JEFFERSON CITY • Missouri inched closer to becoming the 27th state in the nation to adopt a right-to-work law on Thursday.
On the first day for members of the Legislature to begin introducing legislation for the 2017 session, Rep. Bill White, R-Joplin, was among those unveiling a proposal he says will help bring businesses and jobs to the state by limiting the ability of labor unions to collect dues from members.
The measure was among a handful of initiatives introduced Thursday that offered a glimpse of what could become Gov.-elect Eric Greitens first-year agenda.
The new governor, a Republican, is a political newcomer who has outlined a pro-business agenda mixed with a push for more anti-corruption laws. Greitens has said he would sign a right-to-work measure into law, ending years of frustration for GOP lawmakers who have been blocked in their push for the change by Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon.
People are also reading…
Senate President Pro Tem Ron Richard, R-Joplin, has called right-to-work the No. 1 issue in the Senate, meaning the proposal could fly through the Legislature after lawmakers are sworn in Jan. 4.
“The conditions are definitely more favorable,” said White, R-Joplin.
Not only did voters pick Greitens over pro-labor Attorney General Chris Koster on Nov. 8, but they chose right-to-work advocates in a number of legislative races, including in eastern St. Charles County, where Bill Eigel of Weldon Spring beat Rep. Anne Zerr of St. Charles in a battle for a seat in the Senate.
The anti-union push was largely fueled by David Humphreys, a Joplin roofing company magnate who, along with his family, poured millions of dollars into a handful of campaigns.
Under White’s House Bill 42, labor unions would be able to operate in Missouri, but workers could not be compelled to become members as a requirement of their job.
Rep. Holly Rehder, R-Sikeston, and Sen. Dan Brown, R-Rolla, also filed versions of the proposal.
White said he is upbeat about the prospects of Missouri becoming a right-to-work state but acknowledged that the legislative process can be unpredictable.
“Nothing in Jefferson City is ever a done deal,” White said.
Other items on Greitens’ early wish list filed Thursday include a total ban on gifts from lobbyists and an emergency alert system for police officers.
Greitens called for banning all lobbyist gifts on the campaign trail, and Missouri House lawmakers were on board in the 2016 legislative session. But the ban they passed was later watered down in the Senate, where it eventually stalled.
In November, House Speaker Todd Richardson, R-Poplar Bluff, said a complete ban would once again be on the House agenda. Rep. Justin Alferman, R-Hermann, has filed a new bill — House Bill 60 — and said Richardson has vowed to move on it quickly.
“It’s going to have a rapid pace in the House, giving the Senate ample time to take it up,” Alferman said. “That opposition is still going to exist, but I’m hoping that clearer heads prevail on a ban or gift restriction. Whatever form it is, we’re going to fight for it.”
He also said Greitens’ backing gives the measure a better chance, and that he’s been in touch with the governor-elect’s transition team about the provisions in his bill.
“I’m more optimistic this year having an executive branch and having Gov.-elect Greitens make this part of his platform,” Alferman said.
Sen. Rob Schaaf, R-St. Joseph, introduced legislation forcing lawmakers to wait two years before becoming lobbyists. Currently, the cooling-off period is six months. Greitens wants to make the waiting time equal to the amount of time a lawmaker spends in office.
Greitens also called for a “Blue Alert” system after two police officers were shot in St. Louis and Kansas City last month. Blue Alerts are statewide notifications designed to help law enforcement more quickly apprehend someone who has injured or killed a police officer.
While Blue Alerts are similar to Amber Alerts that help police find missing children, sponsoring Rep. Galen Higdon, R-St. Joseph, said the system’s future is contingent on the state rewriting a program that puts police alerts on the airwaves.
Higdon, who was a police officer for 30 years, has introduced similar Blue Alert legislation in the past that never became law. He said he’s hopeful that Greitens’ support will bring more awareness to the issue.
“These are dangerous individuals. And the public wants to be aware of them,” Higdon said. “I know based on communications with his staff, it’s an important issue for (Greitens).”
Higdon’s bill is House Bill 40.
Richard, the Senate leader, also introduced two legal reform proposals in an effort to make it more difficult for people to file or win big awards in lawsuits.
Richard said the legal reform initiative is No. 2 on his priority list.
And Senate Minority Leader Gina Walsh, D-Bellefontaine Neighbors, filed a bill that would allow local elections on a St. Louis Zoo sales tax in St. Louis and St. Charles, Jefferson, Franklin and St. Louis counties.
The revenue generated would finance the 100-year-old zoo, which officials say doesn’t bring in enough revenue to cover the cost of necessary renovations and maintenance.
