MISSOURI LEGISLATIVE SESSION BEGINS WEDNESDAY; KASTEN PREDICTS FRUGAL FINANCING FOCUS

JEFFERSON CITY - The Missouri General Assembly will likely take up a number of issues in 1991, but the state's tight financial picture will likely override everything lawmakers try to do this year, says State Rep. Mary Kasten.

"I think frugal financing will the focus of our time," declared the Cape Girardeau Republican. "We will be dealing with some big issues that take money and we just don't have a lot of money."

Kasten said she hopes legislators will put more of an emphasis this year on "doing more with less" and trying to improve coordination and cooperation between state agencies.

Kasten was in her Jefferson City office this week trying to make final preparations for the start of a new legislative session on Wednesday. Kasten will take the oath next week for her fifth term in the Missouri House from the 159th district that includes the city of Cape Girardeau, except for wards south of Morgan Oak Street and Bloomfield Road.

As of Thursday morning, about 347 bills had been pre-filed in the House, with more coming in. Kasten said she anticipates the number reaching about 1,000 as in past years before representatives are finished.

One area Kasten hopes legislators will spend a lot of effort on this year is bringing about some financial reforms such as a form of zero base budgeting. She noted that the appropriations process focuses too much on new programs only and not on core budgets of state agencies. That has lead to excessive growth in some departments.

"I think we've got a lot of working to do," noted Kasten. "I like to think this is the session where we will look critically at ways to do reforms in our agencies. I personally want better coordination of efforts between agencies, which is essential because of our financial crunch."

This coordination is especially important and beneficial in agencies that deal with families and children and social services, which have been a special interest of Kasten's during her tenure in the legislature.

"We need more cooperative effort throughout the state; we have not done that as well as we should have," she added.

Kasten believes lawmakers will have several tax increase proposals to consider. Higher education officials and supporters of highway improvements have both indicated they may seek approval of tax plans. Whatever is approved by the legislature, will ultimately need approval by voters to take effect.

"I think there will be a lot of discussion on tax increases, but considering how the overall economy is and the slump we are in nationally, I don't think we will have a very good chance of passing anything," observed Kasten.

She believes legislators are more likely to support a tax increase on gasoline to fund highway improvements because the additional funds lead to projects people can see.

"Certainly we have very critical needs in higher education, but what people can see in reality is more appealing to them," remarked Kasten. "Certainly a good effort is being made to promote the needs of higher education, but nothing happens until the power of public pressure precipitates it happening."

Being a low tax state has been used as an economic development tool for Missouri, but Kasten noted that at some point you have to draw the line between quality of life issues and providing people with services that they need.

Kasten plans to devote a lot of her personal efforts this year to children and family type issues, and working toward welfare reform and more accountability of state agencies.

Kasten will also be working for passage of legislation again this year to provide mediation as a tool for resolving disputes between men and women in divorce cases involving children.

Other issues she anticipates being discussed this year include changes in the way the school foundation formula is distributed; revisions in the state ethics law passed last year, including the addition of a commission to enforce the law; environmental issues, including one to provide more "smoke free" areas; new insurance laws, including legislation to create the new Department of Insurance and giving consumers more protection; health care and health insurance; drug abuse; and retirement bills for both teachers and state employees.

Committee assignments for the upcoming session will be announced late next week.