Hi y’all! What a week it has been in Jefferson City! There were certainly some highs and lows, but in the end, several bills were passed in the Senate and the fiscal year 2025 state operating budget was sent back to the Missouri House of Representatives with the Senate’s changes. It should pass smoothly and make it to the governor’s desk before the 6 p.m. deadline Friday evening. Granted, we cut it closer than almost any other session in history.

Hi y’all! What a week it has been in Jefferson City. It’s hard to wrap up all the political drama that took place, including a multi-day filibuster, but the bottom line is that multiple measures to improve and protect rural health care access have moved forward in the Senate this week.

Hey y’all! It’s hard to believe, but we are truly in the home stretch in Jefferson City as there is now officially less than a month until the last day of the legislative session. Last week, a resounding statement was made that, for all the obstacles and false starts that may have gotten in our way so far this year, education is a priority for this General Assembly.

Hi y’all! Several weeks ago, I took time in my weekly column and on the Senate floor to talk about the importance of doing the leg work and having the conversations if legislators want to get their bills approved by the General Assembly and on to the governor’s desk. I am pleased to say that I walked the walk, did the work and now a very beneficial bill is on the verge of heading to the Missouri House of Representatives.

Hey y'all! Another week has come and gone and it has been a whirlwind of legislative activity. In addition to the continuing process of committee hearings and meeting with colleagues to work out the details of proposed legislation, activity on the Senate floor is picking up steam. Last week we passed a huge bill regarding education in Missouri. I say huge referring to both its impact and its literal size...

Passing the first legislation of the year Hey y'all! Greetings from Jefferson City. It was a very productive week in the Missouri Senate as elected officials worked through the day and night on Monday to protect the Missouri Constitution and ensure a statewide voice on statewide issues...

Progress comes slow and steady I hope you have enjoyed the springlike weather we got a blast of this week; I sure did! There was some sunshine in the Senate chamber as well, as we were finally able to discuss pieces of legislation on the floor. It was brief, but it was good to see some return to the process that will enable our proposed policies to move forward...

Winter weather added to the obstacles that are currently facing potential progress for legislation during the 2024 legislative session. The Missouri Senate closed and canceled several hearings and action on the floor Jan. 22 due to the ice that covered many roadways across the state...

This past week brought the early process of the legislative session to a bit of a fork in the road. Do we, the lawmakers of this state, want to trust the process that has worked for generations, get to work and pass laws that can make people's lives better? Or do we want to slide into chaos that will lead to one of the most unproductive sessions in the history of the Missouri Legislature?...

The second week of the legislative session has brought some really good discussion on the Senate floor and the start of committee hearings, meaning legislation is now moving forward. On Thursday, one of the discussions that took place was regarding an issue that I have seen increasingly come up over the last few years, concerning boards, commissions and other bureaucratic entities finding ways around implementing legislation that is passed by the General Assembly and signed by the governor...

Now that the 2024 legislative session has begun, I wanted to take a moment to say how honored I am to be your voice and conduit in state government. Our office works very hard to make sure our people are cared for all year long; it is of utmost importance to me. During session, I will also be working on policy changes that better the lives of all Missourians...

I don't know about you, but I feel like the election cycle seems to start earlier and earlier. We are now a little more than a year away from another general election day that will include presidential, gubernatorial and four statewide races, as well as local races for many of our state districts and local communities...

We all know that the world went through a lot of changes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some changes were big, some were small. Many continue to debate whether those changes were good or bad. One thing I believe we can all agree on though, is that improved medical access is always a good change. That's why I wanted to make pharmacists temporary permissions to administer vaccines without all the red tape, granted in 2020 by the Trump administration, a permanent option under Missouri law...

I've had a lot of questions over the past couple of weeks regarding the new texting while driving law that went into effect on August 28. Senate Bill 398, which includes the "Siddens Bening Hands Free Law," went into effect and became law after being passed by the General Assembly and signed by the governor. ...

Most of us are taught from an early age that when you contribute more while work takes place, you receive more of the gains. I bring this up because this is the basis of what brought me to file Senate Bill 481, which ultimately passed through the General Assembly as part of Senate Bill 109. This bill makes sure that the bulk of royalty money from mining companies that makes its way to the state government will be distributed to the counties where a majority of the mining is taking place...

