HB253 and Nixon’s Port Ploy

Two JeffCo legislators, Elaine Gannon (R – 115) and Jeff Roorda (D – 113) are at the center of the move to override Governor Jay Nixon’s veto of the tax cut bill, HB 253, that the legislature passed this session. Gannon was one of three Republicans to vote against it, and Roorda was one of three Democrats to vote for it. Both of their votes are up in the air right now as the veto session approaches (it begins September 11).

One major legislative accomplishment of local interest this session was the allocation of $421,667 for a Jefferson County port. This allocation passed despite ‘no’ votes from all JeffCo Dems (they didn’t like the 8-month Dept. of Revenue funding that was part of the same bill). Now, though, this money is on hold. Nixon froze $400 million of spending for the (bogus, IMO) reason that the tax cut, if it becomes law, will drain state coffers. This is despite the fact that the tax cut would be phased in in a manner dependent on state revenues. Included in this $400 million is the money for the JeffCo port.

One has to wonder if this particular funding item was frozen in order to encourage Gannon and Roorda to vote no on the tax override. This move would allow them to say, “I voted against the tax cut to save the port money,” which might be a powerful argument. It would be interesting to see if spending that is important to Reps. Hodges and Schieffer (the other two Dems to vote for the cut) or Reps. Hampton and Fowler (the other two GOPers to vote no) was included in the freeze.

One must ask though, why has Nixon been so cavalier about issues important to his home county? He vetoed the bill protecting Doe Run from excessive liability and allow it to build a new facility. He was also criticized for his lack of response to flooding this spring in his home town of De Soto. It would seem that the potential benefits of having a governor from our county have not been realized.