Hoskins: Special Delivery During The Storm, Response To State Of Judiciary

Last week was like no other in Jefferson City or in any of the rest Missouri. I don’t need to tell you how dangerous that blizzard was or the impacts. Whether you are in a rural area or in town, it didn’t really matter as we were all stranded. It was dicey for me on the roads last Tuesday afternoon to get back to Warrensburg when the House adjourned for the rest of the week. We are fortunate to have great road crews to handle an unprecedented situation just as quickly as humanly possible. Many thanks to all for their hard work.

Of special note, I am taking this opportunity to extend extra recognition to those who answered an urgent emergency call in Johnson County. In the middle of a blizzard was clearly not the time anybody would choose to have a baby but little John Robert Reece decided that is was his time. According to their mission, the Missouri National Guard responded to safely transport Cynthia Reece to the hospital in time to deliver her first baby. Her husband, Christopher, is in basic training at Lackland Air Force Base so Mrs. Reece was on her own. What a happy story the Reece Family will have to tell for years and years. Many, many thanks to the National Guardsmen who got to the Reece home outside Knob Noster in time to take care of this expectant mother.

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Legislation

The Legislature has been working hard this week to make up for time lost from last week. I was able to shift committee meetings in order that Appropriations – Transportation and Economic Development could hear testimony from the agencies within our purview. We’ve now heard budget presentations from DIFP (Department of Insurance, Financial Institutions and Professional Registration), DED (Department of Economic Development), and MoDOT (Missouri Department of Transportation). We will hear from DOLIR (Department of Labor and Industrial Regulations) on Monday. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the committee will mark-up the changes for the Budget Committee to consider. Before we are ready for mark-up, we will get some additional information from DED in response to questions the committee posed. Next week will be just as busy to prepare the report to the Budget Committee prior to the deadline on February 17th. Losing that week to the blizzard didn’t extend any due dates.

On Wednesday, Chief Justice William Ray Price, Jr. of the Missouri Supreme Court addressed a joint session of the House and Senate to present the annual State of the Judiciary. Chief Justice Price’s concerns ranged from funding cuts to the undesirable effects of incarcerating non-violent offenders. He cautioned against the release of inmates simply because of budget cuts and made it clear that his issue with the over-incarceration of non-violent offenders is not a reaction to budget concerns, but rather, an honest assessment of the non-rehabilitative nature of imprisonment.

My concern is that even in non-violent crimes there are victims. The offender owes those who were victimized and society as a whole a debt that is expected to be paid. These are difficult issues with even more problematic answers. I agree that reducing the rate of recidivism would be a benefit to society as these offenders would regain the ability to support their families and contribute to their communities. Our system needs to do that through education and policies to empower small business and strengthen our economy. There are no easy solutions in these issues but I believe this is the way to create opportunity for Missourians and reduces the burden on our prison system.

In regard to legislation considered this week by the full House, there are two bills that I especially want to cover with you in this issue of my Capitol Report.

HB 46, sponsored by Rep. Diehl (R-St. Louis County), eliminates the ability of governments and municipalities to unnecessarily mandate the installation of fire sprinklers in one or two-family dwellings or townhouses. The builders of these dwellings must still offer to any purchaser the option, at the purchaser's cost, to install or equip fire sprinklers in the buildings. This provides the homeowner the ability to choose what is best for their family and their family’s finances without a government mandate. I am pleased to report that HB 46 passed by an overwhelming majority of 149 to 9.

The other bill I want to make note of this week is HB 162, which concerns workers’ compensation. This bill, sponsored by Rep. Fisher (R-Richards), addresses the precedent set by the Franklin v. CertainTeed Corp. court ruling which, in essence, moved occupational disease claims from the workers’ compensation system (where they have properly been for over 80 years) into the courts. I believe creating laws is the responsibility of the legislative branch and not the judicial branch. HB 162 proposes to reverse that court ruling, which, if left to stand, would be devastating on our economy and jobs. This legislation will permit appropriate compensatory damages to once again be determined by the workers’ compensation system. The result will be a reduction in the cost of liability insurance for small business and less of a burden on our court system. The bill passed with over 100 votes in the House.

Capitol Visitors

In spite of even more challenging travel weather this week, the door to my office opened many times for visitors from Johnson County. Drew Lewis was here to meet with the Missouri Land Title Association. Karen Hicklin and Carol Smith came to Jefferson City with the Missouri Library Association. The military was well represented through members of the Whiteman’s Sergeants Association and UCM ROTC cadets. An important but less traditional part of their military training is learning about the legislative process. Arianne Keen and Lani Ward were here with the Missouri Dental Hygienist Association. The halls were filled for several days with members of the Missouri Retired Teachers Association. CLIMB High was planning to have come this week but that extra snowfall caused them to reschedule for next week. I’m looking forward to their visit.

Please share this report with anyone you feel would be interested in this information. It is genuinely a privilege to serve as your state representative. In the meantime, keep warm and be safe during this true January weather.