The first significant snow and winter weather of the year shortened the legislative week by a day. Each time it snows I am grateful for the hard work of city and state employees who brave the cold and work long hours to quickly clear roads and bridges so that our lives can return to normal. This is hard work that I, too, often take for granted. To the men and women of MoDOT and communities across the state, I extend my thanks for working quickly and efficiently to clear and treat roads.
During Tuesday's appropriations committee meeting I had the opportunity to hear, first-hand, from the director of the Department of Mental Health on a variety of topics, but one of the most significant was a progress update on replacing the Fulton State Hospital. This project is long overdue, but it is moving forward.
Currently, the design has been completed and bids are being received. The contract will be awarded later this spring, with the intent to break ground early this summer. Ultimately, the facility is expected to be open and be providing services by the end of 2017. I am excited about the jobs that this project will support, but also the great impact this new facility will have on the services provided to patients as well as the safety and efficiency of employees.
The preponderance of the debate in the Senate this week centered around what is known as the "transfer bill". As the name implies, this bill seeks to ensure that students in failing districts are not abandoned and forced to remain in those failing districts.
However, the bill also contains many other critical provisions relating to education. Last year the Legislature worked all session on similar legislation, involving interest groups from across the state and compromise on all sides, only to have the governor, who was silent on the language and absent from negotiation all session, veto the bill. Once again this year, the Legislature is taking action in the absence of leadership from the governor. I tip my hat to Sen. David Pearce for his efforts in leading these discussions and look forward to the Senate finalizing a version next week and sending it to the House for consideration.
The news cycles at the end of the week devote a great deal of time and space to two issues that have recently passed the House: right to work and voter ID. I look forward to both of these issues working through the Senate process and ultimately winding up on the floor for discussion and action by the whole body.
My expectation is that voter ID will see a purely partisan divide, with the majority party in unanimous (or near unanimous) support and the minority party in unanimous opposition.
Right to work is not nearly as easy to handicap, partly because the governor has repeatedly and emphatically declared that he will veto it. However, this is still a critically important economic development discussion that the Senate needs to have and needs to vote on. I support Missouri becoming a right to work state and think that it is inevitable that we will do so.
However, I do not believe it will happen under this governor. Twenty-four other states have realized that right to work is an important economic development tool, and we cannot afford to wait until 49 others have done so to take action. I will actively participate in discussions relating to right to work and voter ID, and I look forward to voting in support of both.
Sen. Mike Kehoe, R-Jefferson City, represents the state's 6th District.