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What we’re watching this week in Missouri Legislature: federal stimulus funding, state budget and workers compensation issues (AUDIO)

April 12, 2021 By Brian Hauswirth

Testimony involving stimulus dollars under the federal “American Rescue Plan Act of 2021”, alternatives to Medicaid expansion and workers compensation for firefighters and first responders will highlight this week in the Missouri Legislature in Jefferson City.

State Rep. Doug Richey (R-Excelsior Springs) speaks on the Missouri House floor in Jefferson City on March 18, 2020 (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

The 2021 session has about a month to go. The last day of session will be Friday, May 14.

A brand-new Missouri House Subcommittee on Federal Stimulus Spending will meet for the first time Monday morning in Jefferson City. They’ll gavel-in at 11 a.m. Committee Chairman State Rep. Doug Richey (R-Excelsior Springs) is humbled by the appointment.

“It is a committee that will be doing some very important work in terms of vetting both the priorities and the need for these federal stimulus dollars that are yet to even be received,” Richey says.

The subcommittee will hear testimony on Monday about capital improvement needs that could be eligible for federal stimulus funds under the Rescue plan. President Joe Biden (D) signed the bill, and House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith (R-Carthage) has said that he expects Missouri to receive billions of dollars in federal funding.

“There will be opportunity for several one-time appropriations for capital improvements and deferred maintenance that we know exist throughout the state,” says Richey.

He tells Missourinet that examples include universities, public safety, mental health and hospitals and state buildings.

Chairman Richey is emphasizing the importance of due diligence. He tweeted Saturday that “the American Rescue Plan isn’t funded by tax payer dollars, it’s funded by tax payer indebtedness.”

The Medicaid expansion issue will also come up again this week in the Legislature.

The Missouri House Budget Committee is expected to vote Tuesday on a budget blueprint from Chairman Smith, a plan which directs dollars slated for Medicaid expansion for other programs, including MO HealthNet. That’s the state Medicaid program.

Smith outlined the plan last week. House Bill 21, an eight-page bill, is just over $1 billion. $894 million of that would come from federal funds.

Funding includes $26 million for programs like respite care, adult day care and home-delivered meals. Chairman Smith testifies the funding also includes $88.2 million for funding long-term care services for care in nursing facilities. HB 21 also includes $18 million for k-12 public school transportation, and $2 million for adult high schools. It also includes $11.6 million for treatment for alcohol and drug abuse, and $2.2 million for youth community programs. It also provides about $1 million in additional funding for the State Public Defender System.

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)

House Democrats on the Budget Committee are expected to oppose the plan, saying that 53 percent of Missouri voters approved Medicaid expansion in August. Regardless of the committee vote, the issue will almost certainly be debated again on the House floor soon.

The Missouri House Public Safety Committee will meet Tuesday morning to hear legislation from State Rep. Robert Sauls (D-Independence), which involves workers compensation for firefighters and first responders.

“This is a bill that protects those who protect us. The firefighter cancer presumption bill creates a presumption that if a firefighter develops cancer, he or she got it as a result of the hazardous toxins of which he or she was regularly exposed. There is also a component to PTSD for first responders. I am proud of this bill and it is far overdue,” Sauls tells Missourinet.

Sauls’ House Bill 863 would allow Missouri firefighters and first responders to receive workers compensation for diseases of the heart or cardiovascular system, any infectious diseases, diseases of the body systems or organs from carcinoma, and diseases of the lungs or respiratory tract.

Across the Capitol Rotunda in the Missouri Senate, the chamber is expected to take up legislation involving mechanical contractors early this week. Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz (R-Sullivan) tells Missourinet he expects his Senate Bill 11 to hit the floor on Monday.

Schatz’s bill is called the “Missouri Statewide Mechanical Contractor Licensing Act.” Under the bill, the statewide mechanical license for mechanical contractors would be regulated by the Division of Professional Registration, within the state Department of Commerce and Insurance. The bill creates the Office of Mechanical Contractors, within the division.

Pro Tem Schatz also says education reform legislation could go to the Senate floor this week.

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s full four-minute interview with Missouri House Subcommittee on Federal Stimulus Spending Chairman Rep. Doug Richey (R-Excelsior Springs), which was recorded on April 9, 2021:

Southeast Missouri congressman considering U.S. Senate run in 2022; pledges to fight for working families (AUDIO)

March 30, 2021 By Brian Hauswirth

A southern Missouri congressman who serves as the ranking Republican on the House Budget Committee says he’s considering a run for the U.S. Senate in 2022. U.S. Rep. Jason Smith (R-Salem) spoke to Missourinet Monday evening outside the Statehouse in Jefferson City, after he met with the governor about the issue of feral hogs.

U.S. Rep. Jason Smith (R-Salem) is outside the Missouri Capitol in Jefferson City on March 29, 2021 (Brian Hauswirth photo)

“I will just say that I would put my record fighting for working-class families, farmers, small business owners and my conservative credentials amongst any names that’s been out there or suggested for the United States Senate,” Smith says.

