Barnes: Committee protects state workers

A state House budget committee this week protected state employees "from further budget cuts," Rep. Jay Barnes said Thursday.

The Jefferson City freshman Republican is vice chairman of the House Appropriations Committee for General Administration.

He said he helped defeat a proposed amendment to Gov. Jay Nixon's budget plan that would have created "a substantial cut of $14.5 million through the Office of Administration."

But, Barnes told colleagues: "This amendment is aimed at the wrong target. State employees did not cause this budget crisis, and have already been unfairly targeted for cuts."




















The proposed amendment likely would have led to about 230 state employees losing their jobs, Barnes noted.

"This amendment would lead to the laying off of janitors, entry-level analysts and information technology personnel across state government," the Jefferson City freshman said. "Those jobs are vital to ensuring our executive departments function at high levels to serve the public."

The committee defeated the amendment by a 10-2 vote.

In a news release, Barnes said he also helped restore $3.1 million that saved 41 jobs and perhaps more than $30 million in the Second Injury Fund.