We all know that the world went through a lot of changes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some changes were big, some were small. Many continue to debate whether those changes were good or bad. One thing I believe we can all agree on though, is that improved medical access is always a good change. That's why I wanted to make pharmacists' temporary permissions to administer vaccines without all the red tape, granted in 2020 by the Trump administration, a permanent option under Missouri law...

High schools in Missouri that offer on-campus career development classes to both students and adults, at the same time, will now include a layer of protection for minors with the passage of Senate Bill 40, which has been signed by the governor and is set to become law...

Thirty-one bills crossed the ultimate legislative finish line this month as they were signed by the governor on Thursday, July 6. I'm excited to say that included several pieces of legislation that I had been working on. This week, I want to take a closer look at a provision included in one of those signed bills. ...

There are few things more terrifying than setting out to completely start a new life, yet far too many women have to take that step in order to keep themselves and their children safe. It is one of my top priorities as your state senator to make sure these women are empowered and not hindered by bureaucracy and red tape...

After months of research, debate and negotiation, there is always a huge sense of accomplishment and pride when a proposed bill reaches the finish line and the governor signs his name, enshrining that bill as law. I certainly felt this last Wednesday when Senate Bill 39 was signed into law...

The First Regular Session of the 102nd General Assembly has come to a close. I'm happy to report many of my priority legislative proposals crossed the finish line in the final week. I've written about most of these in the past so I won't go into great detail. ...

The General Assembly actually only has one duty specifically assigned by the Missouri Constitution. We must send a balanced budget to the governor. We fulfilled that obligation this past week, meeting the constitutional deadline of 6 p.m. on the first Friday in May. ...

In 2022, Missourians went to the polls and amended Missouri's Constitution to allow adults to possess and consume marijuana for recreational purposes. Amendment 3 passed with 53% of Missouri voters in favor, but enthusiasm for the change was hardly statewide. The recreational marijuana proposal passed in just 13 of Missouri's 114 counties, plus the city of St. Louis. Urban and suburban residents voted to legalize pot, but rural Missourians mostly did not...

What does "government" mean to you? If you think roads and bridges, you're right. If schools come to mind, you're right about that, too. Medicaid and health care for seniors and the disabled? Yes, that's a huge part of what government does. Incarcerating offenders is a function of government, but maintaining state parks and providing places for Missourians to hunt and fish is too. ...

It was a whirlwind week in the Missouri Legislature. I presented bills to committees in both the Senate and the House of Representatives, and I carried another bill through the perfection process on the Senate floor. All told, eight bills I sponsored saw significant movement this week. ...

Like so many other Southeast Missouri residents, I began this week believing everything was normal and things I took for granted would be just as I expected. That all changed Wednesday morning with the news that a devastating tornado touched down in Bollinger County. ...

In a previous column, I discussed the challenge of passing contentious legislation without resorting to heavy-handed parliamentary procedures. Specifically, I wrote about the difficulty the state Senate faced advancing legislation to address transgender student athletes and prohibit life-altering gender transition procedures for children...

Are you ready for some "inside baseball" discussion about the political process? I hope so, because I feel I need to explain what's going on in Jefferson City, and why we haven't been able to bring an issue that's important to me, and a lot of Missourians, to a vote. I'd like to tell you about the Senate filibuster. Specifically, I want to talk about what's keeping us from passing Senate Bill 49...

Did you receive a flu shot this year? Where did you get it? If you're like a lot of people, you stopped in at your local pharmacy to get it while you were running your other errands. The fact that you were able to get your routine flu shot at the local drugstore is a relatively new thing. It wasn't always this easy...

It is nearly 400 miles from Sikeston to Kansas City. That's about the same distance a Southeast Missouri resident would have to drive to get to Atlanta, Chicago or Des Moines. Despite this great distance, I think we all felt a sense of hometown pride watching the Kansas City Chiefs win the Super Bowl last weekend. ...

Last week, I had the honor of speaking to Missourians gathered at the State Capitol for the eighth annual Human Trafficking Awareness Day. As a member of Missouri's Statewide Council on Sex Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation of Children and also the Missouri Rights of Victims of Sexual Assault Task Force, which studied human trafficking as part of its work in 2020-21, I am committed to helping educate Missourians about human trafficking...