YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY
Springfield, MO
YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY
Springfield, MO
A new state legislative session helped ring in the new year as lawmakers returned to Jefferson City on Jan. 6. Following the kickoff, several area lawmakers and the head of the state chamber of commerce identified at least a half-dozen key business issues in 2016. Their targets are tort reform, labor relations, transportation and education funding, right to work and workforce development.
“The litigious climate in Missouri is a definite black eye that employers unfortunately know all too well,” said Dan Mehan, president and CEO of the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry, putting tort reform among the organization’s top priorities.
In December, the American Tort Reform Association ranked Missouri fourth in the country on its list of “judicial hellholes.” The list, produced since 2002, analyzes what the association considers to be unfair handling of civil litigation.
Calling Missouri the “Show-Me Your Lawsuits State,” the tort reform advocate cites a reputation for not implementing civil justice reforms, the opportunity to utilize improper science as testimony and a judicial nominating process it sees as often unfair.
Mehan said labor relations is a problem for business owners, pointing to a Gallup survey the chamber commissioned last year. Only around 1 in 4 employers of the 1,000 respondents statewide felt satisfied labor relations allow them to scale operations as needed.
“With small employers, they could be a lawsuit away from going out of business,” Mehan said.
Among its legislative priorities related to legal reforms, the state chamber is calling for Missouri to align its discrimination standards with federal law; establish a cap on civil lawsuits; ensure only qualified professionals are allowed to testify as expert witnesses in court cases; and eliminate the joint and several liability standard, an incentive the chamber says can add expensive litigation costs to businesses.
Mehan said workforce development and fully funding the state’s education foundation formula are also important issues. According to the Gallup survey released in February, only 15 percent of employers agreed that high schools adequately prepare students for the workforce and 44 percent were satisfied with the available skilled workforce.
Sen. Jay Wasson, R-Nixa, agreed with the workforce and education priorities, speaking at a Jan. 8 legislative forecast at University Plaza Hotel & Convention Center. Organized by law firm Lathrop & Gage LLP, the meeting also featured Springfield Reps. Eric Burlison and Lincoln Hough.
“As soon as I leave here, I’m going to meet with some folks at the (Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce) and we’re going to talk about job training,” Wasson said, adding many southern states have developed effective job-training programs, and similar efforts in the Show-Me State could help brings jobs to Missouri.
Burlison, a Republican, said he’ll again push for the right-to-work legislation that last year cleared the Missouri legislature but didn’t pass the governor’s desk.
“While the bill, right to work, did not ultimately make it into state law, the issue and the problems do not go away,” Burlison said, referencing individuals who indicate feelings of hostile work environments but limited opportunities to do similar work in companies outside of a union. “For me, the issue is larger than the economics of it.”
Right-to-work laws typically prohibit a company and a union from signing a contract requiring workers to unionize. According to the survey provided by the chamber, 54 percent of Missouri employers support right-to-work legislation and 22 percent are opposed.
The state chamber supports it, and Mehan suggested this year lawmakers could override a veto, if necessary. “It would send a message that Missouri is open for business,” Mehan said. “The votes are there.”
Rep. Charlie Norr, D-Springfield, said right to work isn’t the answer for Missouri because undermining unions would only diminish the state’s skilled workforce and attract fewer employers from outside of the state. “We ought to change that phrasing to ‘the right to work for lower wages,’” Norr said. “They’re looking for better training; they’re looking for locations with infrastructure – highways and those things – when looking to invest in a state.”
Norr concurs with Republicans and the state chamber’s support of a transportation funding fix, namely through Senate Bill 623. Sponsored by Sen. Doug Libla, R-Poplar Bluff, the legislation would raise the state gasoline tax by 1.5 cents to 18.8 cents per gallon and diesel tax by 3.5 cents to 20.8 cents per gallon.
“That, of course, would help small businesses stay active and open because if you can’t get there, they’re not going to survive,” Norr said. “So, we’re going to be able to maintain our roads, hopefully, when they get this tax increase on fuel. It’s supposed to generate $56 million a year, and we need that in order to get matching funds from the government.”
Last year, Missouri Department of Transportation’s fiscal 2016 budget for construction of roads and bridges was around $685 million, and fiscal 2017 projections dropped it to $325 million. However, MoDOT Special Assignments Coordinator Bob Brendel said an upswing in state revenue from fuel taxes and sales tax revenue from motor vehicle sales has bumped the ’17 construction budget to roughly $700 million. By comparison, the 2009 road-and-bridge budget was at $1.3 billion with the support of federal stimulus funds. “We need to view this as an asset and something that needs to be invested in,” Mehan said.
Dame Chiropractic LLC emerged as the new name of Harshman Chiropractic Clinic LLC with the purchase of the business; Leo Kim added a second venture, Keikeu LLC, to 14 Mill Market; and Mercy Springfield Communities opened its second primary care clinic in Ozark.
