| Today's Feature
Scramble for a Quorum.
The City Council is scheduled
for its regular meeting at 7:30 this evening in
City Hall, but there is some question if there
will be a quorum. Several members have indicated
they may not be attending due to the Memorial Day
holidays.
Mayor Kenneth Johnson decided
to go ahead as scheduled last week in hopes the
required six members will be available.
The items scheduled for vote
include a change of policy that would increase
the City’s participation in sidewalk
improvements from $1.50 a square foot to $2.50.
Council bill 02-32 would
authorize a contract with APAC for $75,085.15 to
build a walking trail at Fair Acres Sports
Complex.
Also scheduled for vote is
Council bill 02-23 which would authorize a
contract for the sale of the City owned property
located at 116-128 W. Third to Mariposa Ranches
for a sum of $101.
New business scheduled for
first reading includes the proposed
"grandfather clause" that would allow
liquor licenses to be issued to any business that
had obtained a license at the same location
within one year proceeding application.
Commentary
Martin
"Bubs" Hohulin
State Representative, District 126
Schools are getting out and
summer activities are starting to get underway.
One of those activities is getting a summer job.
Teens all over Missouri are either looking for,
or starting their summer jobs.
As a small business owner
myself, I like hiring school kids because their
hours are flexible, they are eager to prove
themselves, and they haven’t yet developed
bad work habits that need to be undone.
Unfortunately, the State of Missouri seems to see
things differently.
When I first started hiring I
checked into the labor laws and was appalled at
what I found. It is almost not worth it to hire
anyone under the age of 16. In addition to
regulatory requirements just to hire them, there
are limits as to the hours they can work. One of
those limits is that they can’t work after
7:00 pm before June 1 and they can’t work
after 9:00 pm after June 1.
In the last week of Session I
tried to change the law so that it would be 9:00
pm and 11:00 pm respectively. I couldn’t
believe the opposition I ran into from big city
liberal democrats.
They argued that I was against
kids and wanted to bring back child sweatshops.
That has become the technique of the liberals.
They have to twist the facts and go for the fear
factor because they realize they can’t win
in a rational debate.
They said that a 15 year old
belonged at home after 9:00 pm. I couldn’t
agree more, but I asked them if they really
thought a 15 year old would have no other choice
but to go home during the summer after 9:00 pm.
It isn’t even dark yet at that time. As a
parent, I would rather have my child at work
where it is safe, earning money, and learning
responsibility than out cruising and getting into
trouble. Is it any wonder that we have raised a
generation of kids that view responsibility as
the exception rather than the rule?
During the debate it was
pointed out to me by one of the most liberal
democrats that this law mirrored the federal
labor law and that since the republicans
controlled the White House and the House of
Representatives that I shouldn’t complain. I
shot back and asked him when the federal law was
passed. He admitted that it was either in 1993 or
1994. I asked him who was President then and who
controlled Congress. Too late he realized his
mistake. Back then the democrats controlled the
House of Representatives, the Senate, and Bill
Clinton was President.
With laws that discourage work,
it is no wonder we have the mess that we do. One
of my businesses is close to the building that
houses the welfare office. I see many of the
folks that come into the office. Most are even
more overweight than I am, dirty, dragging a long
string of kids, and are there in the middle of
the day. That tells me they are eating well off
of us, irresponsible, needing more to do and not
somewhere working. With liberals defending labor
laws passed by the Clinton administration is it
any wonder?
By the way, my attempt to
change the law failed 63-71. Close only counts in
horseshoes. Go by the park in the middle of the
day. Chances are you will see someone living off
you in the middle of a game.
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.
CAPITOL REPORT.
Political
Exploitation 101.
by Steve Hunter
Representative District 127
It is absolutely amazing how
educators have recently been so betrayed by
Governor Bob Holden. Is this the man who
campaigned as the "pro-education"
candidate? Is this the man who duped most
educators into supporting him for Governor?
The Governor has known for
weeks, if not months, that there were
insufficient votes in the House of
Representatives to use the Rainy Day Fund. The
reason there were insufficient votes is simple:
excessive spending on the Governor's part does
not create an emergency on the taxpayer's part.
The Rainy Day fund should be
reserved for true emergencies such as the flood
of 1993 or recovery from other natural disasters
or terrorist attacks. If it keeps raining, we may
truly need the Rainy Day fund to assist flood
victims.
It took our state from 1821 to
1992 to accumulate a nearly $10 Billion budget.
Amazingly, our budget has almost doubled in the
last 10 years. Our budget is growing at the rate
of $1 Billion per year. If this isn't runaway
government spending, I don't know what is!
Somebody had to have the backbone to stand up to
this Governor and say "No. You can't have
anymore money."
When the Governor realized he
couldn't raid our state emergency fund, he
responded with a political temper tantrum.
Instead of working with Republicans and Democrats
in the House and Senate to arrive at a consensus
solution, he began putting a bull's-eye on
politically sensitive groups. If the Governor
couldn't have his way, he threatened to withhold
money from elementary and secondary education,
higher education, state employees salary
developmentally disabled children and Meals on
Wheels. The decision to withhold any money at all
rests with the Governor alone.
The decision of which groups to
withhold money from rests with the Governor
alone. If anyone has a problem with what group is
in the crosshairs for withholding, they need to
contact Governor Bob Holden as these decisions
rest solely within his discretion. We brought
enough pressure on him to get him to take
elementary and secondary education off his hit
list. Now its time to get to work on the rest of
the proposed withholdings.
Here's the Governor's targets
are for withholding:
Cut higher education $82.9
Million
Furlough state employees $1.7
Million
Cut nursing homes $20 Million
Funds from other agencies
$125.4 Million
TOTAL $230 Million
Here is the House Republican
idea to make up the shortage:
Interest from dedicated funds
$84.6 Million
Lapsed funds $20 Million
Funds from other agencies
$125.4 Million
TOTAL $230 Million
Why doesn't the Governor want
to discuss the House proposal? The answer is
simple: The Governor thinks he can make a lot
more political hay by targeting education,
nursing homes and state employees and blaming any
hits on the Republicans.
Remember Governor Holden was
our State Treasurer for 8 years prior to becoming
Governor. Of all people, he should know and lead
the way toward the least painful budget
adjustments. Instead, he has chosen the path of
political exploitation.
As usual, I can be reached at
(573) 751-5458 or at Room 103 BB, State Capitol,
Jefferson City, MO 65101, or by email at
shunter@services.state.mo.us if you have any
questions or comments.
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