This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Oct. 25, 2011 - Around noon Tuesday, the Missouri Senate officially shut down until January -- ending what all sides agree was a largely non-productive seven-week special legislative session that failed to fulfill its chief objective of passing a broad-based economic development package.
Haggling between the Senate and House had put the measure's chances in doubt for weeks, but it wasn't until last week that leaders in both chambers agreed to call it quits.
The session would have died on its own Nov. 5, but Senate President Pro Tem Rob Mayer, R-Dexter, opted Tuesday to close down the Senate early. (Click here to listento the Senate's one-minute summary of today's final actions.)
Mayer told reporters in the state Capitol afterward that he hoped the General Assembly, when it returns in January, would revisit the issues of how to spur economic development and revamp the state's increasingly costly tax credit programs.
The key hangup had been the Senate's insistence on imposing sunsets of five or seven years on the state's tax incentives -- particularly the largest, which encourage construction of low-income housing and historic preservation.
House leaders were opposed to sunsets unless provisions were in place so a handful of senators couldn't block the reauthorization of popular and productive tax-break programs.
According to a Tweet from spokeswoman Farrah Fite, Mayer said he was "extremely disappointed the House and Senate were unable to bridge the gap on sunsets on tax credits." Still, Mayer added, he "thought it was worth the risk to go into special session to work to pass a bill to help put Missourians back to work."
House Speaker Steve Tilley, R-Perryville, has maintained that there would have no risk, if Mayer had stuck to the deal that the House leader thought had been struck during the summer.
Tilley has emphasized that the House passed all the bills that were to be dealt with during the special session, while the Senate passed only two measures approved by the House.
The two special session successes:
- A bill that revamped the so-called Facebook Law so that teachers and students could still communicate online, as long as their school districts approve the practice.
- A measure setting up tax incentives for a new Missouri Science and Innovation Reinvestment Act, aimed at encouraging science-related jobs and businesses.
Aside from the economic development package, the two chambers failed to agree on a bill that would have given St. Louis control of its police department and a measure to move Missouri's presidential primary to March. Both matters died in the Senate.
Also killed: a provision in the economic development packages passed by both chambers that would have earmarked $60 million in tax breaks to encourage freight forwarders to direct overseas cargo traffic to Lambert St. Louis International Airport, which is hoping to persuade China to locate a cargo hub at the airport.