My Fellow Missourians:
The Spring Legislative Break is over and we are back in the final half of session in Jefferson City. As I mentioned in the last Capitol Report, I had the opportunity to hold four town hall listening post meetings last week. I was offered the opportunity to help deliver ‘Meals on Wheels’ with Director Leonard Burton of the El Dorado Springs Senior Center. He updated me on how the center is operated by Care Connection for Aging Services, the senior center’s operational budget, revenue sources and expenditures. (This senior center is one of 22 senior centers operated by Care Connection.) The El Dorado Springs Senior Center serves 27 on-site meals daily and delivers 75 meals to homes each day as well with a total of 26,010 meals served each year. The total operating budget per year is $216,891. The revenue to operate the center is received in the form of 41% federal and state funding and 9% local county tax. The regularly attending seniors pay the center an average of $4.50 per meal which figures to be 12% of the revenue. 17% of the revenue comes from volunteers who donate their time and effort which is considered an in-kind contribution. The remainder of the budget (21%) relies on giving from churches, individuals who contribute and fundraisers such as raffles and once-a-month Sunday dinners. I learned that several people “Sponsor A Senior” by contributing $10 per month per individual. This is almost half the cost of sponsoring the care of an animal for $19.95 per month. The bottom line is more people need to help support their senior centers at the local level.
Big bills of the week:
Members of the Missouri House approved legislation this week (HB104) meant to make public construction projects more affordable for taxpayers. The bill would repeal Missouri’s prevailing wage law to help reduce the cost of construction and maintenance projects for counties, municipalities and school districts. If both chambers approve the bill and the governor signs it into law, Missouri will join states such as Kentucky, West Virginia, and Indiana, which have all repealed their prevailing wage laws in recent years. Missouri is currently one of 29 states with a prevailing wage law in place.
Legislation that would give Missourians the option to obtain photo identification that complies with the federal REAL ID Act (HB151) is now on its way to the Senate. The bill approved by the House this week would require the state revenue department to issue Real ID-compliant driver’s licenses and identification cards to those who want them. For Missourians who do not want to comply with the REAL ID requirements because of privacy concerns, the legislation would allow them to request the existing style of Missouri identification that is not compliant with the federal act. For those who want or need the federally compliant driver’s license, the bill would establish safeguards so that any additional data gathered is used only for purposes of issuing the identification.
Honoring missouri’s vietnam veterans:
House members took time away from their legislative work to honor some of the state’s greatest heroes for their service. In observance of the annual Vietnam Veterans Day on March 30, lawmakers welcomed veterans who served in the Vietnam War to the House Chamber to recognize them for their courage, sacrifice, and devotion to duty and country.
More than 70 veterans started the day by gathering in the House Lounge to receive official House Resolutions presented in honor of their service. House members and the heroes they honored listened to remarks from both the Lt. Governor and the House Speaker before taking time for pictures. During the event, lawmakers were able to offer their sincere thanks to the many veterans in attendance. The event continued on the House floor as the veterans in attendance were again recognized and honored by legislators.
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