, House Speaker Pro Tem John Wiemann, R-O’Fallon and Majority Leader Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, reads.

The committee hearing that Haahr, Wiemann and Vescovo referenced took place Monday afternoon. Late Monday afternoon, Governor Mike Parson (R) expanded his special session call on violent crime, to include a provision to help with what he calls the growing backlog of murder cases in St. Louis.

The governor wants Missouri lawmakers to allow the state attorney general’s office to take on some murder cases that haven’t been prosecuted yet by St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner (D). The governor emphasizes that this isn’t about taking away authority, and that it’s about fighting violent crime. Governor Parson says there have been 161 murders in St. Louis City this year, and that charges have been filed in only 33 cases.

Circuit Attorney Gardner issued a statement on Monday, criticizing the governor’s plan.

“This allows the governor and his cronies to make a mockery of judicial checks and balances and demolishes any notion of a free and independent judicial system,” Gardner’s statement reads, in part.

The Missouri Senate approved the crime bill last week, by a bipartisan 27-3 vote.

Speaker Haahr tells Missourinet that he spoke by phone with Senate Majority Leader Caleb Rowden, R-Columbia, earlier today, before the Haahr announcement. Rowden told Haahr that he would speak to Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, to fill him in.

The governor has emphasized that the special session is about violent crime.

St. Louis has had 163 homicides in 2020. The city had 194 murders in 2019. Across the state in Kansas City, there have been 122 homicides. There were 90, at this point in 2019 in Kansas City.

Witness protection and eliminating the residency requirement for St. Louis Police officers are top priorities for the governor.

A key proposal in the governor’s January State of the State Address was $1 million in funding for witness protection. Despite bipartisan support in both the Missouri Senate and House, the measure did not pass this year.

Missouri Legislative Black Caucus Chairman State Rep. Steven Roberts, D-St. Louis, has asked the governor to call a special session on police reform. Governor Parson has told Capitol reporters he’s focusing on violent crime, and wants to wait until January’s regular session to take up police reform.

Other Democrats, including State Rep. Ashley Bland Manlove, D-Kansas City, have called on the governor to address the root causes of crime, such as poverty.

Copyright © 2020 · Missourinet

Filed Under: Crime / Courts, Legislature, News Tagged With: Arnold, Kansas City homicides, Missouri Governor Mike Parson, Missouri House Majority Floor Leader Rob Vescovo, Missouri House Speaker Elijah Haahr, Missouri House Speaker Pro Tem John Wiemann, Missouri Senate Majority Leader Caleb Rowden, O'Fallon, Springfield, St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, St. Louis homicides, State Rep. Ashley Bland Manlove, State Rep. Steven Roberts, witness protection

Two Missouri lawmakers: major PPE donation highlights importance of Missouri State Defense Force (AUDIO)

May 21, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

Two state lawmakers from eastern Missouri’s St. Charles County have worked with a former Missouri State Defense Force member to secure 3,000 protective face shields for health care workers across the state.

Missouri State Defense Force members Sgt. Tim Coen (left) and Col. Art Bottorff carry boxes of protective face shields, along with State Rep. Adam Schnelting, R-St. Charles, and Missouri House Speaker Pro Tem John Wiemann, R-O’Fallon (May 2020 photo courtesy of Pro Tem Wiemann’s office)

House Speaker Pro Tem John Wiemann, R-O’Fallon, and State Rep. Adam Schnelting, R-St. Charles, partnered with former Missouri State Defense Force member Col. Art Bottorff. Wiemann says the donation will be distributed by the Missouri Hospital Association, through the State Emergency Management Agency.

“And will go to hospitals that are in the most highest need that have a low supply of face shields,” Wiemann says.

The shields will also go to health care workers in high-need clinics, along with EMS and shelter employees.

Wiemann tells Missourinet he’s grateful for the former members of the State Defense Force, for the donation. Wiemann, Schnelting and Col. Bottorff coordinated the donation, after working with GetMePPENational and its affiliate, Boston Scientific. They also worked with the Purdue University Parents Association.

The face shields were made by Boston Scientific.

Pro Tem Wiemann describes face shields as an extra layer of protection, for workers who wear masks.

“When you’re in a medical environment, there are liquids, there are airborne things that are floating in the air, that someone could cough in your face, and it may not necessarily block them from getting into your eyes or other parts of your body,” says Wiemann.

As for Representative Schnelting, he’s a former member of the Missouri State Defense Force. The freshman Republican is crediting the organization for helping to secure the donation. Schnelting notes the health care employees will be receiving CDC and FDA-certified protective face shields.

Schnelting, who serves on the Missouri House Special Committee on Homeland Security, notes the State Defense Force has a dual mission: homeland security and disaster response.

“So securing items like PPE for those on the front lines in a scenario like this pandemic plays right into the purpose of the State Defense Force,” Schnelting says.

The State Defense Force was a military reserve force in Missouri that was inactivated due to budgetary concerns, on the same day the state received its first case of COVID-19. Col. Bottorff praises the Legislature for restoring funding for the Force, last week. The Colonel also says he hopes Governor Mike Parson “will see the great value of reactivating the State Defense Force.”

Schnelting says the shields will be deployed to health care workers, with the greatest need in the state.

Pro Tem Wiemann credits Bottorff for identifying the face shields, which were being warehoused in another state.

“We knew we needed to move quickly because these face shields are in high demand,” Wiemann says.

Wiemann and Schnelting also praise Missouri’s physicians, nurses, EMS and other first responders who are working around the clock to keep residents safe.

