An Eventful Week

It was an eventful week in the Missouri Senate as several important pieces of legislation advanced both in committee and in the Senate chamber. If you’ve been frustrated by having to pay personal property taxes on an older vehicle, help may be coming. Senate Bill 8, perfected by the Senate this week, would phase out personal property taxes on vehicles over 10 years old. Once a car or truck has been on the road for a decade, its value for taxation purposes will drop to $1, effectively eliminating any tax on the vehicle. I successfully offered an amendment to also limit property taxes on farm machinery over 10 years old. The measure requires one more vote in the Senate, but I expect it to move to the House of Representatives soon.

Another measure perfected by the Senate would extend MO HealthNet benefits for mothers following the birth of a child. Senate Bill 45 is aimed at addressing Missouri’s alarmingly high maternal mortality rate. The governor challenged the Legislature to provide additional funding for postpartum care during his State of the State Address in January. The perfected bill included several reform provisions, including an audit of the Medicaid rolls to ensure only those qualified receive benefits.

The first bill to make it all the way through the legislative process in 2023, House Bill 14 was passed by both chambers of the General Assembly and sent to the governor this week. This legislation provides funding for state expenses not anticipated when we passed the current year’s operating budget last May. Among other provisions, the supplemental budget bill provides additional shift differential pay for state employees who work overnight hours at our veterans’ homes, mental health care facilities and correctional institutions.

Turning to legislation I sponsored, the Senate Appropriations Committee took testimony on my proposal to authorize the Missouri Lottery to license and regulate video lottery terminals (VLT) in Missouri. Senate Bill 1 would allow VLTs to be placed in restaurants, bars, trucks stops and facilities operated by fraternal and veteran organizations. The bill would also permit casinos and professional sports teams to provide mobile sports wagering in Missouri. Unfortunately, the committee chose not to advance my bill to the full Senate, opting instead to approve a measure that only addresses sports wagering, which would legalize more than 100 million electronic devices to conduct sports wagering in Missouri. If approved, this would be the largest expansion of gambling in Missouri, and go against the majority party’s official platform.

It’s my hope we will have opportunities to revisit VLTs as the session continues. It’s estimated there are more than 20,000 unregulated gaming devices currently in operation in our state. These machines are completely unregulated and they contribute no tax revenue to the State of Missouri. By contrast, regulated video lottery games could generate more than $250 million in state revenue each year, with the money going directly to Missouri schools and veterans homes. The legislation I proposed as SB 1 would create a similar boost to local businesses, as lottery retailers who host VLTs would receive an equal share of the games’ proceeds.

As anyone who has watched the proliferation of untaxed gaming machines in gas stations knows, there are currently no rules about where the devices can be placed or who can access them. My legislation would have required VLTs to be placed in separate rooms and monitored to ensure that only those over the age of 21 could access them. Equally important, with oversight by the Missouri Lottery, patrons would be assured the games are fair and payouts deliver as advertised.

In other legislative activity this week, the Senate Transportation, Infrastructure and Public Safety Committee held a hearing on my Senate Bill 171. This measure would allow holders of commercial driver’s licenses to submit their medical examination certificate by mail, fax or email, rather than being required to stand in line at a Department of Revenue office.

As always, I appreciate hearing your comments, opinions and concerns. Please feel free to contact me in Jefferson City at (573) 751-4302. You may also email me at Denny.Hoskins@senate.mo.gov.