Tim Jones: Session Commences, Taking the Helm, Show Me Solutions

As the wonder, beauty and awe of the brilliant snow filled holiday season become distant yet pleasant memories, preparations quickly turned to returning to Jefferson City and the work of the People via their elected Representatives and Senators.  Chilly, crisp yet sun drenched pale winter skies wrapped around the Capitol dome as legislators, family and friends journeyed to the Capitol City from the four corners of the State.  Ceremony, steeped in decades and decades of tradition were the order of the day this week and legislators continued to file legislation in anticipation of a challenging and busy legislative schedule…

"Knowledge will forever govern ignorance; and a people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives." –James Madison

Commencement of the First Regular Session of the 96th General Assembly

On Wednesday, January 5, 2011, legislators from across Missouri returned to Jefferson City to convene the First Regular Session of the 96th General Assembly.

The General Assembly begins each year at noon on the first Wednesday after the first Monday in January at the State Capitol in Jefferson City.  Here, legislation will be introduced and debated on both the Senate and the House floors.  The General Assembly meets until the first Friday following the second Monday in May.

The Missouri General Assembly is made up of 34 members of the Senate, who are elected for four-year terms and 163 members of the House of Representatives, elected for two-year terms.  This year the General Assembly has 12 new members in the Senate and 81 new members in the House.

Taking the Helm

At left: Presiding over the House Chamber

Yesterday, I entered the Chamber of the Missouri House of Representatives and ran the Floor of the Missouri House for the first time as the new Majority Floor Leader. I am happy to say that we completed our first ceremonial day ahead of schedule and without error!  If only I could be assured that the next 5 months would run so smoothly!  In all seriousness, I want to sincerely thank all of my family, friends and supporters who shared this very special day with me, especially my wife Suzanne, my daughters, Katie and Abby, parents, Dr. Bill & JoAnn Jones and my brother in law, Marc Baca.  And I want to again thank my 105 new colleagues for their trust, support and friendship in selecting me as their Majority Leader.  Now, we can get down to the business and the challenge of working to make our great State of Missouri a better place in which to live, work and raise a family.

The Show Me Solutions Initiative

In his Opening Session Address, Speaker Tilley set forth a bold agenda for the Missouri House to attend to titled the "Show Me Solutions Initiative" that encompasses five (5) key areas:  Job Creation, Taxes and Spending, Government Accountability, Education, and Healthcare.  Over the next few weeks, I will focus in on each of these topics.  First, I will discuss what the State of Missouri can do to help create jobs.

Our first priority is to help put Missourians back to work.  If we do our job, we can take steps to improve employers' ability to hire and retain employees, and secure certainty in take-home pay of every working family in Missouri.  Government is not the solution to our bad economy, but we need to assure that our state government is not making it worse.  TAX REFORM, TORT REFORM, and REGULATORY REFORM will help make our state more attractive to the business investors that will put our folks back to work.  The specific legislative areas on which we will focus are:

Reducing Small Business Regulation & Taxes. The Missouri House will review and reduce job killing regulations on small businesses and work to phase-in full deductibility of federal income taxes from state taxes.
Small Business Tort Reform. This legislative item (which I have sponsored over the past few years) significantly improves the workplace environment in Missouri by strengthening the legal requirements to file a suit and capping damage awards that have gotten out of hand from a handful of poorly decided court decisions that are wreaking havoc on Missouri businesses as a whole.
Immigration. We will seek to protect Missouri workers by adopting an immigration bill similar to the law passed in Arizona, but expand it to include human trafficking and cross referencing the sexual predator list.
Nuisance Laws. We must stop repeat lawsuits from out of control trial attorneys on small businesses and family farms.

In future reports, I will discuss in detail other elements of the Show Me Solutions Initiative and will report to you the progress of these efforts.  I will also report on the progress relating to reordering the priorities of State government as we work through the budget.  We have to do more with less, just like nearly every Missouri business and family.  By living within our means, we can position Missouri well when the economic recovery begins.

These are massive challenges but they present major opportunities for your legislature this year.  It is now time for us to go to work for the People.

Visiting the Capitol

At right: Missouri Community College Association presenting me with the Distinguished Legislator Award in November 2010

If you ever find yourself in or around Jefferson City at any time during the year, please feel free to visit us!  Stop by our new office location in Room 302 and we will be happy to meet and greet you!

Personal News & Notes

On behalf of myself, my staff and my family (especially my very patient and very supportive wife, Suzanne), I want to wish you and yours a very Happy New Year…may it bring you great peace and prosperity.  My two daughters, Katie and Abby remain constant reminders to me of why I have chosen public service as part of my career and that there are future generations and a "greater good" that we are all striving for when we "set to the task" each year in Jefferson City.  Please do not hesitate to contact our office if we can ever be of any assistance!

Until our next update, I am, and remain, in your service.