Health & Fitness
Session 2013 – Capitol Report XVI: Demanding Government Accountability
This week, your House of Representatives continued to protect taxpayers' dollars by passing tax cuts for Missourians at all income levels and investigating misguided welfare contracts.
“It’s amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.”
-Harry S Truman
Old Man Winter refused to fully relent from his long reign this year, even as defiant tulips sprung forth with great determination this past week across the Capitol lawn. Those hopeful signs of spring also herald that this quite productive, yet frequently challenging, session is coming to a close. The hustle and bustle of our committee work, floor debate, and budget-writing are beginning to all converge in a tumultuous crescendo. In the labyrinth of legislating, it is easy to lose sight, at times, of the proper role of the three branches of government – but this week we were reminded of one of the principle purposes of the legislature in guarding the people against a potentially tyrannical executive.
One of the distinguishing features of this great American experiment of democracy is the ability for the people to be freely represented and heard by their
government without fear. This week, the legislature responded to your calls for investigations into certain policies of the government – policies which I discuss in more detail below – which resulted in a complete policy shift by the Nixon administration. Times like these should not be taken for granted – your government heeded your call for change and it did so peacefully. That is, and always should be, remarkable.
Find out what's happening in Eureka-Wildwoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
DSS Policy Change a Win for Taxpayers
You may have recently heard that the Missouri Department of Social Services was contracting with private corporations to move people off of temporary state aid programs with work incentives and offloading them to the more permanent federal disability program. Click here to read more.
Find out what's happening in Eureka-Wildwoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
House Advances Major Tax Reform
The Missouri House took a considerable step towards tax reform and an expected economic rebound this week, perfecting and passing HCS SS SCS SB 26, 11 & 31. This bill reduces income taxes at all levels. Click here to read more.
This Week’s Vlog
With a strong showing of legislative members by my side, I held a press conference in response to the Nixon administration shifting its policy on welfare entitlements this week – an announcement that came on the heels of legislative inquiries and was aided in large part by a concerned media. Click here to hear more.