House Approves Unemployment Reform Legislation (SB 28)
While our economy is showing some positive signs of life, our state continues to deal with the repercussions of the economic downturn of 2008-2009. One of the lasting effects of that difficult moment in our nation’s history is the enormous economic burden it placed on our state as we paid for unemployment benefits for the many Missourians who lost their jobs. The dramatic increase in Missourians on unemployment also prompted us to take a closer look at the way the system works. Specifically we want to make sure our unemployment system is sustainable so that it can continue to provide benefits to Missourians while they do their best to return to work.
A bill we passed this week that is now on its way to the governor’s desk would reform our unemployment system to ensure it is protected for those who need it – Missourians who lose their jobs by no fault of their own. As the law stands now, it is possible for individuals to collect benefits even after being fired for offenses like sleeping on the job. The law simply denies benefits to those who are fired because of “misconduct” in the workplace.
The change we authorized would expand the definition of misconduct to deny unemployment benefits to those who lose employment because they are chronically absent from work or knowingly violate the rules of their employer. The bill would protect those who unknowingly violate a workplace policy, or who violate a policy that is unlawful. The bottom line is that this change would preserve unemployment benefits for hard-working Missourians who are laid off or who lose their jobs by no fault of their own. It’s a change we hope the governor will sign as it represents a positive step forward in protecting our unemployment system from potential waste, fraud and abuse.
A bill we passed this week that is now on its way to the governor’s desk would reform our unemployment system to ensure it is protected for those who need it – Missourians who lose their jobs by no fault of their own. As the law stands now, it is possible for individuals to collect benefits even after being fired for offenses like sleeping on the job. The law simply denies benefits to those who are fired because of “misconduct” in the workplace.
The change we authorized would expand the definition of misconduct to deny unemployment benefits to those who lose employment because they are chronically absent from work or knowingly violate the rules of their employer. The bill would protect those who unknowingly violate a workplace policy, or who violate a policy that is unlawful. The bottom line is that this change would preserve unemployment benefits for hard-working Missourians who are laid off or who lose their jobs by no fault of their own. It’s a change we hope the governor will sign as it represents a positive step forward in protecting our unemployment system from potential waste, fraud and abuse.
Major Changes to Missouri Criminal Code Approved by House (HB 210)
It has been more than 30 years since our state’s criminal code was comprehensively updated and revised. It was an ambitious undertaking then, as it was again this year as my colleagues in the House worked diligently to once again revise the code. Their efforts culminated this week as we approved a bill that would make much-needed changes to the code in order to make it reflect the realities of the world we live in today.
The truth is the criminal code we have today is too voluminous and too confusing. We have 700 sections of statute that have many areas that are either conflicting or duplicative, and penalties that are inconsistent. To help bring some order to the chaos, the Missouri Bar Association spent the last several years working with legislators and private citizens to clean up the code and make our criminal laws more easily understood by the general public.
The bill we passed this week would create a new class of misdemeanor, as well as a new class of felony. The class “D” misdemeanor would be used for low-level, high-volume, first-time offenses. It’s a change meant to provide a penalty more severe than a simple infraction, but to be disposed of by means of a fine only.
The new class “E” felony would help address the gap that currently exists between class “B” and “C” felonies. The change would give Missouri what has been a missing rung on the felony offense ladder, and would allow for punishment to appropriately correspond with increasing levels of severity of criminal activity. In addition, the change is one that would give prosecutors more flexibility in the charging and disposition of criminal cases.
While these represent just a few of the changes in the bill, the overall impact of the legislation would be to modernize Missouri’s criminal code to reflect the realities of today’s society and to better allow the criminal justice system to effectively and appropriately punish and deter crime. It has been a collaborative effort on the part of the lawmakers, prosecutors and defense attorneys who worked closely together to clean-up and update the statutes that make up the code. It now moves to the Senate where our colleagues there will have to work quickly to pass the legislation before session ends May 17.
As always, please do not hesitate to call or write me anytime with your questions or thoughts on these or any other issue. My Capitol office phone number is 573-751-3971 and my email is wanda.brown@house.mo.gov.
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