February 23, 2017 – The Missouri House has approved an unemployment reform bill that closely resembles a bill vetoed by Governor Jay Nixon, overridden by the General Assembly, and voided by the Missouri Supreme Court on procedural grounds. Associated Industries of Missouri continues to strongly support all provisions of the bill.
Rep. Scott Fitzpatrick
“This bill makes sure the unemployed are not allowed to receive severance pay and unemployment payments at the same time,” said Ray McCarty, president/CEO of Associated Industries of Missouri. “The legislature passed the bill last year, former Governor Jay Nixon vetoed the commonsense legislation, and the legislature properly overrode the governor’s veto. But the Supreme Court voided that override because one of the override votes occurred during the annual veto session. Even New York has fixed this gaping hole in the unemployment system and it is about time we fixed it here in Missouri. We are optimistic the bill will be approved by Governor Eric Greitens,” said McCarty.
The bill would reduce the weeks of unemployment available during periods of low unemployment, when jobs are plentiful.
The bill now moves to the Senate for further consideration. You may click here to see how your State Representative voted on this bill, and click here for more details on HB 288 (Fitzpatrick).
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