My colleagues and I have continued to discuss and debate legislation on the Senate floor, and we have sent bills to the House of Representatives for their consideration. The House has sent bills to the Senate, and we are beginning to hear these House bills in various committee hearings. I have filed several more bills in the past few weeks, and I would like to give you a quick overview of the legislation.
Senate Bill 977 modifies parts of the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) initiative. Under this act, any taxpayer in the state who selects a student majoring in a STEM field, who is attending a two-year or four-year public or private Missouri college or university, for an internship located in this state, or selects a student who recently graduated with a degree in a STEM field from any such school for a full-time position in a STEM field in this state, may apply to have $10,000 of the taxpayer’s state tax liability transferred from the general revenue fund and placed in the STEM fund. This transfer can only take place upon approval by the department and appropriation by the General Assembly.
Senate Bill 978 requires the Office of Administration to submit a report to the General Assembly each year, before Dec. 31, regarding the progress made by the state in regard to the “Missouri as a Model Employer” initiative created by Executive Order 19-16.
Senate Bill 979 guarantees the right to utilize working animals and states that no law, ordinance or rule shall be enacted by any political subdivision of the state that terminates, bans or effectively bans, by creating undue financial hardship, the job or use of working animals or an enterprise employing working animals.
Senate Bill 1038 establishes the “Joint Task Force on Juvenile Court Jurisdiction and Implementation.” This task force will be composed of 20 members and will review current juvenile court jurisdiction as it pertains to status and delinquency offenses and develop a plan for full implementation of raising the age of juvenile county jurisdiction to 17 years of age.
Senate Bill 1039 requires St. Louis County to establish a procedure before July 1, 2021, to determine whether any reclamation or remediation of a historic landfill has been accomplished safely before issuing any land use permit for the property. The procedure would be developed with input from residents and stakeholders and would ensure that the health of any resident near the historic landfill is the primary concern. The development of the procedure would also include public hearings and meetings to include public comments.
Senate Bill 1040 removes aluminum smelting facilities from the definition of “facility” to allow the Public Service Commission to approve a special rate, outside of general rate proceeding, for certain electrical corporations.
Contact Me
I always appreciate hearing your comments, opinions and concerns. Please feel free to contact me in Jefferson City at (573) 751-2459. You may write me at Wayne Wallingford, Missouri Senate, State Capitol, Jefferson City, MO 65101, or email at wayne.wallingford@senate.mo.gov or www.senate.mo.gov/wallingford.