State of Maine: Concept draft vagueness weakens the process
Welcome to a legislative rabbit hole the concept draft. It is a way of submitting legislation that is much abused, though it had merit as originally designed. What if this newspaper’s editor accepted “concept columns”? Title: “Concept Drafts.” Column, in its entirety: “Concept drafts may be good or bad.” It states a point of view but doesn’t give readers their money’s worth.
Smoke-filled rooms, back room deals, ramming things through or shoving things down people’s throats are highly overrated. The process from the outside may be hard to follow, but there is almost always a defensible explanation for what happens in Augusta, when, and why. Legislators individually and the Legislature collectively follow the rules. It is too easy to be called out by the loyal opposition if they don’t.
Supporting Our Troops
This week, the General Assembly sent the second completed bill of the 2021 legislative session to the governor’s desk. Senate Bill 2, which was passed by the Senate in January, received final approval from the House of Representatives. This measure expands the Missouri Works jobs creation program, allowing part-time military jobs to be eligible for tax incentives. The aim of the legislation is to make Missouri military facilities more attractive to Pentagon planners by reducing payroll costs. Currently, a Missouri Air National Guard base in St. Joseph is in the running to host a new air evacuation unit.
Citing constituents’ concerns, members of the legislature’s Bipartisan Commission on Intellectual Disabilities and the Impact of COVID-19 have urged Gov. Ned Lamont to provide COVID-19 vaccinations to those with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Sens. Cathy Osten, D-Sprague, and Paul Formica, R-East Lyme, are among the six members of the commission, which was created under the Joint Rules of the Senate at the start of the legislative session.
“We believe that this vulnerable population should have been prioritized to receive the vaccine as soon as possible or as originally planned under Phase 1B due to elevated health concerns and not based on the new age-based plan that was announced recently,” the commission wrote in a March 3 letter to Lamont and Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz.
We’ve faced the ravages of a global pandemic and economic crisis for over a year, marshaling as much courage and patience as humanly possible. Municipal leaders, health care and frontline workers, small businesses, educators, young people, and more.
We’ve faced the ravages of a global pandemic and economic crisis for over a year, marshaling as much courage and patience as humanly possible. Municipal leaders, health care and frontline workers, small businesses, educators, young people, and more.