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Special
Edition - January 31, 2012
St. Louis RCGA
Delegation Presents Agenda to Elected Officials during Annual
Missouri Legislative Day in Jefferson
City
On January
24th more than 50 RCGA board members and government
affairs executives traveled to Jefferson City for RCGA's annual
Missouri Legislative Day to discuss public policy issues with
statewide officials and legislative leaders. RCGA
Board Chair Tom Voss, Chairman, President & CEO of
Ameren Corporation, and RCGA Board Chair - Public Policy
Tom Campbell, Managing Partner of Gallop, Johnson &
Neuman, led the delegation and outlined RCGA's 2012 Legislative
Agenda priorities of employment law reform, workers'
compensation reform, and tort reform, as well as economic
development incentives to help create jobs and grow the
economy.
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| The RCGA's delegation of business
leaders and government affairs executives pauses for a photo on
the grand staircase in the State Capitol. |
Our group kicked off
its busy day by meeting with Governor Jay Nixon (D), who
said his top priorities are maintaining fiscal discipline and
creating jobs, and that he is committed to balancing the
budget without raising taxes or jeopardizing the state's AAA bond
rating. He explained his "Missouri Works"
economic development plan, which includes increasing Missouri
exports, growing the number of auto-supplier jobs in Missouri,
and jump-starting MOSIRA with a $4 million appropriation.
The Governor also introduced Jason Hall, his nominee to
lead the state's Department of Economic Development,and
thanked the RCGA for urging the Senate to confirm Jason's
appointment.
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(from left)RCGA Board Chairman Tom Voss, Jason
Hall, acting Director of the Department of Economic Development,
and RCGA Board Chair - Public Policy Tom Campbell.
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Missouri Governor Jay Nixon speaks about his
commitment to balancing the state's budget without raising
taxes.
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While Governor Nixon
explained his concerns with some of the RCGA's business climate
priorities, including employment law reform (which he vetoed last
year), he said he is committed to working with the legislature to
fix the state's insolvent Second Injury Fund. He also noted
that rather than raising taxes on businesses during the economic
downturn, he signed two bills last year to save employers money
through a reduction in state unemployment benefits and phasing
out the corporate franchise tax. Governor Nixon also
thanked the St. Louis business leaders for their outpouring of
support for relief and recovery efforts following the state's
many natural disasters last year, especially in Joplin.
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Adella Jones, Vice President of Communications &
Government Affairs for Metro, thanks Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder for
championing the transit system as a critical link to jobs.
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The delegation also met with Lieutenant
Governor Peter Kinder (R), who expressed his "colossal
disappointment" over the unsuccessful outcome of the recent
Special Session, noting that an international cargo hub
in St. Louis would be a major opportunity for the region and the
entire state. He said that business, civic and legislative
leaders need to continue to work together to help the airport
thrive. Lt. Governor Kinder also reiterated his
support for the Historic Preservation tax credit
program, touting its critical impact over the past
decade in revitalizing downtown St. Louis. He explained
that he fought to keep the redevelopment program alive in 2001
while he was serving in the Senate, and that major rehabilitation
projects completed over the past decade in downtown St. Louis
would not have been feasible without the program.
Senate President Pro Tem Rob Mayer (R-Dexter)
and Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Glendale),
Chair of the Jobs, Economic Development and Local Government
Committee, also spoke to the delegation. Sen. Mayer
expressed optimism about reforming the state's workers'
compensation system, saying the Senate came close to
passing a bill last year. He also noted that the Senate is
already debating an employment law reform bill this
session. Tom Campbell thanked Sen. Mayer for his support of
the 2012 Missouri Business Climate Agenda, and for assigning
those bills to committee quickly. Sen. Eric Schmitt
also thanked the group for their support over the past
year for the bill he sponsored to help make Lambert Airport an
international cargo hub. Sen. Schmitt
explained that air cargo is expected to double in the next ten
years, that the St. Louis
region accounts for 45% of Missouri's GDP, so the entire state
feels the effects of jobs lost or gained here in our
region.
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Sen. Eric Schmitt thanks the delegation for
their strong support for his bill to help create of an
international air cargo hub in St. Louis.
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Sen. Rob Mayer (standing) greets RCGA Board member
Rhonda Hamm-Niebruegge, Director of Lambert-St. Louis
International Airport.
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Speaker of the House Steven Tilley
(R-Perryville), Majority Floor Leader Tim Jones
(R-Eureka), and Rep. Anne Zerr (R-St.
Charles), Chair of the Economic Development Committee
spoke to the delegation about their priorities for the
year. Speaker Tilley maintained that jobs and
economic development remain the House's top
priorities. He expressed disappointment over not
being able to pass a comprehensive economic development bill in
last fall's Special Session, but said he didn't want to dismantle
good programs to reach a deal. Rep. Zerr said that her
committee now plans to pass several economic development programs
that received support last year, such as incentives
for data centers, amateur sporting events and
freight forwarders who route international cargo through
Lambert Airport, but rather than bundling the programs
together, they should be considered as stand-alone bills.
While she expressed frustration over the outcome of the Special
Session, she vowed that her committee "wouldn't give up"
on moving forward on economic development. Rep.
Jones expressed support for the 2012 Missouri Business Climate
Agenda, noting that he is
currently the lead sponsor of a workers' compensation
reform bill and sponsored an employment law
reform bill in previous sessions, and hopes that the
Governor will work with legislator to pass a bill he will sign
this year.
