JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.—Perhaps it was appropriate that nobody appeared happier for the start of the 2024 session of the Missouri General Assembly than Truman.
Truman, a photogenic ball of fur, pranced around the halls of the Capitol and then the office of his owner, State Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer where he absorbed plenty of attention.
For many lawmakers, Wednesday was their last “first day” of session. Some term-limited house members are running for statewide office or for the State Senate, while others, including State Sen. Elanie Gannon, R-DeSoto and State Rep. Barbara Phifer, D-Kirkwood, will retire at the end of the year.
“For the most part, everybody’s been happy for me, you know they understand. It’s just time,” Gannon said. “I’ve been here twelve years, I’ve always said I don’t mind saying what my age is. I’m going to be 71 in a few weeks and if I stay another term then I’m going to be 75-76 and it’s just time for me to spend time with my grandchildren,” Gannon said of her family, which has branches in Dallas and as of Wednesday night, London, England.
For months, there have been headwinds forecasting a 2024 session that many have suggested could be less than productive. It’s an election year, with heated primaries already for statewide and State Senate offices. A House Speaker embroiled in multiple ethics controversies. And a conservative coalition that has seen the State Senate grind to a halt over the past several legislative sessions, has now expanded to the House.
One of the last pieces of legislation to pass in 2023 was a bipartisan bill guided in the Senate by Gannon which expanded post partum care for mothers served by Mo HealthNet from 60 days to a year.
“To me that was one of the most important bills that passed last year….. If we want healthy babies we have to have healthy mamas and that may come at a cost to Mediciad, but we’re talking lives here,” she said of the bill that had support from Gov. Mike Parson, Democrats and Senate Republican leadership. But not from “naysayers” she added, who were part of the “far-right conservative caucus.”
That Conservative Caucus disbanded officially in 2022, after the group felt emboldened by results from the GOP primary elections and the general election which brought in more like-minded members. The thought then was that the group would be in better position to work with GOP leadership in the chamber.
But the 2023 session brought more discord within the Senate, as those former conservative caucus members feuded with chamber leaders over moves that restored state funding for libraries, and funding for school diversity, equity and inclusion programs, among other issues.
In retrospect, disbanding the conservative caucus was a mistake said State Sen. Denny Hoskins, R-Warrensburg, one of the group’s former members.
Over the summer, Hoskins, a candidate for Secretary of State, said talks picked up with the State Freedom Caucus Network, a national organization that has carved out a reputation for championing conservative political ideology in the U.S. House and in state legislatures around the country, about adding a Missouri chapter. The group went public last month on social media.
Eleven state lawmakers are founding members of the Missouri Freedom Caucus. Unlike their counterparts in Congress and other states, Missouri’s chapter will feature a combination of State House and State Senate members, and the group will have national staff support.
“Unfortunately, what we’ve seen is too many elected officials who are only conservatives on the campaign trail,” Hoskins told Spectrum News in a recent interview. “These campaign conservatives tell their constituents one thing on the campaign trail only to vote the opposite way once they’re elected. We need legislators who serve in state capitols to fight federal overreach, and stand firm against those who prioritize seizing political power over representing their constituents.”
A formal launch event is planned for Friday morning in St. Charles but the group made itself known Wednesday afternoon in the Senate.
Senate President Caleb Rowden, a Columbia Republican also running for Secretary of State, and who has been among those at odds with the more conservative faction, urged colleagues to set aside their political ambitions and work together.
“Will we focus more on principled progress or political pandemonium?” he asked rhetorically.
Hoskins, State Sen. Rick Brattin, R-Harrisonville, who chairs the Freedom Caucus and State Sen. Bill Eigel, R-Weldon Spring, a GOP candidate for Governor, each denounced a perceived lack of progress on conservative priorities in past years.
Legislation cutting property taxes and revamping the initiative petition process for ballot issues could pass early in the session, but “the only thing we lack is political willpower,” Eigel said.
The GOP rift in the Senate has at times empowered Democrats who are in the super minority in both chambers and who often found themselves agreeing with the budget priorities of a Republican governor more often than the conservative members did in 2023.
Expect that to continue in 2024.
“The Democrats will look at the fractured Republican party, whether the House or the Senate and use that to our advantage where we can. There are going to be times that we’ll align with the Freedom Caucus on issues, there’s gonna be times where we’ll align with the more moderate Republicans depending on what we’re trying to accomplish over on our side of the aisle,” said House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, a Greene County state representative also running for governor.
House Speaker Dean Plocher again vowed Wednesday to remain in control of the chamber, despite ongoing ethics probes tied to his push to award a state contract and for allegations of “double-dipping” for state reimbursement of expenses paid for by his campaign.
There have been calls by some in his own caucus to step down, although the prevailing thought is that any real push to oust him would wait for the House Ethics Committee to complete its work first.
Asked about the pessimism heading into session, with GOP infighting, an active campaign season and the ethics probe hanging over his head, Plocher pressed forward.
“I want to get past the drama. I believe the drama will be behind us shortly,” he said.
State Rep. Sarah Unsicker was already on the outside looking in for the past several weeks. She was kicked off her committee assignments by Quade last month as the Democratic caucus started investigating complaints believed to be connected to Unsicker’s use of her social media platforms to highlight men accused of anti-semitism or spreading conspiracy theories. The Shrewsbury Democrat dropped out of the race for Attorney General and late last month was formally kicked out of the party’s caucus.
On Wednesday, Unsicker had a new seat in the House chamber, away from most of the other Democrats. It also means a different Captol office for Unsicker, something Quade described as a privilege of being part of the caucus.
Unsicker did not respond to a request for her reaction to how the first day unfolded. She has said she will announce her future political plans this month. She cannot seek re-election to the House due to term limits.
An interim House committee spent the summer and fall evaluating the earnings tax, the 1% tax collected on workers within the Kansas City and St. Louis city limits.
The 1% tax provided more than $500 million combined to the general revenue funds for St. Louis and Kansas City in both cities in 2022. The tax has been in place in St. Louis since the 1950s, with city voters voting to keep it three times, most recently in 2021. It will go back before voters in 2026. The tax generates more than 30% of St. Louis’ general revenue annually, but Republicans have said the tax has depressed the city’s job growth and encourages businesses and residents to leave the city.
The House panel released its recommendations late Wednesday afternoon, including a gradual phase out tied to revenue increases, exemptions for low-income workers earning less than 150% of the federal poverty level and exemptions for new residents.
Plocher said he expects “fervent floor debate” on proposed exemptions but did not endorse any particular proposal.
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson announced this week that he’s appointing former St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay to the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission, filling one of two vacant slots on the panel.
Slay served as mayor from 2001 to 2017 and was the first in the city to be elected to four, four-year terms.
St. Louis County Executive Sam Page, spotted making the rounds at the Capitol Wednesday afternoon, weighed in on the news.
“Francis Slay was one of the most successful mayors in the history of St. Louis. One of the most successful local officials in the history of the St. Louis region. He’s a good guy, easy to get along with, always stayed focused and I think he’ll be great on the MODOT Board.”
The Associated Press contributed reporting for this story