Click here to listen to the full interview between Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth and Missouri House Speaker Pro Tem John Wiemann, R-O’Fallon, and State Rep. Adam Schnelting, R-St. Charles. It was recorded on May 18, 2020:

https://cdn.missourinet.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/bh-wiemaninterviewMay2020.mp3

Copyright © 2020 · Missourinet

Filed Under: Business, Health / Medicine, Legislature, News Tagged With: Boston Scientific, Col. Art Bottorff, Missouri Hospital Association, Missouri House Speaker Pro Tem John Wiemann, Missouri House Special Committee on Homeland Security, Missouri State Defense Force, O'Fallon, protective face shields, Purdue University Parents Association, St. Charles, State Emergency Management Agency, State Rep. Adam Schnelting

Missouri lawmaker unhappy with MoDOT response to winter storm this month

November 27, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

A state lawmaker from eastern Missouri is criticizing what he calls the state Department of Transportation’s (MoDOT’s) incompetence, for its handling of the Veterans Day winter storm.

State Rep. Nick Schroer, R-O’Fallon, speaks on the Missouri House floor on May 17, 2019 (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

State Rep. Nick Schroer, R-O’Fallon, says his vehicle struck black ice in St. Charles County during the storm and that he had to use his emergency brake to stop.

Schroer says he almost crashed and saw another vehicle flip over on I-70 in Lake St. Louis.

He wants MoDOT to examine how other states handle snow, including the chemicals they’re using. Schroer says the agency wasn’t ready for the storm.

“Is what we (Missouri) are doing to prepare in these types of situations, in these snowstorms, these ice storms, is that adequate,” Schroer asks. “Is that enough? Look to other states, see what they’re doing.”

Schroer says it took him more than 90 minutes to get home that evening, a trip that normally takes 15 minutes.

“It’s just ridiculous to me because now I have two young girls that I had to go get (that evening) and slid in the black ice and I’m trying to get them home,” says Schroer.

There were hundreds of crashes across the state during the Veterans Day winter storm. One woman who was stuck by a vehicle in St. Charles County, after the “St. Louis Post-Dispatch” reports her car had problems in the weather. And state troopers say a 61-year-old man from Chilhowee died when he lost control of his vehicle on an ice-covered road and overturned near western Missouri’s Centerview.

As for MoDOT, they tell Missourinet that although forecasts said it would end midday on Veterans Day, an additional wave of snow came through that afternoon after the first snow melted and washed off the salt. They say their trucks were treating roads all day. They also note their trucks were blocked by significant crashes that day on I-70 in Schroer’s St. Charles County district.

MoDOT also says safety is their top priority and that they have hundreds of dedicated employees who work hard to keep St. Louis-area roads safe during winter storms.

Schroer, who serves as the vice chairman of the House Special Committee on Government Oversight, tells Missourinet that if the scenario happens again, he’ll want MoDOT to testify before the committee.

MoDOT helds its annual winter operations drill on November 7, four days before the storm. They reacted to a simulated forecast of significant snow for the entire state and inspected every piece of equipment.

The agency spent more than $64 million on winter operations last year and used more than 180,000 tons of salt, 100,000 gallons of liquid calcium chloride and about 700,000 gallons of beet juice. MoDOT says that during an average winter, its employees plow about six million miles of snow and ice.

Here is the full statement from MoDOT’s St. Louis District office, in response to the Missourinet interview with Representative Schroer:

Thank you for reaching out to MoDOT following your interview with State Rep. Nick Schroer, R-O’Fallon, during which shared concerns with MoDOT’s response to last week’s winter storm.

Safety is our number 1 priority. MoDOT has hundreds of dedicated employees in St. Louis working hard to keep roads safe and passable. State employees were out all day Monday, November 11th, working the winter event including plowing and spreading salt. It is difficult to use salt in an effective way when storms start as rain/sleet and strike during times of heavy traffic volumes. The November 11th event had warm enough ground temperatures to melt all the snow that fell, washing off the salt that was applied early in the day. Although the weather forecasts said it would end midday, an additional wave of snow came around 2 p.m. after the first snow had melted and washed off the salt. When the winds brought a significant drop in temperature, all routes across St. Louis started freezing at the same time which coincided with the start of evening rush hour.

MoDOT’s trucks were treating roads all day. Winter events like Monday can present extreme challenges, especially when you have winter precipitation during rush hour. Specific to Representative Schroer’s area in St. Charles County, there were a couple significant crashes on I-70 and Rte 364 that MoDOT trucks were caught in. When MoDOT trucks are stuck in traffic, it limits our ability to continue treating roads and getting to all the state owned roads.

Copyright © 2019 · Missourinet

Filed Under: Business, Health / Medicine, Legislature, News, Transportation, Weather Tagged With: Chilhowee, Lake St. Louis, Missouri Department of Transportation, Missouri House Special Committee on Government Oversight, O'Fallon, St. Charles County, State Rep. Nick Schroer, Veterans Day winter storm



Tweets by Missourinet

Sports

Ex-Chiefs coach charged with felony DWI

Former … [Read More...]

Mizzou gets opportunity of a lifetime in 2022 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

Out of … [Read More...]

Marching Mizzou is one of only three universities performing in 2022 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

The … [Read More...]

Missouri State Football earns share of Missouri Valley title–first since 1990

Missouri … [Read More...]

Arenado: “Just an amazing day, very thankful for it,” after his homer leads Cards to victory

Nolan … [Read More...]

More Sports

Tweets by missourisports

Archives

Opinion/Editorials

TwitterFacebook

Copyright © 2021 · Learfield News & Ag, LLC