Business issues up for debate in Capitol veto session

Missouri legislators head back to the state Capitol today for the annual veto session, which includes a number of business-related issues.

A Republican super majority in Missouri Congress meets today starting at noon.

Tax breaks
Ten bills giving sales tax exemptions to things such as manufactured homes, data processing centers and dry cleaners are a central issue heading into the session.

Nixon vetoed the tax breaks in June and wrote in repeated veto letters that the bills would "pick winners and losers and shift a great proportion of the tax burden to the majority of Missourians unable to utilize such loopholes."

Senate President Pro Tem Tom Dempsey, R-St. Charles, disagreed.

"We have done our due diligence as legislators to protect Missouri taxpayers and provide the tools necessary to attract jobs to the state," Dempsey said back in June.

E-cigarettes
Restricting e-cigarette sales to minors while exempting the product from tobacco regulation is at the heart of the debate over the vetoed e-cigarette bill.

The measure would prohibit the sale of alternative nicotine and vapor products like e-cigarettes to minors under the age of 18 years. But the bill also would exempt those products from being regulated like traditional tobacco products.

The bill passed with bipartisan support last spring. In his veto letter, Nixon cited the de-regulation provision for his veto.

The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network of Missouri is among opponents to the bill.

Overrides and majority
A total of 33 nonbudget bills were vetoed by the governor, the most by Nixon and just two short of the record number of vetoes set in 1961.

One veto, the tax-cut measure, was overridden by lawmakers during the legislature's regular session in May, leaving just 32 nonbudget veto measures before lawmakers.

Besides the other tax-cut measures, other vetoed bills include abortion restrictions, letting schools authorize teachers to carry firearms on school grounds, transferring regulation of captive deer from the Conservation Department to the Agriculture Department, allowing the sale of liquor in the Capitol building and restricting transfer rights of students in unaccredited schools.

In addition, the governor vetoed approximately 140 items in the state's budget. Legislative staff have speculated it could take up to 10 hours if each item came up for debate.

A veto override requires a two-thirds vote in each chamber. Republicans hold exactly 23 seats in the Senate necessary for an override and a few more seats than the 109 necessary for an override in the House.