Other Republican legislators, such as Columbia Sen. Kurt Schaefer and St. Charles County Sen. Tom Dempsey, want to wait for more information before taking a stance on the Medicaid expansion.
"When you're looking at increases of potentially 100 or 200 million dollars that you have to find because of expansion, there is only one place where there is a pot of money big enough to take that, and that is public education," said Senate Appropriations Chair Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia.
Kelly and Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, are working on a nearly $1 billion bonding bill for the next session that would put the largest bond issue in state history before voters if it were passed.
Wrap: Democratic Representative Chris Kelly and Republican Senator Kurt Schaefer are working on a nearly one billion dollar bonding bill for the 2013 legislative session.
Silvey said he would be open a plan put forward by Senate Appropriations Chairman Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, that would charge the program's participants a $700 premium for insurance coverage. Schaefer's plan was rejected on the Senate floor when an amendment was adopted to restore funding for the program at its current level.
A group of nine Republican senators threatened the budget's passage and presented a list of demands to Senate Appropriations Chairman Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, before they would let the budget come to a vote.
Sen. Jim Lembke, R-St. Louis County, was one of the nine senators who blocked a vote. Lembke directed his criticism toward Senate Appropriations Chairman Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia.
Senate Appropriations Chairman Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, said this was probably the most difficult budget year ever. The budget in the Senate is $86 million below what the House had passed last month, but freezes funding for K-12 and higher education.
Cape Girardeau Republican Senator Jason Crowell blasted Senate Appropriations Chair Republican Kurt Schaefer saying Schaefer is just putting temporary patches in the budget and leaving the problem to future generations.
Among other changes the bill, sponsored by Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, would also change language regarding fines for violating the Sunshine Law. Currently, a knowing violation of the law could result in a fine up to $1,000. If passed, the bill would eliminate the requirement for a breach of the law to be a knowing violation and make the fine exactly $100.
Senate Appropriations Chairman Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, expressed support for the additional funds, while still criticizing the governor's initial planned cuts.
Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, sponsored Van Matre's nomination and withdrew it after opposition from members of his own party. Schaefer said Van Matre was qualified for the position, but that his appointment faced "insurmountable hills" in the Senate.
The more accurate figure caught the Senate Appropriations Chair Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, by surprised who agreed the 15.1 percent cut was the more accurate number.
Members of the Senate Appropriations Committee said in the past three years, more than 25 percent of cuts were to higher education funding -- leaving the rate of state aid equal to what it was in 1997. Cuts to higher education funding are proportionately higher than anything else in the state government, said committee chair Kurt Schaefer. R-Columbia.
Nixon's budget would cut funding for all four year public institutions by 15.1% from last year's budget. It would be the largest percentage cut to Missouri's public universities in the past two decades. Senate Appropriations Chair Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, called the cuts "unacceptable."
Senate Budget Chairman Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, said the increases were not applied to MU and Missouri State because, unlike the other universities, the schools are funded using statewide missions.
"When you're looking at increases of potentially 100 or 200 million dollars that you have to find because of expansion, there is only one place where there is a pot of money big enough to take that, and that is public education," said Senate Appropriations Chair Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia.
"When you're looking at increases of potentially 100 or 200 million dollars that you have to find because of expansion, there is only one place where there is a pot of money big enough to take that, and that is public education," said Senate Appropriations Chair Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia.
Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, said capital improvements will be a major theme in the next legislative session. He and Rep. Chris Kelly, D-Columbia, are working on a nearly $1 billion bonding bill to make improvements to the state's college campuses, mental health facilities, the state Capitol building and other infrastructure areas.
Rep. Chris Kelly, D-Columbia, and Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, are working on a bonding bill for the 2013 legislative session that would ask voters to pass the largest state bond issue in thirty years.
Rep. Chris Kelly, D-Columbia, and Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, are working on a bonding bill for the 2013 legislative session that would ask voters to pass the largest state bond issue in thirty years.
The Senate passed the bill over Nixon's objection 26-6, while the House passed it by a vote of 109-45. Only one Republican - Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia - in either chamber voted against the veto override. Seven Democrats joined 102 House Republicans in passing the law.
The Senate passed the bill over Nixon's objection 26-6, while the House passed it by a vote of 109-45. Only one Republican - Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia - in either chamber voted against the veto override. Seven Democrats joined 102 House Republicans in passing the law.
The state's $24 billion operating budget was held up on the Senate floor last week in an unprecedented move by nine Republican senators. The "gang of nine," as they have been dubbed by some fellow legislators, said they would hold up the budget process until a list of demands was met by Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, who is the Senate Budget Chair.
A group of nine Republican senators threatened the budget's passage and presented a list of demands to Senate Appropriations Chairman Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, before they would let the budget come to a vote.
Senate Appropriations Chairman Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, said this was probably the most difficult budget year ever. The budget in the Senate is $86 million below what the House had passed last month, but freezes funding for K-12 and higher education.
Even though the process has just begun and the House and Senate will need to meet in conference to discuss differences between their budgets, Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, said he would guarantee the state would have a balanced budget.
Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, sponsored Van Matre's nomination and withdrew it after opposition from members of his own party. Schaefer said Van Matre was qualified for the position, but that his appointment faced "insurmountable hills" in the Senate.
Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, sponsored Van Matre's nomination and withdrew it after opposition from members of his own party. Schaefer said Van Matre was qualified for the position, but that his appointment faced "insurmountable hills" in the Senate.
The more accurate figure caught the Senate Appropriations Chairman Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, by surprise. He agreed the 15.1 percent cut was the more accurate number.
Nixon's budget would cut all funding for four year institutions by 15.1 percent from last year's budget. It would be the largest percentage cut to Missouri's public universities in the past two decades. Senate Appropriations Chair Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, called the cuts "unacceptable."
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