State politicians, political groups hold town hall on vetoed bill

Local political groups hosted a town hall in Columbia Wednesday to talk about Gov. Eric Greitens’ recent veto of a bill that would delay budget cuts to in-home and nursing home services.

Missouri Jobs with Justice and COMO for Progress hosted the event at the Columbia ARC. Speakers included state politicians – including Democratic State Reps. Kip Kendrick and Martha Stevens – health care providers and some impacted consumers. They said Gov. Greitens’ veto of the bipartisan agreement will cause 8,000 elderly and disabled Missourians to lose their care or find more expensive options.

To fund the last-minute agreement, Reps. Kendrick and Stevens said they proposed cutting special interest tax breaks and searching for unused reserve funds from several departments across the state. However, Gov. Greitens’ veto came on June 30, the last day to act on budget bills.

The policy director of Jobs for Justice said he hopes bipartisan support for the bill can be addressed in the upcoming veto session in September.