Greitens spars with lawmakers over Board of Education, moves to eliminate funding for LIHTC in FY2019
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – It’s been a busy week in the Governor’s Office, with Republican Governor Eric Greitens making several moves that have caught the attention of various groups across the state.
The biggest item of the week, turning headlines from all corners of the state, was the news concerning the Missouri State Board of Education. Just last week, the Governor had appointed a fifth member to the Board, producing an assumed majority vote needed to oust the commissioner, Dr. Margie Vandeven.
This week, the Governor and lawmakers sparred over the issue, with House Democrats questioning the legality of the attempted removal and saying Greitens had violated the law.
Governor’s Office, House Democrats spar over board appointment removal
Greitens’ spokesperson Parker Briden responded, saying “the House Democrats are flat wrong. Their press release is nothing more than a political stunt. The Missouri Constitution and state law clearly give Governor Greitens the power to withdraw recess appointments to the State Board of Education at any point prior to a confirmation vote in the Senate.”
“As we stated earlier, the governor knows little about state law and cares less, so it comes as no surprise that his attempt to legally justify the unlawful removal of a State Board of Education member fails miserably,” Minority Leader Gail McCann Beatty said. “It is a well-established rule of statutory construction that a specific law trumps a general one. So, while RSMo. 106.010 cited by the governor grants a general power to remove appointed officials, it is trumped by RSMo. 161.022.2, which specifically prohibits the governor from removing a state school board member without cause or due process.”
Several lawmakers called for the Board to stop the vote, or at the very least delay it.
State lawmakers call on Board of Education to ‘abandon efforts’ to oust Commissioner
At this time, some are questioning whether the Governor has the votes needed to oust Vandeven, which could mean that Greitens might replace the board members he has appointed if they do not vote to terminate the commissioner.
The State Board of Education is expected to have a closed-door meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 21.
The Governor also returned from his trip to Israel on Sunday, and on Tuesday, Greitens made a stop in Austin, Texas for the Republican Governors Association’s annual conference. While there, he spoke as part of a panel, titled “Disrupting the Mainstream Media.”
The Governor also appointed 27 new members to various boards working to protect children.
After issuing the press release, Greitens posted to Facebook, criticizing the “liberal media,” referencing an editorial written by the Kansas City Star’s editorial board which stated “Eric Greitens doesn’t care about schoolchildren any more than he cares about veterans, or the elderly, or the disabled, or college students, or other Missourians.”
But the latest move by Greitens could be the one to truly put some strain on the relationship between the Governor and other members of Missouri government. On Friday, the Governor called into the meeting of the Missouri Housing Development Commission and cast the final vote needed to approve a motion that would suspend funding for low-income housing tax credits, a move that Lt. Gov. Mike Parson and Sen. Jamilah Nasheed both spoke against prior to the vote.
Governor’s commissioners passes draft motion to not fund tax credits in FY2019
The Governor defended his stance in a Facebook post.
“This is the price we pay for the governor’s and attorney general’s inexperience. Instead of improving a program, they just throw it away. As a result, a lot of Missouri families who need affordable housing won’t be able to find it,” Senate Minority Leader Gina Walsh said in a statement. “I share Lt. Governor Parson’s frustration with the politics at play here, and I hope Gov. Greitens will get serious about his job to effectively manage state programs before even more Missourians are hurt.”
Benjamin Peters was a reporter for The Missouri Times and Missouri Times Magazine and also produced the #MoLeg Podcast. He joined The Missouri Times in 2016 after working as a sports editor and TV news producer in mid-Missouri. Benjamin is a graduate of Missouri State University in Springfield.
