The City Council is scheduled to consider several contracts for services during its regular meeting this evening at 7:30 in City Hall. In second reading and scheduled for vote is a contract with Phillips-Ward & Associates for a Millennium 4th of July celebration in the amount of $12,000. The contract is for festivity services and does not include charges for fireworks estimated to add another $20,000 to the event. The City has received pledges for approximately $22,000 to help pay for the celebration.

Also in second reading is a contract with Southard Construction in the amount of $33,720 for a sewer line extension that will serve the new multipurpose building at the Fair Acres Sports Complex girls softball fields.

The Council will hear the first reading of Council Bill 00-25 which would accept the bid from APAC-Missouri for asphalt and paving for the upcoming year. The Public Works Committee has recommended approval of the contract as APAC submitted the low bid of two received.

Resolutions starting the annexation process for property located at 1313 W. Macon and 1912 Wilson Road will be heard.

Commentary
Martin "Bubs" Hohulin
State Representative, District 126

Be reasonable, do it my way. That seems to be the attitude the democrats in the Missouri House of Representatives have adopted over the years of being the majority party. The democrats have had the majority in the Missouri House for over four decades.

When I was first elected, the democrats had over 100 members in the House. Since we have 163 total members, it only takes 82 votes to pass a bill. When they had over 20 votes to spare, it was easy for them to cram any bill they wanted down our throats and there was nothing we could do about it. They would pass hundreds of bills each year and act like that was a good thing. The problem is, most every time that we pass a new bill into law, it either takes away another liberty or freedom, or costs the taxpayer some money.

Since the liberals have been in charge for over 40 years, we are pretty much left to play defense and try to keep their bad ideas from passing. Now the numbers have changed a little. The republicans have 76 members and the democrats have 87. One of the democrats is gone on medical leave, so that leaves them with 86, or only 4 more votes than what is needed for passage of legislation. As a result, the House is operating a little differently. No longer can they shove through everything they want with no regard for the viewpoints of the minority party. This makes legislation move at a much slower pace. Again, this is not a bad thing. I think back to the days when we passed hundreds of bills in very little time.

Inevitably, we would come back the next year to ‘fix’ something we had done the year before. Either it would have been written wrong or would have had unintended consequences. This year, things are moving slower and less bad stuff is being passed.

Naturally, the democrats are throwing a fit. After years of passing new laws at warp speed, they can’t get used to the fact that legislation is being reviewed and debated in a slower and more deliberate manner. One of them actually said, and I quote "It’s wrong. The taxpayers sent us up here to do our job, and our job’s not to play fun and games." I agree 100 percent. The difference is that I don’t consider protecting your liberties and your pocketbook to be fun and games. I consider it to be very serious business and treat it as such.

As usual, I can be reached at House Post Office, State Capitol, Jefferson City, MO 65101 or 1-800-878-7126, or mhohulin@services.state.mo.us for your questions, comments, or advice.

The City Council has received its first official report on the projected revenue and requested expenditures for the upcomin’ year. As typical there is room for a lot more spendin’ than there is income.

Projected revenue for the fiscal year 2000/2001 hits about $6.2 million. ‘Bout the same as this year. The requests for funding general operations of the various departments comes to a total of about $5.4 million.

If ya include available reserves of around $2 million, minus some a that is spoken for, airport, large road projects, etc, little over a million, the projected funds available for spendin’ is around $7.2 million. A good portion of the extra (over the $6.2 projected revenue) came from the sale of Myers Park property last year. Lots a money, not much room.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

by

McCune Brooks Hospital

Health Notes
Health & Nutrition by Judith Sheldon

A CHILD’S CHECKLIST: Do you know if your child is growing and developing normally? Here is the continuation of last week’s checklist from The American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.:

At 12 months - a child will enjoy scribbling and may start to take three steps on their own and say three to five words.

At 18 months - a child will enjoy playing near, but not with, other children.

At 2 years - a child will ride a tricycle and should be able to drink from a cup using one hand, and sing song phrases.

At 3 years - a child is able to catch a large ball, cut paper in half, share a toy with adult prompting, and use the toilet by her/himself.

At 4 years - a child should be able to dress without supervision and eat with a fork and spoon. The child will also play cooperatively with other youngsters.

At 5 years - most children learn shoe tying, and can copy letters and numbers and count up to 10. Children should also be aware of rules and want to conform.

Remember, these milestones are based on average expected performance, since each child develops at her or his own pace, and should be used only as a guide to spotting possible problems that should then be discussed with their pediatricians.