Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder speaks out against term limit change

EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been corrected to reflect that the bill is a Senate, not House, bill.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder says the House should not pass legislation that would allow changes to the state's term limits for lawmakers.

Lawmakers currently are allowed to serve about eight years in the House and eight years in the Senate. A proposed constitutional amendment passed by the Senate last month would allow lawmakers to serve 16 years total, with all that time either spent in one chamber or split among the two.

Voters approved the current term limits in 1992. Kinder, a Cape Girardeau Republican, said Tuesday that the proposed changes "ought to die" because lawmakers should not overturn the will of voters.

Sponsoring Sen. Tim Green, a St. Louis Democrat, says the current terms limits have increased the influence that lobbyists and special interest groups have over lawmakers.

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Term Limits bill is SJR12

Online:

Legislature: http://www.moga.mo.gov