House Urges Federal Government to Bring
Closure to Families of
Missing Veterans (HCR 35)
The Missouri House has voted to urge the federal government to determine what happened to 15 Missourians who fought in the Vietnam War. Of 35 Missourians unaccounted for in that war, 20 are classified as killed in action. Fifteen Missourians are classified as presumptive finding of death.
The House approved HCR 35 to ask the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) to prioritize resolution of the cases of these 15 men. The DPAA was created in 2015 with the goal to remain committed to bringing the nation's missing and fallen heroes home. The DPAA has launched investigations worldwide to locate sites associated with unaccounted servicemen, including Vietnam where 1,617 Americans remain missing.
House Approves Bill to Ensure State Parks Are Properly Maintained (HB 698)
The Missouri House recently approved legislation meant to ensure the state doesn't create any new state parks until it catches up on taking care of the ones it has.
The legislation that is now under consideration in the Senate would require that before any new parks are established and before any parks are expanded by more than 10-percent in acreage, the state's current parks should be maintained, brought up-to-date, and have all maintenance work completed. The bill would allow the Department of Natural Resources to accept the donation or gift of additional land, but no work could be done to it except to address public health, safety, or welfare concerns, until the other requirements of the bill are met.
The bill would also require the Department to report annually to the General Assembly on maintenance at state parks and historic sites.
Supporters say the bill is about making the Department of Natural Resources more accountable and more communicative with Missouri residents. They note that the state has more than $200 million in state park maintenance backed up, but in recent years the department has created and prepared new parks while letting others stay at various levels of disrepair.
Missouri Continues to See Positive Trend in Employment Statistics
The latest employment data is in for Missouri and the state continues to see a positive trend in the jobless rate. Missouri is now at 3.9 percent employment as of March, which is down from 4.1 percent in February. The number is also a significant drop from the rate last year when the state saw 4.5 percent unemployment in March.
Data from the Missouri Department of Economic Development shows Missouri gained approximately 770 jobs from February to March. The increase took Missouri's adjusted nonfarm employment to more than 2.97 million in March, which is an increase of more than 17,500 jobs from the same time last year.
Improving 911
Services for
Missourians (HB 334)
The Missouri House of Representatives gave final approval to legislation designed to consolidate and provide adequate funding for the state's 911 call centers. The bill is meant to ensure Missourians have access to 911 emergency services in all parts of the state.
The bill would update the current funding model for 911 services that was put in place more than three decades ago and is based on a surcharge on traditional landline phone lines. Supporters of the bill note that more and more residents have done away with landlines and switched to cell phones, which has caused funding for 911 services to diminish. The legislation approved by the House would allow local municipalities to submit for voter approval a fee of up to $1.50 for any device capable of contacting 911.
The legislation approved by the House would also allow and encourage municipalities to work together to consolidate 911 services. It also would implement a 3 percent surcharge on each retail purchase of a prepaid cell phone to provide additional funding for 911 services. An amendment added to the bill on the floor would put the state on track to implement a next generation 911 system that would allow for the use of electronic messages including text, images, video, and data.
As always, it is an honor to serve the good folks of the 153rd District. If you would like to discuss any issue, please call 573-751-1066 or you