THE 100 REPORT
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Eigel Pre-files Legislation to Repeal Gas Tax Increase
Senator Bill Eigel has pre-filed legislation that, if passed, will repeal a portion of the tax on motor fuel, and the exemption and refund process applicable to that portion. This will eliminate the gas tax increase passed by the legislature last session.
Eric Burlison Endorsed by Ohio Congressman Jim Jordan
Ohio Congressman Jim Jordan threw his weight behind Sen. Eric Burlison’s bid for Missouri’s 7th congressional district Tuesday.
“Eric Burlison is a conservative with a track record to back it up,” Jordan said. “In the Missouri Senate and House, he stood up against the radical left to protect our values. Now more than ever, leaders like Eric Burlison are needed to take on the Washington Swamp.”
Following Successful Ben Brown Lawsuit, Schmitt Issues Warning
In dual letters to public health agencies and school districts, Attorney General Eric Schmitt said any mask or quarantine orders, or similar measures, issued under previous statutes are now null and cannot be enforced. The letters encouraged immediate action and warned of potential consequences should those orders continue to be enforced. This is in response to a successful lawsuit by restaurateur and candidate for state senate, Ben Brown, in which the Judge ruled Missouri’s health department’s regulations — which allowed the state health director and local health agencies to implement “control measures” — unconstitutional.
Supreme Court Preview: Carson v. Makin
Harvard Law Professor Emeritus Mark Tushnet explains how the Court’s decision might impact funding for religious schools
At the heart of the upcoming Supreme Court case Carson v. Makin is a complicated question with an even more complex judicial history: In a general funding program for secondary school students, can a state choose not to provide money for those who want to attend religious schools, if its rejection is based on the institution’s inclusion of sectarian teachings?
In the state of Maine, some school districts lack secondary schools. To ensure that all of its students have access to a K-12 education, Maine provides funding for pupils who attend high schools in other districts or at approved private schools. To qualify as an approved school, Maine requires that an institution be “nonsectarian.”
After being denied tuition assistance for their children to attend religious secondary schools, a group of Maine parents sued the state, claiming that its policy violates the Free Exercise Clause in the wake of last year’s decision in Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue. In Espinoza, the Court invalidated a Montana rule that prohibited students who received private scholarships — donations to which were tax benefitted — from using them at religious schools.
In the present case, Maine has argued that its policy makes a distinction between religious “status” and religious “use” — and that it would not deny funding to a religious school willing to provide a nonsectarian education. In the lower court, David J. Barron ’94, judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit and former Harvard Law School professor, agreed with the state. Espinoza, the court said, only prohibited the denial of funds based on sectarian status, but left open the question of whether funds could be denied for religious use.
In anticipation of oral arguments on December 8, Mark Tushnet, William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Law, Emeritus, at Harvard Law School and constitutional law expert, spoke with Harvard Law Today about Carson v. Makin, what types of questions to expect from the justices, and how the Court’s decision might impact school funding in the future.
New Scholarship Program, Push by Parents Point Path Forward for More Missouri School Choice in 2022
By Rep. Phil Christofanelli
Vanquished Virginia ex-Gov. Terry McAuliffe learned the hard way what principals, PTA parents, and classroom moms have long known: When it comes to education, underestimate parents at your own peril.
Republican businessman Glenn Youngkin’s decisive victory in early November was fueled by his support for greater parental involvement in public education. Youngkin’s approach made for a stark contrast when compared to McAuliffe’s inadvertent moment of honesty when he stated, “I don’t think parents should be telling schools what they should teach.”
Nearing the two-year mark of a pandemic, the shortcomings of a one-size-fits-all approach to education in Missouri seem even more obvious. Thankfully, more school choice is soon on the way, with state Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick’s launch of Missouri’s new K-12 scholarship program, MOScholars.
Established by the General Assembly and signed into law this year by Gov. Mike Parson, MOScholars, the Missouri Empowerment Scholarships Account (ESA) program, provides increased educational options to thousands of Missouri students and families, in particular those with special needs or of limited means.
Qualifying students would be eligible for up to $6,375 in scholarships annually for approved educational services ranging from tutoring, textbooks, and computer technology to private school tuition, homeschooling expenses, and tuition to attend public charter or district schools outside a student’s assigned district.
This tax-credit funded program, whose enabling legislation I sponsored, will be completely financed through donations from individuals and businesses.
Students in St. Louis and St. Charles counties are eligible for the scholarships as well as those living in Cape Girardeau, Columbia, Jefferson City, Joplin, Kansas City, Springfield, St. Joseph, and the city of St. Louis and the counties of Jackson, Jefferson, and Clay. Additional information about the program, including expanded eligibility details, can be found at www.showmeschooloptions.org.
With the 2022 session fast approaching, it’s time to turn our attention to other pro-parent, pro-student education measures, such as fixing an archaic accounting measure that deprives all public-school students in our two biggest cities of full funding equity.
