Missouri lawmakers face crush of legislation in final week of session

JEFFERSON CITY • Major issues remain unresolved in the Missouri Legislature as lawmakers brush up against a Friday deadline to approve their priorities.

With lawmakers required to quit at 6 p.m. Friday, the clock is ticking on efforts to reform ethics laws, tweak the state’s municipal court system, change how Ameren raises its electric rates and override Gov. Jay Nixon’s vetoes of parts of the budget.

The Senate also could join with the House in an override of Nixon’s veto of legislation that would alter how public union members pay dues. Lawmakers also have yet to agree on a rewrite of state criminal laws that includes getting the state in compliance with juvenile sentencing guidelines.

And, there also are efforts to loosen state gun laws, encourage the use of police body cameras, tighten abortion restrictions, combat opioid abuse and increase transportation funding through a bump in the state’s fuel tax.

Republicans who control both the House and Senate are hopeful there is enough time to send a number of major initiatives across the finish line, but signaled they are nonetheless pleased with the progress made since the session began in January.

“You don’t ever come into the building and get everything you want,” said House Speaker Todd Richardson, R-Poplar Bluff.

Democrats say GOP members have wasted valuable time putting hot-button issues on the front burner as a way to massage their message heading into the 2016 election season. In particular, they bemoaned hours of debate last week dedicated to legislation that would tighten restrictions on abortion and loosen restrictions on firearms.

“The fact that the majority party has decided to spend this incredibly valuable time on the taxpayers’ dollar to talk about guns and abortion instead of the things that move Missouri forward — infrastructure, addressing our K-12 transfer problems, expanding healthcare to those who need it. It’s a matter of priorities,” said Rep. Gina Mitten, D-Richmond Heights.

Ethics reform

Coming into the session in January, Richardson and his Senate counterpart, Senate President Pro Tem Ron Richard of Joplin, said ethics reform was a top priority after last year’s scandals regarding two legislators resigning amid allegations of inappropriate behavior with college interns.

Missouri has been the only state with no limits on campaign contributions, no caps on gifts from lobbyists and no cooling-off period before lawmakers and become lobbyists.

But this session, lawmakers approved legislation imposing a six-month revolving door period for lobbying, banned lawmakers from serving as paid political consultants and placed restrictions on what former legislators can do with their campaign funds.

Left undone is a ban on lobbyist gifts. The House approved a ban on freebies, but the Senate has balked. A $40-per-day spending limit is pending, but it is not clear that measure will move forward before time runs out.

The House sponsor of the gift ban remains hopeful.

“I’m still pretty confident that we’ll be able to get some form of that bill back from the Senate,” said Rep. Justin Alferman, R-Hermann.

Democrats believe the debate over ethics is over.

“I think what they’ve done, it’s what they are going to do,” said Rep. John Rizzo, D-Kansas City, who serves as the minority party whip.

He decried the Republican failure to push for limits on campaign giving in an era where wealthy donors are regularly funneling six-figure contributions to candidates.

“Even though it’s a small step, it’s not even close to what the voters expect,” Rizzo said.

Override and taxes

The House and Senate also could spend time trying to override line-item vetoes to the 2017 fiscal year budget, including $375,000 that was supposed to go to honor flights and veterans memorials. Nixon said the World War II Memorial Fund couldn’t be used for those purposes.

He also vetoed a $500,000 item that would’ve gone to a health information exchange program, contending that the language would have favored one vendor over another.

Nixon also signaled unease with a $380,000 cut to Planned Parenthood, which would mean the state couldn’t access about $8 million in federal Medicaid reimbursements, forcing it to fill the gap with general revenue. He didn’t take any action on the cut, however.

“We will continue to analyze the legal ramifications of this language, and work to ensure that we continue to provide access to essential health services,” he said at a news conference Friday.

A gasoline tax increase is among the items in limbo.

The Senate approved a plan to ask voters if they would support a 6-cents-per-gallon increase in the motor fuel tax to raise money for road and bridge improvements.

But the bill has not been voted on in the full House, where Richardson has said GOP members are reluctant to debate tax hikes.

Democrats believe the idea has hit a roadblock.

“We still haven’t debated it on the floor,” Rizzo said. “To do it in the last week, I find it highly unlikely.”

The prospects of a major overhaul of state utility regulations also appears to be stalled. Ameren Missouri and other electric providers had sought changes designed to make it easier for them to raise rates in exchange for promises to upgrade the electric grid. But, the plan has faced repeated filibusters by a bipartisan minority.

Among items Richardson wants to finish are regulations for ride-hailing companies such as Uber and Lyft. The proposal has been hung up on whether drivers should undergo fingerprint background checks to ensure passengers are safe.

Richardson says the changes will pave the way for thousands of jobs.

“We’re going to be working hard on that,” Richardson said.

On controversial social issues having to do with firearms and abortion, lawmakers have made late moves to both put a question on the ballot seeking constitutional rights for fetuses and to expand the state’s so-called castle doctrine, which governs the use of firearms in self-defense.

Other gun-related plans moving in the Legislature’s final days include a plan to allow concealed carry on college campuses and public transit, and a proposal to allow lifetime concealed carry permits.

It’s also unclear if a proposed ban on donation of fetal tissue and a plan to require two-parent notification for minors seeking abortions will be debated before the final bell rings on Friday.

?Kurt Erickson • 573-556-6181

@KurtEricksonPD on Twitter

kerickson@post-dispatch.com

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