Sen. Andrew Koenig Archives

Missouri Senator tests positive for COVID-19 after attending public hearings

January 22, 2021 By Alisa Nelson

State Senator Andrew Koenig, R-Manchester, has tested positive for COVID-19. He confirmed the news today on Twitter.

“Fortunately, I am experiencing mild symptoms. Out of an abundance of caution, I will be quarantining at home for the next 10 days,” he said.

Sen. Andrew Koenig, R-Manchester

The Missouri Senate has been in session this week. Koenig attended Senate Committee hearings, along with members of the public, other lawmakers and staffers.

Missourinet contacted Senate Administrator Patrick Baker this morning for information about any contact tracing efforts. So far, we have not received a response.

Koenig introduced a bill Tuesday during a Senate Education Committee hearing and was heard raising his voice several times while he argued with opponents of Senate Bill 23. On Wednesday, the Senate Health and Pensions Committee held a hearing on his Senate Bill 21, which would limit any shutdown to 14 days. For a shutdown to continue any longer than that, Legislative approval would be required.

Under his bill, churches could remain open. The plan would also create a tax credit for businesses who are forced to close their doors in a state of emergency.

During the hearing, Koenig said COVID-19 is a serious virus and should be taken seriously.

“It poses a risk to people who are elderly, people with pre-existing conditions. But shutting down our economy will not eradicate the virus, and this has been proven to be the case,” said Koenig, of St. Louis County. “I don’t think there’s a lot of hard evidence showing that these mandatory lockdowns are scientifically sound and actually work. In a free society, you can lock yourself in your house and not have any human contact and I promise you, you will not get COVID-19. But in a free society, I should have that choice to leave my house. It’s my choice if I want to risk getting COVID-19.”

Koenig pushed back on St. Louis County’s pandemic-related restrictions.

“St. Louis County has violated the Constitutional Rights of the people of St. Louis County,” said Koenig. “And they’ve abandoned science in the process. And so, we are going to protect that.”

Koenig chairs the Senate Ways and Means Committee. It is scheduled to hold a hearing Monday. On the agenda is a tax increment financing measure sponsored by Koenig. It is Senate Bill 22.

The Missouri Legislature’s new session began on January 6. Since then, several lawmakers have tested positive for COVID-19 or have quarantined after being exposed to the virus.

Last week, the GOP-controlled Missouri House of Representatives rejected a Democratic-led effort to require members to wear a mask on the House floor. Democrats pointed to several maskless Republicans not following CDC guidelines.

Due to a rising number of coronavirus cases, the chamber’s Republican leadership decided to give the full House this week off. House members are expected to get back to business next week.

Missouri Senate passes five special session bills to fight crime

September 3, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

The Missouri Senate passed five special session bills about crime in the wee hours of Thursday morning. Members spent more than 16 hours on the legislation with the most time being consumed by House Bill 2. It deals with the admissibility of certain witness statements. The slowdown came when Sen. Bob Onder, R- Lake St. Louis, worked to tack on a contentious component that would let the Missouri Attorney General get involved in some St. Louis murder cases.

Sen. Bob Onder, R-Lake St. Louis

After several hours of debate, the measure was tabled. It re-emerged late Wednesday night when Onder gained enough support to call for a procedural motion known as the previous question. The controversial tactic forces a vote on the bill. The Senate voted 22-8 in favor of the proposal.

The effort is expected to face strong resistance in the House. The lower chamber did not take up the measure last week.

During floor debate, Onder said Gardner’s office is severely understaffed and her conviction rate is low. Sen. Jamilah Nasheed, D-St. Louis, led the charge against the effort to intervene in Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s cases.

“Sometimes the evidence is just not there,” said Nasheed.

“But then when she prosecutes, she loses. How do you explain that, senator,” asked Onder.

Nasheed said Onder’s effort is politically motivated. Some Republicans have blasted Gardner for her handling of the criminal case involving former Gov. Eric Greitens and another one about Mark and Patricia McCloskey. The affluent St. Louis couple were charged with a felony over the summer for pointing guns on their property at protesters walking along their private street.

State Sen. Jamilah Nasheed speaks at the Missouri Capitol on January 23, 2018 (file photo courtesy of Missouri Senate photographer Harrison Sweazea]

“She’s not doing her job. She’s too busy prosecuting the McCloskeys and the former governor while children are dying,” said Onder.

Nasheed told Onder the violent crime problem is not Gardner’s fault.

“This is bigger than her not prosecuting,” she said. “You know what this is about. This is about an African American woman.”

Onder fired back and said skin color has nothing to do with his beef with Gardner.

“It’s appalling to me that the sky falls and it’s Kim Gardner’s fault. You can call him the spin doctor if you’d like. He’s spinning the truth,” she said.

Nasheed told Sen. Andrew Koenig, R- Manchester, the state should not be getting involved in local cases.

“If I decide that I want to put a strip club all throughout your district – in the conservative district – or I want to put an abortion clinic in your district, do you know what you’re going to say to me, ‘I didn’t ask you to do that. Get out of here,’” said Nasheed.

“Yeah, well I’m definitely opposed to abortion,” said Koenig.

