Hope everyone is having a festive and blessed Christmas season so far. For legislators, this time of year means early filing. The legislative session officially begins Jan. 4 but lawmakers were able to pre-file legislation beginning Dec. 1.
Nearly four hundred bills have already been filed addressing a wide variety of topics.
As I do every year, I traveled to our beautiful state capitol to get in line early on the first day of filing. This year I hope to build on my previous successes, such as my legislation cracking down on copper theft.
My bills include House Bill 35 and HJR 1 which expand the rights of Missourians to practice their chosen profession by changing the age of retirement for judges from 70 to 75. House Bill 36 helps protect vehicle owners from theft by changing from ten to twenty years the amount of time a vehicle must be inoperable before it can be sold without a title. House Bill 37 addresses catalytic converter theft by specifying that a record for the sale of a catalytic converter must include the Vehicle Identification Number of the vehicle from which the catalytic converter was removed. House Bill 38 protects Missourian’s 2nd Amendment rights by prohibiting employers from terminating employees for having a firearm in the employee’s vehicle on the employer’s premises. HJR 2 protects the integrity of our state constitution by ensuring all parts of the state have a say in the amendment process.
To keep informed on the bills that are pre-filed in the House, please visit the official website of the Missouri House of Representatives at www.house.mo.gov and click on the “Pre-filed Bills” link.
Legislative budget leaders recently worked with Gov. Mike Parson to develop the state’s Consensus Revenue Estimate for Fiscal Year 2024.
The annual CRE is one of the basic assumptions used by the governor and legislative leaders to build and balance Missouri’s budget. The key figure in the CRE is the projected general revenue collections. Net general revenue collections in FY24 are expected to be $13.2 billion. This represents a 0.7 percent net general revenue growth over the estimated revenue for FY23.
The revised estimate for the current fiscal year (FY23) assumes a 1.4 percent increase to $13.1 billion in net general revenue collections. FY22 general revenue collections increased by 14.6 percent compared to FY21 collections.
“I am pleased to once again put forward a conservative revenue estimate to which the House, Senate, and Governor have agreed,” said House Budget Chairman Cody Smith.
“We appreciate House and Senate leadership, our state budget team, and other state partners for helping develop this year’s revenue estimate,” Parson said.
He added, “In the coming fiscal year, state revenues are expected to grow once again, even after passing the largest state income tax in history and returning some of Missourians’ hard-earned dollars back to them. This shows that we can continue historic investments in education, infrastructure, mental health services, and public safety just as we have done. We’ve set a new standard in this state, and we aren’t done. We will continue to do more and do better in this year’s budget proposal.”
Parson will detail his proposed budget for FY24 during the State of the State address in January. Lawmakers will begin their work on the state budget during the 2023 legislative session that convenes Jan. 4.
May God bless and keep you and our great nation.
Hardy Billington represents District 152, which includes parts of Butler and Dunklin counties.