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Missouri Unemployment Bill Seems Poised for Veto Override

Missouri Capitol Building
j.stephenconn
/
Flickr
Missouri Statehouse in Jefferson City

Enough Missouri senators appear to support an unemployment bill to vote to overturn Democratic Governor Jay Nixon's veto. 

Sponsoring Senator Mike Kehoe says he plans to press for the override during the veto session on Sept. 16th, and three senators who were absent when the bill originally passed told The Associated Press that they support the bill. If everyone who originally voted for the bill does so again, those previously absent senators would provide enough votes to meet the two-thirds majority needed for an override.

The measure would cut unemployment benefits to as low as 13 weeks from the current 20 weeks depending on the state's jobless rate. Republican backers say it would reduce the burden on business owners, who now pay for the state's unemployment fund. Democrats criticized the measure as hurting struggling Missourians.

The Associated Press is one of the largest and most trusted sources of independent newsgathering, supplying a steady stream of news to its members, international subscribers and commercial customers. AP is neither privately owned nor government-funded; instead, it's a not-for-profit news cooperative owned by its American newspaper and broadcast members.