Hoskins: House Receives Senate Measures, Caucus News

Cooler fall temperatures have slowly crept back into our weather forecasts and the smell of fall sports is in the air. Go Mules and Jennies! A special congratulations goes out to “Special Teams Player of the Week,” Aaron Jamieson, for his record breaking 53 yard field goal in the disappointing loss on Saturday.

Whether you are competing, or just out to have fun, this is a great time of year to be outside enjoying the weather, sports, or your favorite outdoor family activity. I know I will be enjoying the outdoors with my family as much as possible.

House of Representatives Activity

It became clear earlier this week that “Veto” Session would not produce the votes needed to override any of the Governor’s vetoes of legislation presented to him after passage by the House and Senate during the 2011 Legislative Session.

Currently, the House stands in recess until Monday. Next week’s tentative schedule consists of “Technical” Sessions, various Committee Hearings, and Executive Sessions; while we prepare for upcoming floor debate on Thursday. The three bills we will be preparing to debate are SCS SB 1, SS SCS SB 7, and SS SCS SB 8.

SCS SB 1 would modify provisions relating to communications between school district employees and students. This is the fix for the “Amy Hester” bill and essentially repeals the prohibition on a teacher using an internet site to exclusively communicate with a current or former student.

SS SCS SB 7 establishes the Missouri Science and Innovation Reinvestment Act (MOSIRA). MOSIRA replaces the Missouri Technology Fund with the Missouri Science and Innovation Reinvestment Fund. The fund will receive contributions made by federal and local governments, private entities, and annual appropriations from the General Assembly.

SS SCS SB 8 modifies provisions of existing tax credit programs in a manner consistent with the recommendations of the Tax Credit Review Commission and establishes new tax incentive programs; such as: Tax Credits to attract Sporting Events, Aerotropolis Trade Incentive and Tax Credit Act, Developmental Disability Care Providers Tax Credits, Data Centers, Compete Missouri, Tax Credit Reform, Special Needs Adoption Tax Credits, Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, Neighborhood Preservation Tax Credits, New Markets Tax Credits, Wine and Grape Producer Tax Credits, Residential Treatment Agency Tax Credits, Historic Preservation Tax Credits, and Brownfield Remediation Tax Credits.

Friday could possibly see “Technical” Session; dependent upon progress in both the House and the Senate.

Leadership News

The House Majority Caucus has unanimously supported Rep. Tim Jones (R-89) as the next Speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives. Currently Majority Floor Leader, Jones will be designated as Speaker-Elect until the beginning of the 2013 legislative session when the full body will have the opportunity to officially elect him to the position of Speaker – this assumes a republican majority still exists in the House after the 2012 elections. Leadership in the House of Representatives has been tremendous and I look forward to continuing to work with Speaker-Elect Jones toward the promotion of fiscal responsibility; creating the proper environment for the economy to produce the good paying jobs we need.

Part of this tremendous leadership is the know-how to balance our budget. Just because the law says we must balance our budget, doesn’t make the decisions necessary to balance the budget easy to make. Many tough decisions must be made, but, in the end, it pays off. Our ability to balance our budget has afforded us the AAA rating, while the nation’s rating has faltered. This means our interest payments will continue to remain low.

District Events

Do you want a hotdog? Do you want to help Warrensburg Veterans Home? Or, do you just want your State Representative and State Senator to cook and serve you lunch? No matter which one is yes, come to Parkers Supermarket on Saturday, September 17 (tomorrow) and accomplish all three. Again, proceeds benefit Warrensburg Veterans Home, so, stop by and join us for good food, good fun, and a great cause. Fundraising (hotdog serving) begins at 10:00am.

After lunch, we will be headed to the Maple Grove Elementary School Dedication, beginning at 2:00pm. Maple Grove Elementary was built using a Leadership in Energy and Engineering design and is 43 percent more efficient than regular schools of equivalent size. This is very impressive and our community should be very proud. Hope to see you there.

Visiting the Capitol

CLIMB on the dais in the Missouri House of Representatives

I always enjoy it when constituents come visit the Capitol. I want to thank my good friend Stormy Taylor and members of CLIMB for their recent visit to the Capitol. It was a great day. I also want to give special thanks to our Missouri Veterans for their service to our nation and for making the trip to the Capitol (in the rain). I am always honored to meet and visit with our Missouri Veterans.

Ways to Keep in Contact

I consider communication with my constituents a high priority. My weekly Monday morning chat at 8:45 a.m. with Woody at KOKO Radio on AM 1450 is one of the best ways I’ve found for you to literally “hear” from me. During session or interim, tune in every Monday morning at 8:45 to hear the latest concerning District 121.

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.