Governor Nixon addresses vetoes ahead of annual veto session

Gov. Jay Nixon explained his 22 vetoes from the 2016 session Wednesday afternoon. He urged the public, media, and lawmakers toread his veto messagesdetailing the reasoning behind his decision.

Some of the bills were vetoed due to a grammatical error. House Bill 1763, for example, uses the word “insured” instead of “insurer.”

“I think everybody here is insured in some fashion,” Gov. Nixon said. “But I doubt seriously if everyone here is an insurance company.”

Other bills were vetoed because the governor does not believe they make Missouri better, safer, or help the people of Missouri.

“Do [the bills] help Missourians and move our state forward, or do they hurt Missourians and move our state back?” Nixon said.

House Bill 1631, a voter-ID bill, was vetoed by the governor because he believes it would make it more difficult for “poor people and people with disabilities” to vote. Supporters of this bill and similar voter-ID bills say it helps the integrity of elections.The governor said this bill is a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist.

Gov. Nixon also vetoed House Bill 1873. The governor says it would eliminate the requirement for companies with government contracts to use e-verify. E-verify is a free program to determine if a worker is legal to work or not.

“Do we really want to make it easier for businesses to hire illegal workers and get government contracts?” the governor said.

The governor also questioned if House Bill 2237 was good for the state. He vetoed the bill because he says it would allow county commissioners to vote on items they could potentially benefit from financially.

“A year in which they talk about ethics,” Nixon said, “saying that county commissioners would no longer be prohibited from voting for things that benefit them, that doesn’t move our state forward.”

Senate Bill 608, Nixon says, would impose new penalties and fees on low-income families, the aged, blind, and disabled who use Medicaid.

“There’s a difference in policy there,” Nixon said. “Some people think that if you’re poor and you’re late [to a doctor’s appointment] it should cost you but if you’re wealthy it shouldn’t.”

Senate Bill 656 has gained the attention of the NRA, which is lobbying for an override of the veto. The bill would expand “stand your ground” laws and the castle doctrine.

But the governor, a self-proclaimed Second Amendment and concealed carry supporter, said the bill would allow citizens to legally carry a concealed firearm even if they have been denied a permit because of their background check. The governor says the bill would also eliminate any training requirement for the permit.

Gov. Nixon said because the bill would allow anyone to carry, it wouldn’t allow local sheriffs to temporarily revoke someone’s permit if they feel that person is a threat.

“That often arises in matters of potential domestic violence,” Nixon said. “And the many sheriffs I’ve talked to, that’s an area that is important.”

Governor Nixon’s office says each bill that reaches his desk receives word-by-word scrutiny before he takes action on it, the Governor said. The bills he vetoed do not move the state forward, he said, and the veto messages present the reasons for the vetoes in a clear, concise manner.