January 8, 2024 Capitol Report
Welcome to the new year! Did you know that there are more elections in 2024 around the world than ever before? 2 billion voters will elect leaders this year in 50 countries around the world.
A former constituent recently stated to the Webster-Kirkwood Times, “I’ve not talked to anybody who has a clue as to what’s going on. ... It’s disappointing because Sarah’s been so good in the legislature on childhood and family issues.” I have a great deal of respect for this individual, and I want to apologize for not having made a statement previously.
Much of what was said about me was done after complaints were made to remove me from the House Democratic Caucus. Since these complaints were confidential to the extent that they were not shared with me until very shortly before hearings, I did not address them publicly, with the hopes that there would be a fair and impartial hearing before stripping my constituents of their representation on committees.
Now that a decision has been made, I am able to speak more freely.
I renounce the caricature of Mr. Garland and Mr. Johnson that has been portrayed by the media. I am not a Nazi, nor do I deny the holocaust. I do believe there has been a smear campaign to target these individuals, and there is a much larger story to be told.
As a State Representative, I have worked for years to listen to people tell their story, even when it is not socially acceptable to do so. Because of this, the people of Missouri, including my constituents, have been punished. Missouri House Democrats have made every effort to silence the voice of your elected representative by removing me from committees and by expelling me from the Missouri House Democratic Caucus.
The people who I advocate for-constituents, foster children, people trapped in systems here-have lost a measure of advocacy in the Missouri legislature because of the actions of the Missouri House Democratic Caucus.
Bills
I have filed the following bills this year:
HB 1839 - Renames Confederate Memorial State Historic Site
HB 1840 - Creates an Office of Inspector General within the Department of Social Services
HB 1841 - Allows the Department of Labor and the Attorney General to investigate and prosecute wage theft
HB 1842 - Replaces old statutory references to the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act
HB 1843 - Adds tobacco products and vapor products to the "drug-free schools act"
HB 1844 - establishes protections for immigrants who are in rental housing
HB 1845 - Requires a Certificate of Value be filed when real property is transferred
HB 1846 - Abolishes the Death Penalty
HB 1994 - Establishes the Missouri Bureau of Investigation under the Office of Attorney General
Administrative Rules
One often-overlooked part of state government is Administrative Rules, which lay out the nuts and bolts of how the government follows the rules. (Pagination note: Pages are to the page of the Missouri Register followed by / page of PDF document.)
On January 2, the following rules were proposed. You can comment on these rules for 30 days (until February 1).
Department of Mental Health - proposing to rescind rules for Institutional Treatment Centers, stating that they are no longer certified by the department. (Page 5/5).
Secretary of State proposed rules related to voting. My analysis of potentially substantial changes include:
15 CSR 30-3.005: A Voter ID card must be a state-issued ID card that is made of plastic. (Page 5/5).
15 CSR 30-4.010 Postcard Voter Application and Forms (Page 8/8) - updates the information requested on the voter registration postcard.
15 CSR 30-7.020 Centralized Voter Registration System Advisory Committee (page 8/8) - rescinds this rule. This rule states that it dissolves the Secretary of State's Technology Trust Fund, which had $4,265,871.89 as of December 31, 2023.
15 CSR 30-8.010 Provisional Ballots and Envelopes (page 9/9) - removes the size for ballot envelopes.
15 CSR 30-10.010 Definitions. (Page 10/10) - Changes Definitions for Electronic Voting Machines.
15 CSR 30-10.020 Certification Statements for New or Modified Electronic Voting Systems. (Page 11/11)
15 CSR 30-10.025 Election Authority’s Certification Statement (Page 12/12)
15 CSR 30-10.030 Voter Education and Voting Device Preparation (Page 13/13)
NOTICE TO SUBMIT COMMENTS: Anyone may file a statement in support of or in opposition to this proposed rule with the Office of Secretary of State, PO Box 1767, Jefferson City, MO 65102. To be considered, comments must be received within thirty (30) days after publication of this notice in the Missouri Register. No public hearing is scheduled.
Dear Readers - after about an hour of getting through 13 of 76 pages, with no policy staff and no interns, I recognize that I am unable to send you the depth of information that I would like to and that Missourians deserve about the workings of Missouri government through Administrative Rules.
There are other significant changes proposed to the rules for voting machines.
There are changes to the licensing requirements for the Board of Nursingbeginning on page 26. Those comments can be made to: State Board of Nursing, Lori Scheidt, Executive Director, PO Box 656, Jefferson City, MO 65102, by fax at (573) 751-0075, or via email at nursing@pr.mo.gov. To be considered, comments must be received within thirty (30) days after January 2. 2024.
Administrative rules govern much of the day-to-day workings of the state government. The legislature writes the laws - the basic framework. The administrative departments write the rules about how these laws are implemented.
Just like with the legislature, there is the opportunity for testimony on these rules. Usually, there is not a public hearing, but anyone can submit written testimony.
The Secretary of State’s Website has the Administrative Rules, as well as a listing of Emergency Rules and the Missouri Register, which contains proposed changes.
You can also sign up to be informed of administrative changes for specific issues.
Computer Security
Congress funds MS-IASC, a nonprofit that helps state and local governments run secure networks and computer systems. Membership in this organization is free and is open to all entities of state and local government, including water districts, the court system, counties, and everything in between. They offer free tools to their members like malicious domain protection, best practices help, webinars, and other services. They have a separate division that focuses just on election security. I had a conversation with them this morning, and they encouraged me to spread the word about their organization and encourage agencies to sign up.