These inequities — the result of a glitch in Missouri’s 16-year-old education funding formula — cost the average St. Louis public charter student $2,500 compared to their Saint Louis Public Schools peer, and the average Kansas City charter public student $1,700 compared to their Kansas City Public Schools counterpart.
That’s no small accounting mistake when you consider that more than half the students in Kansas City, and nearly half in St. Louis, now attend public charter schools. With bipartisan support, the Missouri House of Representatives approved a legislative fix that would ensure equitable funding for charter students, but the session ended before a Senate vote.
After years of unsuccessful efforts, the ESA bill’s passage was one of our legislature’s signature accomplishments in 2021. As my colleagues and I prepare to return to Jefferson City, let’s not forget education policy’s Golden Rule: When it comes to teaching our kids, parents are the only special interest who matter.
Nick Schroer Trivia Night Fundraiser
There is an upcoming fundraiser for Nick Schroer, one of our conservative candidates for State Senate in an open seat. This is a great chance to get out and support Nick as he raises the necessary funds to win this race.
Concerned Women for America to Hold Election Integrity Meeting
This Saturday, Dec. 11 at the Pillar Foundation, 15820 Clayton Rd., Ellisville MO. Start time is 9:30 a.m.
At this meeting, we will discuss any new developments (such as the meeting that was held a couple of weeks ago with those leading the canvassing effort with Sec. Jay Ashcroft. They turned in almost 200 names of individuals in Missouri that have been discovered as possible fraud through canvassing), hear from Janet Hennessey regarding the canvassing effort and how you can be involved, hands on instructions and information regarding becoming an election judge, and scheduling of events and visits at the State Capitol where we will need you and others to show up.
Please invite others to attend this meeting as well. We are a growing movement here in Missouri! We will be heard in the Missouri General Assembly in 2022!
Eagle Forum Applauds Senate Pulling Women in Draft Provision from NDAA
Eagle Forum applauds the House and Senate Republicans who worked tirelessly to keep young women safe from registering for the selective service.
The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) has historically been a bipartisan effort to fund our nation’s military. However, under the guise of “equality,” liberal lawmakers inserted a provision requiring young women to register for the selective service. Some Republican members were even influenced by this nonsense and aided in these efforts. Fortunately, many of our House and Senate allies were able to remove this provision from the NDAA.
Notably, Senators Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Josh Hawley (R-MO), and Mike Lee (R-UT) introduced amendments to strike the language from the NDAA should the bill come to a vote. Representative Vickie Hartzler (R-MO) was poised to offer legislation to kill this provision as well, and Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL) was ready to strip the language out in conference upon receiving the Senate version. Because they refused to give in to the “woke” agenda, we now have one less issue weakening our national defense.
Eagle Forum worked with like-minded organizations like Concerned Women for America and the Center for Military Readiness to put pressure on our lawmakers to stand up for women. Collectively, we met with lawmakers, sent alerts to constituents, signed onto coalition letters, took action through media, and held House and Senate members accountable for their votes.
Eagle Forum President Colleen Holcomb stated, “One small provision to force women into the selective service would have threatened American families and severely weakened our national security. Now, thanks to several pro-family House and Senate members, parents can take comfort in knowing that they will not receive a registration notice in the mail for their daughters next year.”
The Worst Spending Bill in Decades? The American Rescue Plan Continues to Drive Inflation and Economic Damage
More than eight months after its enactment, the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan (ARP) continues to reveal itself as the most damaging spending bill enacted in decades. ARP was initially promoted primarily as health-care legislation to finance Covid vaccines and treatments (even though just 1 percent of its cost went towards vaccines and only 5 percent had any direct relation to health care) and secondarily as a relief bill. Instead, the legislation became a large grab bag of giveaways and economic “stimulus” provisions that even left-of-center economists such as Lawrence Summers, Jason Furman, and Mark Zandi warned was too expensive, too inflationary, too unnecessary, and too wasteful. Congressional Republicans – who had already enacted a $900 billion relief bill just weeks earlier – made counter-offers desperately trying to negotiate this unnecessary $1.9 trillion proposal downward. Despite their empty rhetoric about bipartisanship and compromise, President Biden and congressional Democrats responded by cutting off negotiations without moving one inch off their opening proposal. As the economic case for the stimulus collapsed, the bill became a political “MacGuffin,” or a symbolic vehicle for Democrats to “resist Republican obstructionism” and show that they too were prepared to play hardball to pass their agenda. The details of the bill were secondary. Democrats passed the bill on a party-line vote and President Biden signed it.
Federal Judge Blocks Biden's Vaccine Mandate for Federal Contractors
A federal judge in Georgia blocked the Biden administration's requirement that all federal contractors must receive the COVID-19 vaccine, the latest blow in a flurry of legal setbacks for the White House.
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The 100 Newsletter is intended to be a conservative review of the most up to date, inside information of what is going on in Missouri Politics and does not reflect an endorsement of any campaign or committee. We provide tips, articles, op-eds, updates, and event opportunities based on the most up-to-date happenings in state and federal government. Please feel free to submit your tips and suggestions to be included in the newsletter to Ellie@the100pac.com or Brett@victoryenterprises.com