After two terms spanning eight years as Missouri’s senator for the 25th District, Doug Libla’s time as a lawmaker in Jefferson City has come to an end.
“I’m proud of the opportunity to get to go to Jefferson City, and I appreciate the vote of confidence in people who voted for me,” Libla said.
“Everybody always says when something’s over, ‘boy that was quick,’ and in many aspects, it was,” said Libla as he reflected back over the last eight years.
Libla recalled the days before he decided to run for office.
“I got together with my brother, and we were talking about who was going to replace (former senator) Rob Mayer, and he said ‘You ought to just do it,’” Libla said. “I thought about it for almost a year, and I decided maybe I could take some of my experience there and hopefully maybe do something that might be good for the 25th district.”
And, for Libla, it was the right decision.
“I’m happy I did. It’s been a true honor to serve in the 100th General Assembly,” he said.
Upon arriving in Jefferson City in January 2013, Libla said, the early days were a learning experience.
“When you’re up there the first month, for a while it’s kind of slow as bills are being filed and you go through some procedures. It takes a while to get things rolling,” he said. “After they get things going, the committees start and activity picks up.”
Though the sessions ran just a few months, Libla said, the days were very long and the work was intense.
“There’s many late nights,” Libla said of the job of a senator. “It’s pretty unusual on a Tuesday or Wednesday to get out of the building before 10 p.m. I’ve spent many nights, all night, on the floor or in that building and in my office.”
And, when he wasn’t in session, the work didn’t end.
Still, the time went by fast, Libla said.
“The old adage is ‘days are long and years are short.’ When you look back, those days were long, but the years have been short,” he said.
Libla also praised his staff for their endless work to get things done.
During his tenure, Libla said, he made transportation, education and foster-care legislation top priorities.
Missouri’s fuel user tax, he said, is far behind what most other states collect, at a rate dating back 24 years. In the meantime, costs have skyrocketed.
“No. 1, in my opinion, is we have got to get our fuel user tax adjusted to the 21st century. I’ve always thought that was the most fair way to pay for highways and bridges,” Libla said. “I’ve had bills every year trying to get it changed.”
Libla said there is a “lot of misinformation” being spread about highway funding in Missouri.
“Legislators don’t spend highway funds. It’s done by the six-member highway commission that is appointed by the governor,” he said.
“Those commissioners are from different parts of the state, and they determine the projects and how we’re going to spend the money we bring in from the motor fuel user tax fee, which you pay at the pump,” Libla explained.
“Where people miss the boat … is we’re at 17 cents per gallon right now, and it’s been the same for 24 years,” Libla said. “Now, we’re 49th in the United States in investments in our roads. That’s not a good place to be.”
Libla praised the Missouri Department of Transportation, saying it has made decisions which “were kind of painful to some communities, like closing highway sheds,” but more funding is needed to maintain the state’s highways and bridges.
“I want people to know I have full confidence in our highway commission,” he added.
Education, Libla said, also was a “big deal” for him.
“When a company decides to come to the 25th district, they’re looking at our APRs (annual performance reports) at our schools. They’re looking for workers with a good education, but not necessarily a four-year degree,” he said.
“We have great schools in my district, and we have some that really need to improve quick,” he added. “I think sometimes we’re spending too much time teaching them to a test than trying to help them learn how to be a person that has abstract reasoning ability.”
Libla said there’s “plenty of blame to go around, but let’s not be putting it at the foot of the teachers. Teachers only have them so many hours a day. And, they can only hope when they go home that their home life allows them to get their homework done, and they have someone that will help them.
“I think schools are only going to be as good as the citizens and parents that live in that district want it and help it to be.”
One education bill Libla was proud of was focused on computer science classes. He sponsored and got passed it a couple years ago.
“I found out in Missouri we were not teaching computer science coding and programming. Who doesn’t use a computer,” he said.
Computer programming is one of the highest paying jobs right out of school, Libla said, and such alternative careers are important to the vitality of the 25th District.
“I’ve been concerned about losing population in Missouri and my district. We’ve got to think about other types of jobs,” he said. “We can’t just keep hoping for a manufacturing company to come to town when there’s all kinds of new 21st century technology that has high paying jobs.”
The thing Libla is most proud of from his time in Jefferson City is his work on foster care and adoption legislation, including his 2014 legislation to prevent children from being left behind in the foster care system.
“My main goal was to get kids back with their parents, but if that wasn’t going to work, leaving kids in foster care for years and years doesn’t work either. They have rights too,” he said.
“Another bill I was proud of is when veterans come out of the military, they don’t have to go take another CDL test — they can go right out and get a job. They’re already qualified, so why bother with all that stuff,” Libla said. “It really helped out a lot of veterans to not have to go back through all that training.”
Looking back over his time in office, Libla said, there are a several things he will miss.
“I’ve reflected quite a bit on this. What brought me the most joy, I’d say, is helping the citizens of the 25th District to navigate the different state offices when they have problems with whatever department it may be,” Libla said. “I really like working for the citizens who feel like they don’t have much of a say.”
What he won’t miss, he said, are the special interests in Jefferson City.
“I’ve been one that’s always at the forefront fighting those things, and a lot of times it’s a lonely place to be,” he said.
He also won’t miss the drive, which, he said, “generally takes you about four hours,” depending on which of three routes he takes.
Looking ahead, Libla plans to remain active in the industrial real estate business he shares with his brother, and he also plans to become more active in a foundation he helped start in the Bootheel, which offers job training for at-risk young people.
“The Erase Foundation originally got started to help with after school programs,” Libla said.
“We don’t do the teaching — we just facilitate things and help get them the resources they need like Chromebooks, laptops and educational software. We work primarily with faith-based organizations to get that done,” he said.
Whatever his future holds, Libla said, he “will continue to help our educational endeavors and help people who are trying to help themselves.”