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Mo. House panel endorses spending limit proposal

Marshall Griffin
/
St. Louis Public Radio

A Missouri House committee has passed a proposed constitutional amendment that would place caps on all state spending. 

The measure would prevent lawmakers from increasing state spending more than the rate of inflation. They would also have to take population growth into effect when writing the state budget.  It’s sponsored by GOP House Member Eric Burlison of Springfield.

“This money, we shouldn’t forget that the end of the day it’s coming from taxpayers," he said. "It’s coming from people that could be spending that money on their own home budgets, and so they expect nothing less from us than to be very responsible with the money.”

The resolution passed the House Budget Committee 20 to 9.  All nine “no” votes came from Democrats, who argued that finding new sources of revenue would be a better solution than telling lawmakers how much they can or cannot spend. 

Missouri Public Radio State House Reporter Marshall Griffin is a proud alumnus of the University of Mississippi (a.k.a., Ole Miss), and has been in radio for over 20 years, starting out as a deejay. His big break in news came when the first President Bush ordered the invasion of Panama in 1989. Marshall was working the graveyard shift at a rock station, and began ripping news bulletins off the old AP teletype and reading updates between songs. From there on, his radio career turned toward news reporting and anchoring. In 1999, he became the capital bureau chief for Florida's Radio Networks, and in 2003 he became News Director at WFSU-FM/Florida Public Radio. During his time in Tallahassee he covered seven legislative sessions, Governor Jeb Bush's administration, four hurricanes, the Terri Schiavo saga, and the 2000 presidential recount. Before coming to Missouri, he enjoyed a brief stint in the Blue Ridge Mountains, reporting and anchoring for WWNC-AM in Asheville, North Carolina. Marshall lives in Jefferson City with his wife, Julie, their dogs, Max and Mason, and their cat, Honey.
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