Missouri legislative priorities still awaiting Senate votes

~ The Senate has been busy, having passed and sent to the House about 100 bills.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- There was a lot of talk as Missouri lawmakers convened this winter about the need to overhaul Missouri's health care program for the poor.

So far, there hasn't been much action.

At the legislature's annual spring break, the much-touted Medicaid overhaul has yet to be considered in the House or Senate. But lawmakers are continuing to talk about it, and Republican leaders vow it's still a priority for the final eight weeks of the session that resumes Monday.

To use health care terminology, it appears the legislative arteries could be clogged in the Senate. A quick scan of the legislative priorities reveals the following:

• The Medicaid legislation has cleared a Senate committee but is awaiting Senate debate. The House is waiting for the Senate to act.
• Gov. Matt Blunt's college construction plan, financed through student loan agency money, remains stalled in the Senate, where a Democratic filibuster has prevented a vote. Again, the House is waiting on the Senate.
• The House has passed a tax-cut bill so large that even its supporters say it needs to lose weight to survive. That bill is pending in a Senate committee.

The Senate, it should be noted, has been busy. It's passed and sent to the House about 100 bills. Two of those already have become law -- one opening the cable TV industry to greater competition, the other setting new criteria for contractors on public construction projects. Both had been contentious in the past but found overwhelmingly legislative consensus after interest groups negotiated compromises.

Both are cited by Republican Senate leaders as accomplishments that can bode well for the remainder of the session.

MO HealthNet

Senate Majority Leader Charlie Shields, R-St. Joseph, is the lead sponsor of the Medicaid changes. He plans to bring the legislation up for Senate debate in the next couple weeks or so.

The bill would rename Medicaid "MO HealthNet," place a greater emphasis on managed health care, reward enrollees with extra benefits for trying to be healthy and pay some medical providers based on their performance. If lawmakers do nothing, Missouri's current Medicaid program is due to expire after June 30, 2008.

Lobbyists for health care providers and disability groups, among others, have been negotiating privately with lawmakers and Blunt's liaisons to shape as many specifics of the bill as possible before Senate debate.

"Just because it hasn't been on the floor doesn't mean that a lot of work isn't being done on it," said House Speaker Pro Tem Carl Bearden, R-St. Charles.

Democrats have criticized the bill because it would do little to restore coverage to the thousands of low-income people whose Medicaid benefits were reduced or eliminated two years ago in a Republican budget-cutting move.

Debate could be considerable. But Shields believes it won't be partisan, which was the case when Democrats filibustered straight through the night against Blunt's college construction plan during the final week before spring break.

MOHELA concerns

Senate Minority Leader Maida Coleman, D-St. Louis, declared the Democratic blockade of the higher education bill a resounding victory and "one of the most effective filibusters we've had." Some Democrats worry that taking money from the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority could hurt its ability to help Missouri student loan holders in the future.

The education legislation also would expand Missouri's financial-need scholarships and limit the size of university tuition increases.

Republican leaders vow the bill will be resurrected. If the divide remains largely partisan, Senate Republicans could use a procedural move to shut down a filibuster and force a vote.

"I am determined -- and I believe the governor is determined and the leadership of the Senate is determined -- to pass this bill," sponsoring Sen. Gary Nodler, R-Joplin, said.

Tax cuts so far have been a larger priority for the House than the Senate. The House-passed bill would cut at least $285 million in taxes, targeted largely to those who receive Social Security benefits and some other pension and retirement payments.

Tax cuts

More than a month has passed since that House vote. Senate President Pro Tem Michael Gibbons, R-Kirkwood, said Republican senators are divided about how to cut taxes. Some prefer a Social Security tax cut; others prefer tax cuts more directly targeted to economic development.

That bill "has a long way to go, but it will have its chance," Gibbons said.

The legislature also has a long way to go on other Republican-identified priorities.

It just so happens the 2007 session is the longest possible under Missouri law -- stretching from Jan. 3 to May. 18.