MISSOURI — Missouri’s next legislative session is still more than two months away, but lawmakers are already crafting the next round of bills.
Friday night, we caught up with State Representatives Ben Baker and Lane Roberts at the Newton County Central Republican Committee Bean Feed.
They tell us legislators will begin the process of pre-filing bills for the 2024 legislative session in December, but that they already have an idea of some of the legislation that’s likely to be at the forefront.
One big item has to do with initiative petition reform.
Representative Baker says initiative petitions were originally designed as a way for the average citizen to take action if they felt like the legislature wasn’t acting on their behalf.
“But it’s really been kind of hijacked by billionaires from outside of our state who have found a way to get things done in our state that you wouldn’t really get done in a supermajority of Republicans, as we have in the legislature,” said State Representative Ben Baker, (R) – Newton County.
“We obviously as a party are very concerned about initiative petition reform. I’m going to be very interested in that,” said State Representative Lane Roberts, (R) – Joplin.
The legislature reconvenes on January third of next year.
