Latest news with #MissouriHouse
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Retired educators to continue substitute teaching in Missouri without losing benefits
State Rep. Stephanie Boykin, D-Hazelwood, speaks on the Missouri House floor during the final week of the 2025 legislative session (Tim Bommel/Missouri House Communications). Missouri lawmakers have extended a rule allowing retired teachers to serve as substitutes without losing their retirement allowance. This measure is part of efforts to fill classrooms during a statewide teacher shortage. The state legislature first took notice of the issue in 2022, when the COVID-19 pandemic chiseled away at the teacher workforce. They passed a law that, among other provisions, encouraged retirees to become substitutes and set an expiration date of June 2025. In May, lawmakers voted to extend the sunset to 2030 as part of a bipartisan education package currently awaiting the governor's signature. State Rep. Ed Lewis, a Republican from Moberly and chair of the House Education Committee, was part of the effort to pass the legislation in 2022. 'It is definitely something that needed to happen,' he told The Independent. 'And really needed, this year, to be revisited.' Lewis credits state Rep. Stephanie Boykin, a Democrat from Hazelwood, for bringing the issue to his attention. Boykin was one of a handful of lawmakers who filed a bill to extend the law's sunset, and she got the legislation added onto a large Senate bill during committee work. 'It is a win for that retired teacher that doesn't have to be concerned about being penalized or having to come out of retirement,' she told The Independent. 'And, of course, it is a big win for our students to have a teacher with knowledge and with an educational background.' This provision is different from a statute allowing retirees to work full-time. Since 2003, retired teachers have been able to return full-time for two years, which lawmakers increased to four years in 2023. Missouri has been loosening requirements for substitute teachers while it struggles to find educators, reducing the amount of college credit required to be certified as a substitute and providing an alternative certification course online. Many of these efforts emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic, but the shortage remains today. At the beginning of the 2024-25 school year, there were over 12,000 vacant teacher spots of which 9% went unfilled and 12% were filled by teachers without the proper certification, according to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. But veteran teachers are stepping up. In the 2023-24 school year, 4,500 retired educators served as substitutes, according to data from the Public School and Education Employee Retirement Systems of Missouri. The average monthly benefit for retirees in the Public School Retirement System is around $3,800 a month. With most substitute gigs paying $101-$125 a day, retirees would lose money to come out of retirement to substitute. Without the law securing retirement allowances, Lewis says there would be widespread vacancies. 'There would be open positions that would not get filled around the state,' he said. 'Many of them we would have completely unqualified people in those positions, when you have perfectly qualified people who might be a little bit older but have tons of experience.' Over two-thirds of Missouri substitute roles were filled by those ages 50 and older in 2024, according to a Department of Elementary and Secondary Education survey. 'It makes a difference when you have that experience there, versus someone that might like children but they are just looking for a job and they don't mind being there,' Boykin said. 'But nothing can take the place of an experienced teacher.' Boykin understood the benefits of having retirees back in the classroom, she said, as a former educator of nine years. 'We want to remove any barriers from experienced teachers filling that gap,' she said. 'And that is what this bill does.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Missouri House releases special session schedule
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — The Missouri House of Representatives has announced the schedule for its special session next week in Jefferson City. According to Ben Peters, the director of communications for the House, the special session will begin Monday afternoon and end on Wednesday. The first two sessions are referred to as 'technical sessions,' which means the House is in session but only to advance legislation on the calendar or other matters that do not require a vote. Last week, the Missouri Senate approved Senate Bill 3, which clears the way for stadium financing that could keep the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals in Missouri. It's expected that the House will take up its version of the bill next week.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Missouri eyes free college tuition for public safety personnel and dependents
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — New legislation headed for the governor's desk would provide free tuition in Missouri for a wide-range of public safety personnel if approved, a new tool designed to address staffing shortages and boost recruitment. Senate Bill 71, sponsored by Sen. David Gregory, R-St. Louis, would provide college tuition awards for public safety personnel such as police officers, firefighters, paramedics, telecommunicators, first responders, emergency medical technicians or advanced emergency medical technicians. Public safety personnel with at least six years of service shall be entitled to an award worth up to 100% of the resident tuition charges, including fees, for an institution of higher education located in Missouri. The legal dependent of public safety personnel with at least ten years of service is also eligible for a tuition award if he or she executes an agreement with the institution of higher education outlining the terms and conditions of the tuition award, including the legal dependent's commitment to reside in Missouri for the next five years. Buchanan County Sheriff Bill Puett called the measure a new and innovative" tool that would not only benefit public safety personnel and the departments they work for, but the communities they serve by offering new ways to recruit and retain valuable officers in Missouri. "This is a good hand in glove kind of concept because the more we train, the more we educate our staff, the better they serve the community," he said. "It's a win-win. It keeps our folks here in the state of Missouri and it allows our universities that have really quality programs to continue to prosper." Puett said the measure