April 23, 2014

Changes Coming for Missouri Deer Hunters

Whitney Choate and Denver McGinnis, Bolivar, visited Jefferson City this wee.

    

     I hope everyone had a Happy Easter and was able to enjoy some time with family and friends.  It is during these periods that we are reminded of how blessed we are and what is really important in our lives.

 

     The Senate Appropriations Committee wrapped up its work as we put the final touches on our version of the state’s $26 billion budget.  We also voted to fully fund the Bright Flight scholarship program.  This is the program that awards scholarships to the state’s top high school students that attend Missouri colleges.  The amounts are based on ACT and SAT scores.  Currently, the top three percent of students receive annual scholarships of $2500.  Under the Senate version, the top three percent would receive $3000 per year, while those in the top four and five percent would receive $1000 annually.  As we continue to compete in a global market, and jobs in technology sectors continue to grow, it is important we do what we can to keep our top students in Missouri. 

 

     In a move sure to draw both praise and complaints, the Missouri Conservation Commission approved changes reducing the number of doe permits issued in the coming hunting season.  Biologists within the Department of Conservation recommended the reduction following several years of unlimited antlerless tags combined with several outbreaks of disease within the herd.  Many landowners will say there are still an excessive number of deer in the state while hunters have testified they are seeing dramatically fewer deer from their stands.  The Department of Conservation claims it is attempting to find a balance between the wishes of landowners and hunters.

 

     Many times a bill doesn’t have to attract headlines to be important to someone.  This week I handled a bill in the Senate that allows small insurance companies such as county mutuals to communicate with their customers electronically rather than with paper documents through the mail.  The customer would have the choice of receiving electronic or paper documents.  The bill has passed both chambers and is now headed to Governor Nixon’s desk.  This is another example of how laws need to be updated to reflect changing technology in our society.  Not too many years ago, a bill such as this wouldn’t have been conceivable, and now checking the mail box can mean both on the computer and in the front yard.                                                                         

‘Nothing is Politically Right Which is Morally Wrong’