Welcome to this week’s Missouri Labor Report from the Mo. AFL-CIO…
Legislative Billa
The Missouri legislature continues to function, with bills being passed out of both chambers this week. Despite the early kumbaya pressure is starting to build as big-ticket items, utility legislation, the crime bill, and tax cuts, are beginning to stack up. Here’s some brief legislative updates from the week:
- Senate Bill 8, which guts unemployment insurance, was brought up on the floor and quickly laid over on the informal calendar. This delay is a good sign, but it means the Majority Floor leader can quickly bring it to the floor any time he wishes for the remainder of the session.
- Senate Bill 22, which gives the legislative branch the authority to write biased ballot language, was blocked by labor-supported Senator Maggie Nurrenbern (D-Clay). That bill is also on the informal calendar, meaning that- while currently blocked- it can come back at any time.
- Senate Bill 215 moved out of the committee and was placed on the calendar to likely be debated in the coming weeks. The bill would provide for “open enrollment” meaning students could go to school outside of the district where their parents pay taxes. The bill is part of the school “choice” movement, and will likely turn into a much larger debate about the role and future of public education in Missouri.
In Solidarity,
Stephen Webber
Missouri AFL-CIO, Communications Director
