Education and Abortion Legislation Receive Hearings
This week at the Capitol was especially busy for me as two of my priority pieces of legislation received Senate committee hearings. Senate Bill 638, which creates the “Missouri Civics Education Initiative,” was heard on Wednesday, Feb. 3, by the Senate Education Committee, and Senate Bill 883, relating to out-of-state abortion referrals, was introduced to the Seniors, Families and Children Committee on the afternoon of Tuesday, Feb. 2.
Senate Bill 638 creates the “Missouri Civics Education Initiative,” which requires high school-age students entering the ninth grade after July 1, 2017 to take and pass a basic civics test – similar to the U.S. Naturalization Test – in order to receive a degree from public, charter and private schools. This 100-question test will feature questions similar to those on the test taken by immigrants before they can receive United States citizenship. The tests can be administered at any time and in any format the school chooses and the school district will set the passing grade.
There is a sad truth in our state and nation today – many U.S. citizens simply don’t have a basic understanding of American civics, how our government works or who we are as a nation. Without this basic knowledge, citizens are less likely to vote or take part in policy decisions facing our cities, states and country today. This critical problem must be addressed with a sense of urgency and the Civics Education Initiative is the common-sense first step in doing just that. An educated citizenry is the only way to maintain a government that is of the people, by the people and for the people.
My other piece of legislation heard in committee this week was Senate Bill 883. The Seniors, Families and Children Committee deliberated on SB 883 on Tuesday morning. This legislation is the similar to the version I filed last year, which received support from the committee previously, and I am confident it will move forward to be heard on the full Senate Floor in the coming weeks. Senate Bill 883 requires in-state abortion facilities or family planning agencies to provide specified materials, printed by the Department of Health, to a woman when she is considering an out-of-state abortion and has been given the provider’s contact information. This information will be presented to the woman in person when the referral is made, or the printed materials can be mailed to her through the USPS via overnight delivery.
Currently, women seeking abortions from in-state providers must be provided this same packet of information. This legislation seeks to improve the information being provided to Missouri women when out-of-state abortion referrals occur and will help women considering such procedures to be better informed in the quickest manner possible.
This past Wednesday I also presented a Senate Resolution for the American Heart Association (AHA) to honor February as American Heart Month and to increase awareness about the number-one killer of American men and women – heart disease. Wednesday, Feb. 3 was “Wear Red Day” here at the Capitol, and I introduced a group of representatives from the American Heart Association during that day’s session. Heart disease is a very serious problem that faces our country’s health and well-being, and is a problem that costs the American health care industry hundreds of billions of dollars a year. Nearly 9,000 Missourians die from cardiovascular diseases every year, yet 80 percent of heart diseases can be prevented by taking measures such as eating a healthy diet, not smoking tobacco, maintaining a healthy body weight and controlling your cholesterol and blood sugar levels. I would like to thank the members of the AHA for coming to the Capitol and helping to spread the word about this serious, but combatable issue. For more information on how to prevent heart disease, follow this address to the AHA website: http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/
It is an honor to be your State Senator and my door is always open to your concerns, questions or comments. Please feel free to contact me at (573) 751-2757 or visit my web page at www.senate.mo.gov/riddle.