Former Governor Eric Greitens and Attorney General Eric Schmitt, both Republicans, have announced they’re running for the Senate. Former State Sen. Scott Sifton (D-Affton) and Jefferson City native Lucas Kunce are two Democrats who have announced. Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas has also been mentioned as a possible Senate candidate.

Incumbent U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt (R) is retiring. He’s finishing his second six-year Senate term on Capitol Hill.

Smith, who represents 30 counties in southern and southeast Missouri, emphasizes that he hasn’t made a decision yet.

“I was elected by the good people of southeast Missouri to do a job in Washington D.C. as the Republican leader of the (House) Budget Committee. I’m fighting everyday for our rural way of life to make sure that (President Joe) Biden doesn’t take away our freedoms and liberties, and that is my focus right now,” says Smith.

The Budget Committee is chaired by U.S. Rep. John Yarmuth (D-Kentucky), and Smith is the committee’s top Republican.

Smith, who’s served in Congress since 2013, was re-elected in November with 77 percent of the vote against Festus social worker Kathy Ellis. The sprawling Eighth Congressional District includes Cape Girardeau, Farmington, Poplar Bluff, Portageville, Kennett, West Plains and Rolla.

Meantime, Congressman Smith and 70 other congressional Republicans have signed a letter, calling for an investigation into the suspension of the southern border wall construction. Smith says President Biden’s decision has fueled a crisis at the border.

“What the president did on his first three hours in office, by a declaration, was to halt funding that was appropriated by Congress in a bipartisan way. You’re talking about billions of dollars that was appropriated in a bipartisan way, and he halted the construction of the southern border,” Smith says.

President Biden issued a January 20 proclamation, saying that building a massive wall that spans the entire southern border “is not a serious policy solution.” President Biden described it as a waste of money that diverts attention from genuine threats to our homeland security. President Biden says his administration is committed to ensuring that the United States has a comprehensive and humane immigration system that operates consistently with our nation’s values.

As for the feral hog issue, Governor Mike Parson says State Sen. Jason Bean (R-Holcomb) also participated in Monday’s meeting with Congressman Smith, as well as Missouri Department of Conservation Director Sara Parker-Pauley and representatives from the USDA and U.S. Forest Service.

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s interview with U.S. Rep. Jason Smith (R-Salem), which was recorded outside the Missouri Capitol in Jefferson City on March 29, 2021:

Former Missouri Governor Greitens announces U.S. Senate bid, during live Fox News interview

March 23, 2021 By Brian Hauswirth

A former Missouri governor who resigned three years ago announced Monday on national television that he’s running for the U.S. Senate in 2022.

Former Missouri Governor Eric Greitens speaks to reporters in downtown St. Louis on May 14, 2018, after the felony invasion of privacy charge against him was dismissed (file photo courtesy of Bill Greenblatt/UPI

Current U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt (R) will not seek re-election next year, which will leave the seat open for the 2022 election cycle.

Republican Eric Greitens was elected as Missouri’s governor in 2016 and resigned in 2018, 17 months after taking office. He announced Monday on Fox News’ “Special Report” that he’s running for the Senate in 2022.

Greitens says Missouri needs a fighter in the Senate.

“They need somebody who’s going to go as I will, as I’m committed to do, to defending President Trump’s America first policies and also to protecting the people of Missouri from (President) Joe Biden, (House Speaker) Nancy Pelosi and (Senate Majority Leader) Chuck Schumer’s radical leftist agenda,” Greitens told host Bret Baier.

Greitens has criticized President Biden, saying he’s created a border catastrophe.

St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s office announced in 2018 that they dismissed a computer tampering case against Greitens, in exchange for the governor’s resignation. The charge involved Greitens’ alleged attempt to take a donor list from his former charity, the Mission Continues, without the permission of charity officials.

Baier also asked Greitens about allegations that he took a nonconsensual photo of a partially nude woman without her consent. Greitens, who has admitted to an extramarital affair with the woman, has denied any criminal wrongdoing. During the Fox News interview, Greitens blasted St. Louis Circuit Attorney Gardner.

“As you know, the George Soros-funded prosecutor who went after us, her investigator has now been charged with seven felonies for perjury and evidence tampering,” Greitens says.

Greitens is referring to William Don Tisaby, who’s case hasn’t gone to trial yet.

Gardner’s office dropped the invasion of privacy charge against Greitens, when a judge ruled that Gardner could be called as a witness by the defense. The case then was assigned to Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker, who declined to file charges. Baker said her office did not have sufficient evidence to consider filing new charges against Greitens in the case, and said Gardner’s office did not provide all of the documents in the case.

When Gardner’s office dropped the invasion of privacy charge against Greitens, he still faced heavy criticism from Missouri House and Senate Republican and Democratic leaders, along with possible impeachment.

