Senator Dave Schatz Archives

Missouri Legislature gets back to work today. What will the new session look like during the pandemic?

January 6, 2021 By Alisa Nelson

The Missouri Legislature’s new session begins today at the state Capitol in Jefferson City – with some COVID-19 measures. Senate President Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, says session will not be a usual start because of the pandemic.

Missouri Capitol

“We have people checking temperatures, asking COVID-related questions as they enter the Capitol here, monitoring it from that perspective,” he tells Missourinet. “We’re taking some precautions on setting up our committee hearing rooms with some social distance areas, just trying to make sure that we have as much a safe environment as we can to try to conduct business.”

The public can listen to Senate committee hearings from abroad, but Schatz says hearings are not set up to take virtual testimony at this time.

“We would anticipate continuing to have public testimony in the form of individuals coming to the Capitol,” he says. “If they feel uncomfortable, I mean they’ve always been able to submit written testimony to the committees as well.”

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports the public will be able to testify virtually during House committee hearings.

Both the House and Senate already provide audio of floor debate. The House also posts video of debate on its website.

Schatz says Senators are not required to wear a mask, but he suggests that they wear one. At this time, spring break is the only major break planned in the Senate.

“Until something that would dramatically change, we’re going to plow forward I believe like we should,” says Schatz.

The state reports 405,589 people have tested positive for COVID-19 since March and 5,825 have died from the virus. More than 2,600 people are in a Missouri hospital being treated for COVID-19.

Lawmakers gavel in at noon today for the 2021 session. Eleven newly-elected Senators and 6 returning Senators will be sworn into office. In the House, 161 Representatives will also take the oath of office.

Missouri Senate gets back to work today

April 7, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

The Missouri Senate plans to get back to business today. Senators have been on break for more than three weeks, as the number of coronavirus cases started picking up statewide. Senate President Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, says the upper chamber will consider the governor’s request for additional spending, often called a supplemental spending bill.

Missouri Senate President Pro Tem Dave Schatz (R-Sullivan) speaks to Capitol reporters on February 21, 2019 (photo courtesy of Senate Communications)

“We’ve got to find a way – it doesn’t probably get any easier at this point – but ultimately finding a way to get the supplemental passed and find a way to get potentially the budget work done. It’s still in our optimistic view that we’re going to be able to get that accomplished,” he says.”

Schatz says the Senate also plans to consider an annual hospital tax proposal, known as the Federal Reimbursement Allowance.

“It’s obviously critical funding,” he says. “I think it’s a couple hundred million dollars of funding. And so it’s a substantial amount of money that obviously in this environment they’re in – rural hospitals are going to be challenged because elective surgeries, their income stream obviously has been turned off. Like most other businesses as well, they’re facing the same challenges everybody else is in being able to fund and make payroll because their income stream being basically shut down. We’re going to have to make sure that we do the right thing when it comes to finding ways to make sure we don’t put any barriers in place and keeping our rural hospitals open.”

For safety reasons, Schatz says Senators’ offices will be closed to the public, there could be a slower roll call during votes and temperature checks at entrances.

“This is kind of a test run for us to see the process in which you know we put some protocols in place to make sure that we only have essential staff and legislators there in order to try to keep as much of the public. Obviously, there’s going to be access but you know limited access for the public and the press to come in,” says Schatz.

As for the Missouri House, it plans to gavel in Wednesday at 1.

During Monday’s daily press briefing, Gov. Mike Parson signaled plans to call a special session to get a state budget passed for the fiscal year that begins in July. Parson has said that his original budget proposal – about $30.5 billion – will have to be tweaked because of the hit the state is taking from the coronavirus.

Parson: Removing St. Louis police residency requirement is the right thing to do

February 3, 2020 By Alisa Nelson

State Rep. Ron Hicks

State Representative Ron Hicks, R-Dardenne Prairie, is proposing to let St. Louis police officers live outside the city limits. House Bill 1604 would let the officers reside within a one-hour response time.

The police department has about 150 to 200 police officer job openings and Police Chief John Hayden says the residency requirement is the greatest challenge the department has with recruitment and retention.

To top it all off, St. Louis has been named the most dangerous city in America for several years. Last year, the city had 194 murders, 2,600 shootings and 349 carjackings. Hicks has described St. Louis as the murder capital of the nation.

Gov. Mike Parson says he supports putting an end to the residency requirement.

“St. Louis has got a real problem,” he says. “The last thing we need to do is be hindering them from hiring police officers for that. I’m open to that. I think it’s the right thing to do – to make sure we get those full numbers of the police force up. They’re like 150, 200 officers down. The reality of it is whether you’re in St. Louis you’re in Polk County where I’m from just hiring deputies back in the day, the reality is if you can’t hire them within the county, you’ve got to reach outside there.”

Missouri Governor Mike Parson signs legislation on July 10, 2019 (file photo courtesy of Governor Parson’s office)

A House committee is considering Hicks’ bill. The legislation is a top priority for St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson, a Democrat, Hayden, the St. Louis Police Officers Association, and Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, a Republican with ties to the St. Louis suburb of Glendale.

Some members of the St. Louis Board of Aldermen and some residents want the requirement to stay intact – sparking Krewson and Hayden to ask Hicks for help in resolving the issue. The critics say having police officers who live in and know the neighborhoods they patrol is important. The one resident who testified against the bill at a House hearing said the matter should go to a citywide vote in St. Louis.

Sen. Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, has proposed Senate Bill 558, a similar measure.