With a little more than two weeks left in the current Missouri legislative session, the focus of the state legislature will be on two possible veto overrides, said St. Louis Public Radio political reporter Jo Mannies.
She and education reporter Dale Singer appeared on St. Louis on the Air today to give an update on key bills moving through the state legislature right now.
The tax cut bill and the bill overhauling the state’s criminal code are both in Governor Nixon’s hands at the moment, and because he is required to either sign them into law or veto them before the end of the session, the Missouri Senate and House will have a chance to override them before the summer break. The session ends May 16.
The governor has given strong indication that he will veto the tax cut bill, saying that it has a fatal flaw that will eliminate tax on all income greater than $9,000. He has also hinted at a possible veto of the criminal code overhaul.
Other legislative issues mentioned during the show were the gun nullification bill, the right to work bill, and the state budget, which is on track to be sent to the governor by the May 9 deadline. The budget as it now stands includes no provision for Medicaid expansion. Nixon recently proposed a measure that would allow for Medicaid expansion, but due to its late arrival, the proposal is unlikely to make it into the budget.
Education
Since the Missouri legislature passed the tax cut bill, the governor has been framing his conversations about the bill in terms of what it means to reductions in revenue directed to individual school districts, said education reporter Dale Singer.
The other major education-related bill under discussion this session is the bill that would rewrite the school transfer law. After being passed by the Missouri Senate in February, the bill is up for debate in the House this week.
“It will be interesting to see what survives in the bill and if the bill itself survives,” said Singer. “If you don’t live in one of those districts [in danger of becoming unaccredited] now, you could be living in one of those districts soon.”
St. Louis on the Air provides discussion about issues and concerns facing the St. Louis area. The show is produced by Mary Edwards and Alex Heuer and hosted by veteran journalist Don Marsh.