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House Speaker Steven Tilley discusses his
caucus's priorities.
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(from
left) Rep. Anne Zerr, RCGA Board Chair - Public Policy
Tom Campbell, House Majority Floor Leader Tim Jones, and RCGA
Board Chairman Tom Voss.
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Sen. Jolie Justus discusses the Missouri Non-
partisan Court Plan while Sen. Victor Callahan looks on.
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Senate Minority Leader
Victor Callahan (D-Independence), Assistant Minority Leader Jolie
Justus (D-Kansas City), and Sen. Joe Keaveny
(D-St. Louis) also spoke to the delegation. While
they have strong concerns about some of the RCGA's business
climate issues, such as employment law and workers' compensation
reform, Sen. Callahan noted that his caucus has been very
supportive of economic development bills. However, when
asked about passing the economic development incentives as
stand-alone bills, Sen. Callahan explained that the political
reality is that most issues are combined or used as leverage
during the policymaking process, and that economic development is
no exception. Sen. Justus noted that there has been
a fundamental discussion going on in the legislature about the
government's role in job creation, and that there needs
to be more pressure from outside the building to break the
current gridlock. Sen. Justus also asked the business
leaders to oppose efforts to switch from Missouri's Nonpartisan
Court Plan to direct election of judges, which she says would
jeopardize the independence of the judiciary and increase the
amount of money businesses spend on campaign contributions.
Sen. Keaveny agreed, and added that electing judges could erode
the trust in the state's judicial system.
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(from
left) Rep. Mike Talboy, Rep. Tishaura Jones, Rep. Chris
Carter,
Rep. Steve Webb, Rep. Jill Schupp, and
Rep. Bert Atkins.
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The delegation also met with House Minority
Floor Leader Mike Talboy (D-Kansas City),
Assistant Minority Floor Leader Tishaura Jones
(D-St. Louis), Minority Caucus Vice-Chair Chris
Carter (D-St. Louis), Minority Caucus Secretary
Sara Lampe (D-Springfield), Minority Caucus
Policy & Member Engagement Leader Jill Schupp (D-Creve
Coeur), Black Caucus Chair Steve Webb
(D-Florissant), and Labor
Caucus Chair Bert Atkins (D-Florissant). Rep.
Talboy lauded the passage of the Missouri Science and
Innovation Reinvestment Act (MOSIRA) and expressed hope
for keeping the Governor's recommendation of $4 million for the
program in the budget. Rep. Sara Lampe, who is the ranking
Democrat on the House Budget Committee, said that further cuts
will be necessary this year because raising revenue through an
increased cigarette tax or enforcing the state sales tax on
Internet purchases has not gained Republican support.
However, she hopes to work with her colleagues to lessen the
12.5% cut in higher education funding proposed by Governor
Nixon.
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Snapshots from RCGA's Missouri Legislative Day
RCGA's delegation members had many opportunities to
visit with the Missouri legislators throughout the day, including
an informal luncheon in the Capitol Rotunda. Below are some
snapshots from the trip, as well as a list of our 2012 Government
Affairs Sponsors, who provide critical support for public policy
events like our Missouri Legislative Day.
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(from
left) Mike Esser, Principal of Government Relations for
Edward
Jones, Sen. John Lamping (R-Clayton), and
Leann Chilton, Director of
Government Relations for BJC HealthCare
chat in the hallway.
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Speaker of the House Steven Tilley
(R-Perryville)
(right) with Marc Long, Vice
President of Marketing and
Communications
for St. Louis College of
Pharmacy.
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RCGA Public Policy Council Chair Ted Powers,
Regional Director of Government Affairs
for
Anheuser-Busch Companies, and
House
Assistant Minority Leader
Tishaura Jones (D-
St. Louis).
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(from
left) Bob Wiegert,
Associate General Counsel for Schnuck
Markets, Rep. John Diehl (R-Town &
Country), Chair of the House
Rules Committee, and RCGA Board member
John Sondag, President
of AT&T Missouri.
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(from
left) RCGA board
member Ray Cummiskey, President of
Jefferson College, House Minority Caucus
Secretary Sara Lampe
(D-Springfield), and Steve Hoven,
Corporate Vice President of
Communications & Government Affairs
for SSM HealthCare.
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(from
left) Ann Brand,
Director of Government
Affairs for St. Louis Community College,
and
Rep. Margo McNeil (D-Florissant), member
of
the Community College's Board of
Trustees.
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Rep. Jill Schupp (D-Creve Coeur)
(right)
discusses policy issues with Judy Dungan,
Director of Public Policy for SSM
Cardinal
Glennon Children's Medical Center.
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(from
left) Mindy Lewis,
Administrator at Webster University, Brooke Timmons, Director of
State Government Relations for Mercy, and Roman Kulich, President
of Coventry Health Care of Missouri, Inc.
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(from
left) Rep. Tommie Pierson (D-North St. Louis County)
enjoys lunch with Adella Jones, Vice
President of
Communications & Government Affairs
for Metro, and
Deborah Tansil Graham, Director of Alumni
and Community
Relations for the University of
Missouri-St. Louis.
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(from
left) RCGA lobbyist Trisha Workman visits with Rep.
Stacey Newman (D-Clayton) and Mary Anne McCollum, Manager of
Constituent Relations for the University of Missouri-Columbia.
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