Missouri Republicans seek to rein in liberal cities

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Republican lawmakers in Missouri's Capitol often bristle at rules and requirements handed down from the federal government, saying they favor local authority in most matters.

However, several GOP-supported proposals this year aim to hand down similar mandates to cities and counties across the state.

Republican legislators say proposals that would block local authorities from pursuing business policies or banning plastic bags are essential to protect conservative values and boost the economy, even as critics line up to call such legislation disingenuous.

"It's hypocritical of the state to say they don't want the federal government to interfere and pass unfunded mandates, and then go interfering with our ability to make laws to govern our own municipalities," Columbia City Councilman Michael Trapp said.

Trapp is pushing back against proposals from Rep. Caleb Rowden, a Republican from Columbia, that would prevent cities from requiring employers to offer workers more benefits and dictate reporting requirements for felons applying for jobs. The plans, Trapp said, are among "a plethora of initiatives proposed at the state level that interfere with local control."

For his part, Rowden said the state is in a better position to regulate business policy. "If every municipality is going to be on an island for these very significant business practices, it just doesn't work," he said.

Echoing that point was Rep. Dan Shaul, a Republican from Imperial, sponsor of the bill to block Columbia's proposed plastic bag ban, a measure aimed at protecting the environment.

Much of the local pushback has come from urban areas, such as Columbia, where city leaders have supported the "ban the box" plan, the bag ban and an effort to decriminalize marijuana possession.

Sen. Kurt Schaefer, a Columbia Republican, noted that he supports local control on issues such as education, but "when a municipality wants to enter into a business simply because they can charge people and make money, that's not an appropriate use of local control."

His comments referred to a state vs. local battle over ride-hailing companies such as Uber and Lyft. The services allow users to call for a ride using a smartphone app. Cities have sought to regulate the firms as they would cab or limo services, but many Republican lawmakers have sided with industry officials who say they're tech firms and should be regulated as such.

Kansas City Mayor Sly James, a Democrat, said that since those services are used in cities, they should be regulated by cities.

James said he understands why some state control is necessary to provide uniform standards, but he said that authority is being abused. "Don't tell us we can't have any impact on trying to help make the lives of the people in our city better," he said.

Rowden said state voters have favored conservative policy, and Republican lawmakers have a duty to uphold that. "What you've seen is local folks, liberal folks, who know that they're not going to be able to get their policies through at the state level are moving down to the local level," he said.

Still, Rep. Stephen Webber, a Columbia Democrat, said it was ideologically inconsistent for Republicans to push back against mandates, only to turn around and issue them.

"Republicans are in complete control of the state Capitol," he said, "and I think they're trying to consolidate power."