It was a busy week in the Senate, with numerous bills heard on the floor and back-to-back committee hearings in the afternoon. There’s only five weeks left in session, and although we’ve accomplished a lot this year, there’s still much to be done.

I’m proud to say I’ve had an incredibly successful session representing the people of the 3rd District. A great deal of my success can be attributed to my amazing staff, Brad Green, my Chief of Staff, and Karen Jacquin, my Administrative Assistant. I couldn’t ask for a more dedicated staff. They play a critical role in serving the citizens of our district. We’ve had a lot of long days and nights in the Capitol this year, and they’ve been with me every step of the way.

Three of my bills are currently moving through the House and await possible debate on the floor. Senate Bill 80 was passed out of the House Professional Registration and Licensing Committee on Wednesday. The legislation requires the Missouri Board of Nursing Home Administrators to notify, instead of mail, an applicant when it is time for license renewal.

Senate 188 was approved by the House Special Standing Committee on Corrections this week. The bill requires the local prosecutor to receive a copy of the petition for the conditional release of a sexually violent predator in his or her jurisdiction. Finally, Senate Bill 58 was heard in the House Local Government Committee last week and was voted do pass on Thursday. The bill allows Farmington to put ordinances to a vote of the people before they are finally passed. 

In the Senate, two bills I filed this year were debated on the floor. Senate Bill 57 allows the marshal of certain cities, including Farmington, to abate nuisances without notification and bill the property owner for the abatement if the owner has received more than one ordinance violation in the last year or growing season. The bill was given initial approval and needs a final vote to move to the House. The upper chamber also heard Senate Bill 357, which modifies the law regarding mechanics’ liens for rental machinery and equipment. It was approved and now awaits possible debate in the House.

This week in the Education Committee, we added an amendment to Senate Bill 437, which creates the higher education funding formula the committee’s been working on for some time now. The amendment removes the 50 percent of local funding that community colleges receive when their state funding is calculated. Basically, in the original formula, a community college’s funding would be reduced depending on how much it’s funded at the local level. So, for example, if the Mineral Area College receives $1 million a year for local revenue, that’s $1 million they wouldn’t receive from the state.

The problem with this is that it discourages citizens from supporting their local community colleges. Why spend local revenue on the college if that money could simply come from the state? This amendment strikes a nice balance by removing the 50 percent of local funds when calculating a community college’s state funding.

A number of visitors recently stopped by my office, including members of the First Baptist Church of De Soto. The Disabled Citizens Alliance for Independence was also in the Capitol as part of its Disability Rights Legislative Day. I was happy to meet with advocates from our area. If you come to the Capitol, please stop by office. It’s always a pleasure to meet with constituents from back home.

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