Then-Senate President Pro Tem Ron Richard (R-Joplin) and then-Senate Majority Leader Mike Kehoe (R-Jefferson City) called for Governor Greitens to testify before a Missouri House committee in 2018. Richard and Kehoe said then that Greitens had lost the moral authority to lead the state, and called for his resignation.

Former House Speaker and former U.S. Attorney Catherine Hanaway, who represented Greitens’ campaign staff, blasted that House committee’s investigation. She accused the chairman, then-State Rep. Jay Barnes (R-Jefferson City), of playing politics.

Greitens’ resignation took effect on June 1, 2018.

As for Senator Blunt, he was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2010 and is finishing his second Senate term. The seat was previously held by U.S. Sen. Kit Bond (R), who served four terms from 1987-2010.

The last Democrat to hold the seat was U.S. Sen. Tom Eagleton, who served three terms until he retired in 1986.

Filing for the position begins next February in Jefferson City.

Cody Smith: Missouri expects to receive billions under new stimulus package (AUDIO)

March 8, 2021 By Brian Hauswirth

Legislation creating a new fund for the billions of dollars Missouri is expected to receive from a new federal stimulus package will be unveiled Monday afternoon in Jefferson City.

Missouri House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith, R-Carthage, testifies before a House committee in Jefferson City on February 24, 2021 (file photo courtesy of Tim Bommel at House Communications)

House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith (R-Carthage) tells Missourinet that any money from the “American Rescue Plan of 2021” and any future stimulus money would go into the new fund.

“And the intent there is to set up the fund to receive those funds from this next round of federal stimulus, and keep them separate from all of the other funds that we have in the state treasury for transparency purposes, for management purposes,” Smith says.

Smith says it would also assist with planning purposes.

The U.S. Senate and House have approved different versions of the $1.9 trillion stimulus package. CNBC reports the U.S. House will have to sign off on the Senate’s changes, before the bill can be signed by President Joe Biden (D).

As for Chairman Smith, he says it’s unclear yet how much money specifically will be coming to Missouri. But he notes it will be in the billions.

“It’s generally agreed upon and thought that Missouri will receive billions of dollars with this next round of stimulus for various purposes. And so while we don’t know exactly how much, we do anticipate that it will be a lot of money,” says Smith.

Smith will present his two-page bill on Monday afternoon, to the Budget Committee in Jefferson City. Under House Bill 1236, State Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick would be the new fund’s custodian.

Click here to listen to Brian Hauswirth’s interview with Missouri House Budget Committee Chairman Cody Smith (R-Carthage), which was recorded on March 5, 2021:

Missouri congresswoman wants $2,000 monthly coronavirus payments

February 8, 2021 By Alisa Nelson

A group of more than 50 U.S. House Democrats, including Missouri Congresswoman Cori Bush, is lobbying for $2,000 monthly checks for Americans until the pandemic is over with. Bush, a Democrat from St. Louis, says the payments should also be retroactive – from the start of the pandemic.

Missouri Congresswoman Cori Bush

During an appearance on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, she says she wants people to get back on their feet.

“If we can find money for a wall, if we can find money for so many other things. Look, we have Space Force now – don’t tell me that we cannot make sure that the people in our communities can eat,” says Bush.

The effort is expected to be a tough sell among for Republicans and maybe even the Biden administration. The president wants a one-time $1,400 stimulus payment.

Biden has unveiled a $1.9 trillion coronavirus stimulus plan. U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-New York, both back Biden’s effort.

“We’re talking about people eating. We’re talking about children having diapers and milk,” says Bush. “We’re talking about people being able to keep lights on – to have heat if they need it or to be able to have cool air if it’s hot. That’s what we’re talking about. We’re talking about saving lives and there is no price to that saving lives. One, period. But then also, but we can build a wall?”

Congresswomen Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts are among the other notable Democrats lobbying for the monthly payments.

Congressman Cleaver says USDA Offices are staying put in KC, rumors were not true

February 4, 2021 By Ashley Byrd

Kansas City area Congressman Emanuel Cleaver says the Biden Administration will not move the newly-relocated USDA offices from Kansas City back to the nation’s capital.

Cleaver carries political clout with President Biden, who came to Kansas City at the congressman’s request during the campaign.

Missouri Farm Bureau leaders mentioned this as a concern immediately after the 2020 presidential election.

“I represent that area, I am the senior Democrat in Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, Nebraska, Arkansas. And I can tell you that there is no way that those agricultural offices will be moved against my political will. That’s just not going to happen,” Cleaver told Missourinet.’

“I heard the rumors over and over again and have not spoken about it publicly. I can tell you those offices are not going anywhere.

USDA’s Economic Research Service and National Institutes of Food & Agriculture moved to Kansas City last year. Though Cleaver supported the move, he predicted the USDA may lose some top employees — and they did —as 2/3 of the research and funding agencies’ staff in Washington DC quit.

Cleaver says any move back to Washington D.C. would be too expensive.