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Final week in the Senate: May 13-14

During the last week of the session, The Missouri Times will bring you updates of all floor activity of each chamber. Below is all the floor activity in the Senate beginning on Monday, May 13. For live updates on the House, click here.

The Senate adjourned at 6:52 p.m.


SB 174Senate refuses to concur to House changes 


SB 54Senate refuses to concur to House changes 


SB 36, Senate refuses to concur to House changes 


SB 83, grandparent visitations, exceed differences in conference 


HB 219, relating to relating to health care, passed with 33-0 vote

The bill, championed by Rep. David Wood, changes the sunset on the Ticket to Work Health Assurance Program. The bill now goes back to the House.


HB 399, relating to health care, passed with 33-0 vote

Championed by Rep. Chuck Basye and Sen. Denny Hoskins, the bill looks to complete an issue that was partially addressed in 2010 when lawmakers voted to require insurance policies cover therapies for children with autism. It would expand the existing autism mandate to cover other developmental disabilities.

The bill now goes back to the House.

Lawmakers look to have insurance plans cover therapies for kids with disabilities


HB 477, relating to coroners, passed with 33-0 vote

The bill now goes back to the House.


HB 499, transportation, third read and passed

The bill requires an automatic driver’s license revocation when a driver strikes a highway worker in a construction or work zone or when a driver strikes an emergency responder in an emergency zone.

The bill now goes back to the House.


SB 68, workforce development, TAFP with 25-8 vote

Championed by Sen. Lincoln Hough, the bill makes changes to the Missouri One Start Program. The House also attached the General Motors incentive package to the measure.

GM workforce development bill survives Senate conservatives’ marathon filibuster


Conservative Caucus ends nearly 30-hour filibuster of workforce development bill

Sen. Bill Eigel kicked off Monday’s session by calling on the General Assembly to compromise — and thus kicked off an overnight, Conservative Caucus-led filibuster of a House-amended economic development proposal.

Last week, the House voted in favor SB 68, establishing the Missouri One Start Program, with incentives spurred by a potential $1 billion investment from General Motors in its Wentzville plant and the inclusion of a controversial Fast Track grant program.

“Where SB 68 falls short is the fact that they have added things to SB 68 which clearly, in my mind, are not necessary for the overall GM deal,” Eigel said.

The caucus held up the approval of the journal — an otherwise mundane activity — to protest the legislation for almost 28 hours, in what became the longest filibuster of the year.

“SB 68 says the government knows what’s best for you,” Eigel said, arguing the former Soviet Union “went broke” because it believed “the government knew better than the people” at the time. “SB 68 is a step along that direction.”

Members of the Conservative Caucus held court on the Senate floor in overnight shifts, with some reading from books: Sen. Andrew Koenig read a few chapters of “I Don’t Have Enough Faith to be an Atheist” by Tuesday morning; Sen. Denny Hoskins read from “The Case for Trump,” a book he picked up at a local bookstore earlier this week; Sen. Eric Burlison read from “In Search of Self-Governance.”

During the earlier hours of the filibuster, the House passed a scaled-back version of an incentive package that didn’t include Fast Track or a closing fund. The conservative senators urged the Senate to take up that legislation — as opposed to SB 68 — and promised a favorable and quick vote. However, GM officials are not on board with the scaled-back plan, sources have said.

Several quorum calls occurred throughout the night — but Sen. Jamilah Nasheed noticeably wasn’t behind most of them. The Democrat said on Twitter she didn’t have the “energy” because she is fasting for Ramadan.

Eigel had kicked off the floor filibuster by calling for some give and take: “This is the week for compromise. This is the week where, if folks aren’t willing to compromise, we’ll be disappointed by the results of this week.”

Just before 6 p.m. Tuesday, the Conservative Caucus yielded the floor and allowed for the approval of the journal. Eigel said: “It’s time to turn our discussion and attention for the time we have left to protecting human life.” 

House approves incentive package aimed to attracted GM Wentzville expansion


Senate gavels in at 2:35 p.m.

The legislative day officially got underway shortly after 2:30 p.m. with a prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance on Monday.