Lawmakers Gather in Jefferson City to Begin Session

Lawmakers returned to Jefferson City this week to begin the second regular session of the 101st General Assembly. Top on the list of priorities for the legislators will be agreeing to a map setting out the geographical areas that make up the eight federal Congressional districts, the districts defining the territories represented by Missouri’s eight members of the U.S. House of Representatives. These maps are redrawn every ten years after the U.S. Census is undertaken. It is anticipated that the districts will be drawn in such a way as to result in Missouri sending six Republicans and two Democrats to Washington in 2022, assuming voting trends follow those in the last few election cycles.  

Also on the legislators’ agenda is a supplemental budget bill to fund expansion of the Medicaid program as approved by voters in November 2020 and passing legislation directing how the COVID stimulus money received from the federal government will be spent. There has been talk of spending money to modernize the state’s IT systems, which are badly in need of updating, as well as expanding I-70, among other priorities.  So far, over 1,400 bills have been filed between the House and the Senate, so be sure to stay tuned to updates from the MCC as the session progresses