would focus on degree programs designed specifically for public safety and public safety-oriented fields. Individuals who have already earned a baccalaureate degree are ineligible to use the tuition award to earn another degree. The measure passed both the Missouri House and Senate this legislative session and now awaits approval from Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe. The governor has identified fighting crime and enhancing public safety as a top priority. "Kudos to the governor, Department of Public Safety and the legislature because the governor came in with a law enforcement priority and he is holding true to those values," Puett said. "This is one of the planks in that effort to recruit and retain good law enforcement officers for our state. Puett said if the measure is ultimately approved, the department would look to utilize it immediately, helping them save local tax dollars that are currently used for tuition assistance. According to a fiscal analysis, the measure would lead to a decrease of roughly $3.4 million in general revenue funding. Four St. Joseph Police officers talk at the scene of a shooting at 16th and Grand streets in 2024 in St. Joseph. Cameron Montemayor | News-Press NOW
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Missouri eyes free college tuition for public safety personnel and dependents
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — New legislation headed for the governor's desk would provide free tuition in Missouri for a wide-range of public safety personnel if approved, a new tool designed to address staffing shortages and boost recruitment. Senate Bill 71, sponsored by Sen. David Gregory, R-St. Louis, would provide college tuition awards for public safety personnel such as police officers, firefighters, paramedics, telecommunicators, first responders, emergency medical technicians or advanced emergency medical technicians. Public safety personnel with at least six years of service shall be entitled to an award worth up to 100% of the resident tuition charges, including fees, for an institution of higher education located in Missouri. The legal dependent of public safety personnel with at least ten years of service is also eligible for a tuition award if he or she executes an agreement with the institution of higher education outlining the terms and conditions of the tuition award, including the legal dependent's commitment to reside in Missouri for the next five years. Buchanan County Sheriff Bill Puett called the measure a new and innovative" tool that would not only benefit public safety personnel and the departments they work for, but the communities they serve by offering new ways to recruit and retain valuable officers in Missouri. "This is a good hand in glove kind of concept because the more we train, the more we educate our staff, the better they serve the community," he said. "It's a win-win. It keeps our folks here in the state of Missouri and it allows our universities that have really quality programs to continue to prosper." Puett said the measure would focus on degree programs designed specifically for public safety and public safety-oriented fields. Individuals who have already earned a baccalaureate degree are ineligible to use the tuition award to earn another degree. The measure passed both the Missouri House and Senate this legislative session and now awaits approval from Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe. The governor has identified fighting crime and enhancing public safety as a top priority. "Kudos to the governor, Department of Public Safety and the legislature because the governor came in with a law enforcement priority and he is holding true to those values," Puett said. "This is one of the planks in that effort to recruit and retain good law enforcement officers for our state. Puett said if the measure is ultimately approved, the department would look to utilize it immediately, helping them save local tax dollars that are currently used for tuition assistance. According to a fiscal analysis, the measure would lead to a decrease of roughly $3.4 million in general revenue funding. Four St. Joseph Police officers talk at the scene of a shooting at 16th and Grand streets in 2024 in St. Joseph. Cameron Montemayor | News-Press NOW
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Missouri Senate passes stadium funding bill overnight
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Missouri Senate worked into the early-morning hours Thursday to pass a trio of bills, one of which will provide funding for stadium projects for both the Kansas City Royals and the Chiefs. The vote for Senate Bill 3 came in at 2:30 a.m. with 19 voting for it and 13 against it. Getting to this point hasn't been easy, and that theme continued. Download WDAF+ for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV The tension from the regular session has carried over into the special session. But with time working against them, state lawmakers managed to find enough common ground to vote through the Show Me Sports Investment Act. The bill sets the framework for which the Royals and the Chiefs could use to pay back some of the costs for new and renovated venues. Construction bonds would be paid back using tax money generated at the stadiums and would cover up to 50% of the cost to build it. The teams would have to qualify to have access to that money. The stadiums would need to be built for football or baseball, have more than 30,000 seats and cost at least half a billion dollars. Missouri news: Headlines from St. Louis, Jefferson City and across the Show-Me State Senate Bill 3 does not have the words 'Royals' or 'Chiefs' in it, but a big reason for the calling of this special session was to find a way to keep both teams in the state and counter the plans of Kansas lawmakers. Nearly a year ago, the Kansas legislature approved a bill to utilize STAR bonds to cover stadium construction costs. The Missouri Senate has adjourned and is expected to convene again June 16. The Missouri House is set to vote on bill next. Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas issued the following statement hours after the vote Thursday via X: 'I thank the Missouri Senate for its work in special session, passing proposals supporting disaster relief in Eastern Missouri, funding key education and health initiatives for our future, and competitiveness for sports and entertainment retention and attraction in Missouri. I am grateful for the attention and investment of time to be provided next by the Missouri House on this important bipartisan work building a responsible future and opportunity for our state and its people.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