St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner

Nasheed questioned why Missourians are required to complete 40 hours to drive but no training is required to own a gun. She went on to blame Republican lawmakers relaxing gun laws for increased access to firearms in the inner cities.

Nasheed said lawmakers must fix the lack of funding for quality education in St. Louis and lack of job opportunities for vulnerable and poor people.

“We have to deal with the root cause and you cannot keep looking at an ugly tree in your backyard and hitting it from the top and thinking that it’s never going to grow again,” said Nasheed. “You have to pull it from its roots so it never grows again. And the root cause of our problems in the city of St. Louis is not Kim Gardner.”

The legislation passed:

*HB 2 would allow an otherwise inadmissible witness statement if a “preponderance” of evidence shows the defendant engaged in wrongdoing to cause the unavailability of the witness. It also lets the Missouri Attorney General intervene in some St. Louis murder cases.

*HB 66 would create a fund to protect witnesses, potential witnesses and their immediate family members during criminal proceedings or investigations.

*HB 46 would lift a requirement for St. Louis first responders to live within the city.

*HB 11 would criminalize adults who knowingly encourage, aid, or cause a child under 17 years old to commit a crime with a weapon.

*HB 16 would toughen the penalty for selling or giving a firearm to someone under 18 years old to avoid or interfere with an arrest, detention, or investigation of a crime.

Top Missouri laws taking effect today

August 28, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

Several bills become law today that the Missouri Legislature passed during the second regular session of the 100th General Assembly. Here is a snapshot of the top bills approved by lawmakers and signed by Gov. Mike Parson:

Top Missouri laws taking effect today

Partial motorcycle helmet law repeal
House Bill 1963 is a sweeping transportation bill allowing motorcycle drivers 26 years and older to go helmetless if they have their own health insurance. It requires insurance to cover medical costs for injuries from a motorcycle crash. Under the plan sponsored by Representative Travis Fitzwater, R-Holts Summit, motorcycle passengers would still be required to wear a helmet.

Cameras within long-term care patient rooms
St. Louis Representative Jim Murphy’s bill will let long-term care center patients put electronic monitoring devices in their rooms. Murphy, a Republican, tells Missourinet House Bill 1387 allows devices like video cameras to be placed within patient rooms at Missouri nursing homes, assisted living centers and mental hospitals. Under the plan, a visible sign must be placed in rooms where monitoring is occurring. Murphy says he thinks the devices will help to address potential abuse and neglect and help families stay in contact with their loved ones during the COVID-19 pandemic. Anyone featured in a recording must approve of the release of the recording unless the information is being given to law enforcement for investigative purposes.

Changes to Missouri’s foster care system
House Bill 1414 is comprehensive legislation about Missouri’s foster care system. It requires the creation of a response team to review the practices of the state Children’s Division and any contractors. The package gives Missouri’s homeless kids access to a free birth certificate and provides them with Medicaid health coverage. Representative Sheila Solon, R-St. Joseph, is sponsoring the proposal ensuring foster parents have access, at the time of placement, to full medical records of a child placed with them. It also clarifies that a child’s attendance in court hearings should only take place when the judge and family support believe it is in the best interest of the child.

Further healthcare coverage for certain conditions
Former state Representative David Wood, R-Versailles, is the sponsor of a wide-ranging healthcare bill allowing pregnant Missouri women on Medicaid to have access to mental health services for postpartum depression or related conditions for up to an additional 12 months. Previous law gave the benefits to eligible mothers for up to 60 days after giving birth. The extra help depends on state budget and federal approval.

House Bill 1682 also specifies that coverage for certain breast cancer screening and evaluation services must be provided annually to any woman deemed by her physician to have an above-average risk for breast cancer. Furthermore, the bill requires coverage of ultrasound or MRI services when determined by a physician to be medically necessary for any woman deemed by the doctor to have an above-average risk of breast cancer.

Rape kits testing
Sen. Andrew Koenig, R-Manchester, sponsored legislation streamlining Missouri’s testing process for sexual assault evidence kits and it creates a statewide task force aimed at protecting the rights of assault victims. Senate Bill 569 requires the state to create a centralized place to store untested rape kits and requires those kits to be stored for at least five years. Missouri has about 6,800 untested rape kits.

Tort Reform
Senate Bill 591 puts new limits on punitive damages in liability lawsuits. It allows juries to award punitive damages only when plaintiffs prove by clear and convincing evidence that defendants “intentionally harmed” someone without just cause or acted with “deliberate and flagrant disregard for the safety of others.” The business-friendly measure is sponsored by Sen. Bill White, R-Joplin.

Medical marijuana
Lawmakers passed changes to the state’s new medical marijuana industry. The FBI informed the state health department, which regulates the industry, that the Missouri agency will not have access to its national fingerprint background check database. Representative Lane Roberts, R-Joplin, says his legislation will clear up that problem. Under House Bill 1896, the agency requires fingerprints from medical marijuana business employees and department employees associated with licensing medical marijuana businesses. It bans medical marijuana edibles designed in the shape of a human, animal, or fruit, including realistic, artistic, caricature, or cartoon renderings. However, geometric shapes, including, but not limited to, circles, squares, rectangles, and triangles, are allowed.