House Republican leaders gain more power through new rules

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Republican House leaders will have more power this session than they did last year.

The House approved new rules Thursday that give the chamber's leaders greater say in awarding committee assignments, office space and parking spots. House rules are generally tweaked every two years, and this year the changes partially reverse a compromise made 20 years ago that allowed the minority party to select its committee assignments.

Under the new rules, Minority Leader Jeff Harris still will have the authority to pick what Democrats will serve on the House's permanent committees, but House Speaker Rod Jetton will now be able to appoint members to special committees. The old rules allowed the House speaker to only reject the minority party's committee picks.

Jetton, R-Marble Hill, has not announced committee memberships, but there were 49 committees -- 23 standing and 26 special -- included in a list of committee heads released by Jetton's office last week. The 49 total committees and 26 special committees are significant jumps from last year.

House Majority Leader Tom Dempsey said it made sense to allow the speaker to name members from any party to committees rather than just reject the picks of the minority party.

"Remember, he is the speaker of the House and not the speaker of the majority party," said Dempsey, R-St. Charles.

Harris, D-Columbia, called the House speaker's expanded appointment authority a "power grab" designed to weaken Democrats.

But some of the most impassioned debate came from a smattering of Democrats who joined Republicans in supporting the rule changes.

Rep. Terry Young, who was the House Democratic Caucus secretary last year, said the only way for the minority party to get things done is to work with Republicans.

Young, D-Independence, accused Democratic critics of the new rules of engaging in "symbolic acts of protest for purely partisan reasons."

Several members of the Black Caucus, which is comprised only of Democrats, also sided with the Republicans in voting for the rules. Former Black Caucus chairman and vice chairman, Reps. Ted Hoskins and Rodney Hubbard, were forced out of their positions last session after the St. Louis-area lawmakers worked with Republicans on a school choice bill opposed by most Democrats.

Among other rule changes is an end to using seniority to determine office and parking spaces within each caucus.

Both Hubbard, the sole Democrat to be given a committee chairmanship, and Hoskins have received prime offices and parking spaces.

Rep. Tom Villa, who served as House Majority Leader in 1980 during his first tour in the Legislature, said Republicans were being shortsighted by discounting seniority.

"I don't know how, for the life of me, as an institution, we are doing a favor by letting a freshman member of either party have more say-so and better working conditions than someone who has been here seven or eight years," said Villa, D-St. Louis.

While Republicans generally stayed on the sidelines of the debate, Rep. Jim Lembke noted that he had to fight to keep his office in the Capitol.

"I'm just glad that I have one and my opponent does not," said Lembke, R-St. Louis.

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