Senate Democrats filibuster bill to end majority rule

By SHERI GASSAWAY
Assistant Editor

A decision on a Republican bill that would end majority rule in Missouri has been delayed by Senate Democrats by filibuster.

The Senate debated the bill for two days last week before adjourning for the week Feb. 13 for the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl victory parade In Kansas City and the Republicans’ Lincoln Days event, also in Kansas City. The bill was expected to be brought back to the Senate floor again this week.

‘MAY COME DOWN TO VOTERS’
“I think that between the Senate and the House, some kind of legislation to change the initiative petition process may go through,” said Missouri AFL-CIO President Jake Hummel. “But any changes to the initiative petition process would have to be approved statewide by voters, and it may come down to voters choosing to decide if they want their constitutional right taken away.”

The proposed measure, SJR 74, is a combination of several similar bills introduced by Republicans to sabotage the initiative petition process by ending majority rule on constitutional amendments by voters. It is sponsored by Rep. Mary Coleman (R-Arnold).

Under current law, it takes only a simple majority to change the state constitution. SJR 74 would require all proposed constitutional amendments to win a simple majority statewide as well as a majority in five of eight congressional districts.

‘SCARED TO DEATH’
“The Republican Party is actively trying to change the process because they’re scared to death that people will actually get to voice their opinion,” Senate Minority Leader John Rizzo (D-Independence) said in an article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Meanwhile, House Republicans are considering a similar bill. Last week, the Republican-led House Elections and Elected Officials Committee approved its own version of a proposal to make it harder to alter the state constitution.

The legislation, sponsored by Reps. John Black (R-Marshfield) and Ed Lewis (R-Moberly) also would require changes to the constitution to receive a majority of votes statewide and in a majority of the state’s congressional districts.

Republicans have been trying to make citizen-led initiative petitions more difficult to pass over the last few years because voters have approved several progressive ballot questions using the initiative petition process, including Medicaid expansion, increasing the state minimum wage and legalizing marijuana.

ADAMENT
Hard-line Republican are adamant on passing some kind of legislation to advance changes to the initiative petition because because of a pro-abortion rights campaign collecting signatures to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot later this year.

They are hoping the initiative petition changes will appear on the August ballot so if an abortion question was put before voters in November, it would be more difficult to approve.

(Some information for this story from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch)