Missouri legislators face 'Perfect Storm? in 2002 session

Movie fans are probably fam-iliar with the picture "The Per-fect Storm," a film based on a real-life incident where several fronts came together in New England to create a single wea-ther event of tremendous force.

That's exactly what I see brewing for the 2002 legislative session.

First of all, it's safe to say that this coming year will be unlike any other. We will be faced with growing concerns over a tight state budget that will require us to trim a billion dollars due to dwindling revenues Front No. 1.

And of course it's an election year when representatives and senators will be running in redrawn districts Front No. 2.

And to top it off, this election, year term limits will be turning 75 members out of office Front No. 3.

The storm is brewing. But as public officials, it is our duty to put these outside factors aside and focus on doing the people's business in Jefferson City during the constitutionally designated meeting time of the Mis-souri General Assembly.

Our constitution requires us to have a balanced budget, and that should be our top priority. At the same time, it is our duty to provide a quality public education to each and every student in our state. So at all costs, we must fully fund education.

But even as we deal with a tight budget, we know there are other concerns that need to be addressed.

Often, these are pressing is-sues that come to light due to overwhelming public concern; in other instances, it involves unfinished business from the previous session.

And as is the case for this upcoming session, many times the work of House interim committees produces suggested legislation inspired by meetings with Missouri citizens from across the state. Some of those issues include:

Agriculture. Missouri's far-mers and ranchers continue to struggle with low commodity prices, shrinking markets, and increased costs of production. Expect action by the Missouri General Assembly aimed at strengthening public/private partnerships that will open up new agriculture markets and enable Missouri producers to benefit from value-added agriculture processing.

Urban renewal. In an ongoing attempt to bolster the state economy, the General Assem-bly continues to look for ways to rejuvenate the downtowns of out state's metropolitan areas and regional commerce centers.

Consumer issues. Prevent-ing the sale of personal information and preventing predatory lending practices are a continued concern of members of the Missouri House, and will be a priority for the upcoming session.

Nursing home reform. With the baby boom generation entering retirement age, in-creasing pressure will be placed on Missouri nursing homes and staffs. As the result of the work of a House interim committee, legislation will be proposed to assure our senior citizens that they will receive the quantity and quality of care they require.

Transportation. The debate will continue on how best to address the issue of repairing our roads and how to relieve the pressure on our major arterial routes. There are certainly no easy solutions, especially in a tight budget year. Expect considerable debate on this issue.

Public Safety. In a recent legislative session, members of the General Assembly passed new sex crime legislation de-signed to protect the women and children of Missouri but in so doing, inadvertently set a statute of limitations of three years on forcible rape. It's time we corrected this error by re-moving all time limitations on rape filings.

But let me reemphasize that education must be our top priority, as it is through a quality ed-ucation system that we provide for new economic opportunities and a brighter future for our children. Fully funding of education must come ahead of anything else.

We know that the process will not be easy, but we can accomplish great things as long as we have the resolve to set politics aside and agree on what is really important for the future of Missouri.

I am eager to meet these challenges head on, and I urge my colleagues in the General As-sembly to stand united in the face of the upcoming storm.

(Rep. Jim Kreider is speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives.)