Representative Rocky Miller Archives

Missouri Legislature sends “Clean Missouri” redistricting changes back to the ballot in November

May 14, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

The Missouri Legislature has passed today a controversial resolution that would ask voters this November to overturn Clean Missouri’s redistricting process passed by voters in 2018. The plan would let a bipartisan commission redraw legislative districts, instead of a nonpartisan demographer. It would also ban lobbyist gifts, instead of Clean Missouri’s $5 limit, and put a $2,000 cap on Senate candidate political donations, instead of the current $2,500.

Rep. Dean Plocher (Photo courtesy of Tim Bommel, House Communications)

During Missouri House debate today, bill handler Dean Plocher, R-Des Peres, says Clean Missouri prioritized the interests of billionaires in New York and Texas.

“It was all out of state money that funded Amendment One. Why? Where was the Missouri money? This is Missourians we’re voting on here. Our communities matter,” says Plocher.

Some Democrats say the proposed constitutional amendment could leave out certain segments of the population, including minors and noncitizens. Representative Peter Merideth, D-St. Louis, says the measure would let politicians get back to manipulating the boundaries of their districts.

“I dare you to look at a map where one district wraps around another district, where one member of our body has to drive through three other people’s districts to get to his polling place from his house. I dare you to say that those are not gerrymandered maps,” says Merideth.

Rep. Phil Christofanelli (Photo courtesy of Tim Bommel, House Communications)

Represenative Phil Christofanelli, R-St. Peters, fired back.

“Which judge gerrymandered the maps?” asks Christofanelli.

“I don’t know, gentleman. But I can tell you they are gerrymandered,” replies Merideth.

“That’s right you don’t know because you made it up,” says Christofanelli. “The Democrats made this up and they have been lying about this from the beginning.”

“Gerrymandering doesn’t exist, gentleman? That’s a powerful statement,” says Merideth.

“The maps have not been gerrymandered. It was a scam,” says Christofanelli.

Rep. Peter Merideth (Photo courtesy of Tim Bommel, House Communications)

Earlier this week, Missouri House Rules Committee Chairman Rocky Miller, R- Lake Ozark, voted in favor of the resolution but made his own prediction.

“This is going to go down in flames if it makes it to the ballot. Flames. This will not pass at all,” said Miller. This will be as bad as right-to-work. This will be three strikes in a row against the GOP. So, if they want three strikes in a row – pass this. We’ll see how it goes.”

In 2017, the Missouri Legislature passed a right-to-work law, which would ban mandatory union fees in the workplace. The next year, Missouri voters overwhelmingly shot down the law.

Miller also said the Missouri GOP Party told him the proposal has errors that need correcting, but he did not elaborate.

Fourteen House Republicans voted with Democrats against the proposal.

The measure is Senate Joint Resolution 38.

Missouri voters could decide if they want riverboat gambling along Osage River

January 9, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

Missouri voters could weigh in at the ballot box about whether to have a riverboat casino along the Osage River. State Representative Rocky Miller, R- Lake Ozark, is proposing a change to the Constitution that would allow people to place their bets along the Osage River. Current law allows riverboat gambling along the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers.

Rep. Rocky Miller (R-Lake Ozark)

Miller says he’s had this idea on his mind for quite some time.

“When the first riverboat gambling came out in the 90s, I thought ‘Well gosh, why isn’t the Osage River part of the Missouri and Mississippi riverboat gaming license?’ I have no idea why it wasn’t, but I thought we really should be,” he says.

Miller has his eye on the Lake of the Ozarks in mid Missouri.

“I’ve never thought that Lake of the Ozarks is really really a family-friendly destination. There are things that families can do and I love having them there,” he says. “There are great things you can do there – there’s water parks, there’s skee ball. But honestly, compared to Branson, we’ve always been an adult entertainment area.”

Miller says the Netflix show Ozark did not inspire his decision to file the bill, but he says the measure has been referred to as “The Ozark bill”. During the latest season of the hit show, a riverboat casino set sail along the Lake of the Ozarks in central Missouri.

Miller tells Missourinet he does not want to expand gambling.

“I think that right now, we just need to right the wrong. I truly would like to see a casino in Lake of the Ozarks, but I think the problems that we have, if we open those flood gates up, we’d have every casino fighting and I think we would end up getting nothing done. This is just a pragmatic, sort of level-headed way of doing it. Let’s add the Osage River. In the future, if a license becomes available, then we’re there to make a pitch for it,” says Miller.

The State Gaming Commission has already licensed 13 casinos – the maximum allowed in Missouri. If passed by the Legislature and people, the measure would let a potential riverboat casino pursue a license along the Osage, if one becomes available.

Miller says he’s “doing battle” against initiative petitions he’s heard might come along to expand gambling.

“This is so that we could kind of head that off at the pass and actually have input,” he says. “Only some rich guy that does the initiative petition and gets the signatures has input into how that’s read. I don’t. You don’t,” he says. “Through the process that we’re going through with my bill, you’re going to have public hearings. You’re going to have input. There’s probably going to be some changes to it.”

As for the economic impact of gambling on the Lake of the Ozarks?

“Cape Girardeau had a benefit of $55 million additional taxes and 726 new jobs,” Miller says. “I don’t know what the magnitude greater Lake of the Ozarks would be but you’ve got to think it would be a much greater magnitude.”

Century Casino operates boats in Cape Girardeau and nearby Caruthersville.

The legislation is HJR 87.

(AUDIO) Missourinet 5 p.m. Newscast for 1-8-2020

January 8, 2020 By Alisa Nelson