No Slowing Down

I hope everyone enjoyed a blessed Easter weekend and are rejuvenated by the possibilities of new beginnings, fresh starts and a restored sense in all things inherently good that Easter represents at its core.

House Bill 11, the most controversial part of the budget is almost always HB 11, which is the budget for Department of Social Services. This includes funding for foster children, seniors, people with disabilities, and all of Missouri’s most vulnerable citizens. This bill was debated for over six hours on the Senate Floor before we voted on the bill. However, because of two provisions, in the end, I could not support the bill.

First provision was the budget that came out of Senate Appropriates Committee would have cut the department by $130 million. This would require the department to spend $69 million less than it did in Fiscal Year 2014.

Another part of HB 11 I could not support was requiring managed care to go statewide. Currently, doctors and hospitals in 54 counties receive fees for Medicaid recipients through managed care, while the other counties receive it from fee-for-service. Even though some states have seen a savings from managed care there is now a federal tax on managed care services. When Missouri first implemented managed care they saw about 1.7 percent savings. The tax to the federal government is 2.8 percent. Therefore, by requiring this new system we could be costing the state more money.

There are many differences between the House and Senate version of HB 11. I hope when it comes out of conference, it will be something I can support and tell my constituents we passed a budget that doesn’t harm our most vulnerable citizens.

This week we were also able to pass Senate Concurrent Resolution 31, which restores the Secure Rural School Program established for counties with national forest lands or those with certain Bureau of Land Management parcels, which have historically received a percentage of agency revenues. Many of our counties are compensated for the tax-exempt status of the federal lands.  Congress enacted the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000 as a temporary, optional program of payments based on historic revenues rather than current revenues. Senate Concurrent Resolution 31 calls for congressional restoration of funding for Missourians at its original funding levels and maintains funding under the Impact Aid Law.

Senate Bill 524, which I sponsored and the Senate perfected this week, helps protect small banks across the state. The legislation prohibits any contractual fee charged by a bank, trust company, association or credit union for overdrawing the balance of a deposit account from being seen or accounted for as interest.  I believe strongly in our local banks and will do what I feel is necessary to protect them.  This legislation is on the calendar for third reading on Monday, April 13.

On Wednesday, April 8, I had the pleasure of attending an event in which Robert O’Neill, a former Senior Chief Petty Officer and member of the highly praised Navy SEAL Team 6, and the man who is credited with the shot that killed Osama Bin Laden, was the guest speaker.   Mr. O’Neill spoke for almost an hour, time that seemed to fly by. He was an engaging speaker, who had the attention of each and every person in the room, and kept it for the duration of his motivational speech.

One can only imagine the hardships he faced both during his time in combat and the effects of all he has seen and endured, including the deaths of his comrades. Mr. O’Neill’s life and his speech to us, contained a simple theme: Never Quit.

This courageous man spoke of the security measures he now must ensure are in place for his travel and arrival at various locations where he speaks. The crowd was mildly aware of this as we each had to be wearing a wristband to gain admittance.

The stories he told of leaving his family at a moment’s notice, to the dangers he still faces, here at home, only reinforced my life-long respect for the job these men and women are called to do. I was equally shocked and speechless when he spoke of the concern for his safety now, years after having ended his service in the United States Armed Forces. He felt compelled to tell his story only after hearing stories from families of victims of the Sept. 11 terror attacks.  I applaud him for his bravery then, and now.