In his veto session report, Rep. Mike Kelley, R-Lamar, offers a historical perspective on yesterday's events, and reviews the session.
The 2013 Veto Session of the Missouri General Assembly is now in the history books, and it did indeed make history. Over time, since achieving statehood, overrides of a Missouri governor’s veto have been rare. Between 1855 and 1975 there were no overrides at all. Then in 1976 Governor Kit Bond’s veto of a bill establishing the Nursing Practices Act was overridden. Four years later Governor Joe Teasdale’s veto of a budget appropriation to construct what is now the Truman State Office Building was overturned.
All was quiet for nineteen years until in 1999 when Governor Mel Carnahan vetoed a bill outlawing partial birth abortions. That was not really a partisan issue as there are people of all political persuasions on both sides of the issue. When the votes were taken it wasn’t close as 127 Representatives and 27 Senators voted to support the override.
Abortion also played a part in the next veto override when in 2003 Governor Bob Holden vetoed a bill mandating a 24 hour waiting period before an abortion could be performed. Governor Holden would eventually have three bills vetoed that year. In addition to the abortion waiting period, legislators also enacted bills to allow Missouri citizens to carry concealed weapons and limit lawsuits against gun manufacturers for the costs of social justice. The override vote for conceal and carry contained additional drama as a senator who was a ‘yes’ vote was in Cuba actively serving in the military. There was considerable doubt as to whether he would be allowed to return in time to cast what would eventually be the deciding vote.
Those three vetoes made Governor Holden the most overridden Missouri governor in modern history. That record would stand until September 11, 2013 when it would be shattered.
Entering this year’s Veto Session, Governor Nixon had already seen two vetoes overridden when the General Assembly enacted the vetoed congressional redistricting map into law in 2011 and the Religious Freedom Act in 2012. With over 2 dozen bills vetoed this year, there was a feeling several would be ripe for an override. The two bills gaining the most attention were related to a tax cut measure (HB253) and enforcement of federal gun laws (HB436) in Missouri. Both were the subject of statewide headlines and intense lobbying. At the end of a very long day, nine bills and one budget appropriation were enacted into law over the governor’s veto. The vetoes of HB253 and HB436 were both upheld so they are dead. The vetoed budget appropriation was for rebuilding the Pike-Lincoln Career Center in northeastern Missouri. Although the veto was overridden, Governor Nixon the next day (Sept. 12) used his executive authority to withhold the entire appropriation from the budget. There is a constitutional question as to whether he can do this as he also released over $200 million he had previously withheld earlier this summer. The State Constitution gives the governor the authority to withhold money if it is required to balance the budget. I don’t believe it says anything about allowing for pettiness because he had a veto overridden!
Over the next few weeks I will update you with details on the votes and descriptions of bills that will now become law over the governor’s vetoes. They range in topics from visitation & custody rights for deployed military personnel to uninsured motorists to cattle breaking down fences and wandering free.
One bill that I was watching pretty close was HB1035. This was a piece of legislation I had filed to help some counties in our area with problems they had encountered when filling out paperwork. By honest mistake, there were some errors made, but state law did not allow for a way to correct them. As such, these counties were going to suffer financially when there was no need for it. The main part of my bill did not receive any controversy, but Governor Nixon vetoed it because of an amendment added by a Democrat lawmaker from around Jackson County. The amendment received no opposition, affected less than one square mile of land in Jackson County, and was supported by everyone it included. At no time during the legislative process did Governor Nixon or anyone on his staff express any concern about any portion of the bill. As Veto Session drew closer, not only did I receive pressure from the governor’s office to not pursue an override, but a friend of mine was even called to see if he would speak to me about not bringing it up. When it came up in the House only one other Representative spoke briefly about it. In the Senate there was no debate at all. The final vote the House was 117-44 and in the Senate, 26-8.
Unfortunately, this has been a trend with Governor Nixon. Since being elected governor, he has chosen to not participate in the legislative process by providing input to legislation as it is being crafted. Instead, he and his staff have remained on the sidelines, choosing to veto bills that the House and Senate pass instead of working toward what could easily be a compromise bill. In most cases, we didn’t know he had an issue with legislation until he issued a veto letter. As with anything in life, things work better when the lines of communication are open.
The General Assembly is now adjourned until we reconvene for the 2014 Regular Session in January. I expect when we come back there will be another attempt to pass some sort of tax cut bill and probably another go at making certain that Missouri’s citizens get to keep their Second Amendment Rights without fear of them being trampled by the Federal Government. If you have suggestions or advice I am always happy to hear from you.
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