Missouri lawmakers prepare for key budget talks
For last night's story on lawmakers looking back on recent work, read State leaders reflect on first half of legislative session.
'A lot of great things have happened, but there's another whole half of session to go,' said Governor Mike Kehoe, R-Missouri.
Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe points to the state's budget as the next big item to tackle.
'That will be a big issue as we come back from spring break, and I'm really grateful that the House and Senate members are letting me work with them and their membership to understand what Missourian's priorities are,' said Kehoe.
State Representative Lane Roberts says preparing that budget can often be a thankless task.
'They have a yeoman's job, this year, working on that budget. That's by far the busiest, most difficult committee in the house,' said State Rep. Lane Roberts, R-Joplin.
State Representative Bob Bromley says because the legislature has worked efficiently this year, a lot of priority items, like a crime bill, have already made it through both chambers.
'So we're going to try to do a lot of cleanup on things that are not just important to the entire state, but to our constituents back home,' said State Rep. Bob Bromley, R-Carl Junction.
Unofficially, the mid-way point of session is known as 'turn around', when bills have made it through one chamber, and will now get worked in the other.
'I know that we have probably 30 plus Senate bills on our side to work through,' said Roberts.
On the other side of the Capitol, Senator Jill Carter is hoping the chamber will look at 'education freedom.'
'Ensuring that our public teachers and our local schools are able to work with the school boards and the communities and the parents in those schools to actually have the school represent what it is that our communities and parents want for kids,' said Senator Jill Carter, 32nd District.
Off the floor of the chambers, committee work will be happening.
State Representative Ben Baker, who chairs the House Committee on Government Efficiency, says he'll be asking a lot of questions.
'Examining and investigating some of the departments, bringing them in, asking some really tough questions to the departments regarding efficiency and budgets and things like that,' said State Rep. Ben Baker, R-Neosho.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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