Senate Holds Contentious Debate, Passes Bills Without DEIB Language
On Tuesday, April 25, the Missouri Senate convened to debate the state’s operating budgets. As anticipated, Sen. Denny Hoskins (R-Warrensburg) introduced a “global” amendment to replace the DEI/DEIB language that the Senate Appropriations Committee removed last week. This action would place the following language in all statewide budgets:
No funds shall be expended for intra-departmental “Diversity, Equity, Inclusion,” of “Diversity, Inclusion, Belonging” training, programs, staffing, hiring, or any other intra-departmental initiative which similarly promotes: 1) the preferential treatment of any individual or group of individuals based upon race, color, religion, sex, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, national origin, or ancestry; 2) the concept that disparities are necessarily tied to oppression; 3) collective guilt ideologies; 4) intersectional or divisive identity activism; or, 5) the limiting of freedom of conscience, thought, or speech. This does not prohibit the department from following federal and state employment and anti-discrimination laws.”
After off-floor discussions, points of order, and heated debates that went into the following morning, the Senate brought amended DEI/DEIB language for a vote; the amendment failed with 14 voting yay and 18 nay.
HB 3, MDHEWD’s operating budget, was later passed without further modifications. The Senate amended budget includes department priorities, including $2.5 million for a P20W data system, $3 million for Apprenticeship Missouri, the 7% core inflationary increase for public higher education institutions, and fully funding all financial aid programs administered by the department.
Next week, the House and Senate will conference on budget differences, leading to a final vote in both chambers. The House announced the following conferees on Thursday:
- Chairman Cody Smith (R-Carthage)
- Vice-chair Dirk Deaton (R-Noel)
- Ranking Minority Member Peter Merideth (D-St. Louis)
- Subcommittee on Appropriations - Education, Chairman Rep. Ed Lewis (R-Moberly)
- Subcommittee on Appropriations - Education, Ranking Minority Member Kevin Windham (D-Hillsdale)
The Senate conferees are not public at this time.
Senate Appropriations Postpones HB 17-20 Hearing Until Next Week
The Senate Appropriations Committee canceled its HB 17 (reappropriations), HB 19 (capital improvement), and HB 20 (American Rescue Plan Act) hearing on Thursday, April 27. The Committee will mark-up the legislation and quickly bring them before the Senate next week.
The deadline to pass all appropriations bills is Friday, May 5.
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