THROW RASCALS OUT? IT WON'T HAPPEN THIS YEAR IN MISSOURI

Despite all the talk about throwing the rascals out of legislative chambers, there will be plenty of familiar faces in the Missouri General Assembly when it convenes for a new session next January. While the terms of state representatives end every two years, and thus all area up for renewal at the polls in November, the terms of only one-half of the 34-member Missouri Senate expire this year.

In the lower chamber, 43 Democrats and 25 Republicans are assured of taking the oath of office next year because they have no opponents in either the August primary or the November general election. The represents 42 percent of the membership.

On the Senate side, two Democrats and two Republicans will get a free re-election ride in both the primary and general, while five incumbents, four of them Democrats, have drawn opponents in both elections. In addition to the 17 Senate seats to be filled, an additional seat will be filled because of the resignation of Sen. Edwin Dirck of St. Louis.

Observers who keep close tabs on such matters say that unless there is widespread voter opposition to legislative incumbents, more than 60 percent of the membership in both houses will be returned to office. They further predict Democrats will retain their control of the bicameral legislature.

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Ashcroft Accounting: Despite some pickup in Department of Revenue collections, Gov. Ashcroft decided to play it safe and withheld 7 percent, rather than the statutory 3 percent, of the funds appropriated by this year's General Assembly. Saying revenue collections were below earlier expectations, the chief executive vetoed and withheld $41.1 million in an effort to bring spending in line with the reduced revenue estimate.

Despite this, Missouri's budget for fiscal year that began July 1 will exceed $10 billion for the first time in state history. Jefferson City will spend $10.4 billion in the fiscal year that began July 1, with $1.15 billion going to elementary/secondary schools through the foundation program.

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Budget busting: Gov. Ashcroft's signature on the FY 1993 budget the other day committed spending totaling $10.4 billion. Just four years ago, the state was preparing to spend $7.06 billion during FY 1989.

If the totals continue to increase at their rate during the past four years, by the year 2000, Missouri's government will have a budget in excess of $16.7 billion.

Believe it or not, there are Missourians still living who can remember when the state's total spending reached $1 million. As of a matter of fact, the figure was so shocking to some citizens that efforts were made in the very next session of the General Assembly to roll back the total so state spending would be under $1 million.

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Abominable Anniversary: Speaking of the growth of state budgets over the years, another anniversary occurred on the very day the state began its new fiscal year: July 1. It was just 75 years ago, on July 1, 1917, that the state's first income tax went into effort. The rate was one-half of 1 percent!