Tagged: gov. jay nixon

Lawyers for Missouri's governor and auditor are battling before the state Supreme Court over the governor's power to make spending cuts.

The Supreme Court was to hear arguments Wednesday on the constitutionality of about $170 million of budget cuts announced by Gov. Jay Nixon in June 2011 and challenged by Auditor Tom Schweich (schwyk).
The case is an appeal of a July decision by a Cole County judge, who ruled that Nixon had a legal right to cut spending but also said that Nixon should not have been able to transfer money among various budgeted purposes.

Proponents of a Medicaid expansion will get their say at the Missouri Capitol — even if they don't get their way.

A House committee is scheduled to hear testimony Monday on a Democratic proposal to expand eligibility for the Medicaid health care program to an estimated 260,000 additional lower-income adults. The plan has the support of Gov. Jay Nixon and is called for by President Barack Obama's health care law.

But the Republican-led Legislature has generally opposed the Medicaid expansion.

Cities and counties would be able to resume collecting taxes on cars that were not purchased at Missouri dealers under a bill passed by the Senate.

The Senate voted 28-0 to send the bill to the House on Monday.

A Missouri Supreme Court decision last year has prohibited local governments from collecting sales taxes on cars bought from out-of-state dealers or from a private sale between Missouri residents.

Lawmakers in the Missouri House and Senate continue to grill members of Governor Jay Nixon’s (D) administration as to why it was necessary to spend $5.6 million on a new airplane.

Colonel Ron Replogle of the Missouri State Highway Patrol told Senate budget writers on Wednesday that he made the call to buy the King Air 250.

Gov. Jay Nixon's plan to expand Medicaid health care coverage in Missouri has encountered a new wrinkle of opposition from some lawmakers.

Members of the Senate Appropriations Committee raised concerns Monday that the Medicaid expansion could hurt the state's credit rating.