This is the final week of the legislative session beginning tomorrow. I usually send out this newsletter on Sundays during the session. Many people tell me they enjoy this and it is certainly good therapy for me to take stock of the week and look ahead. In the heat of the battle sometimes it is hard to see the forest - how's that for mixing some otherwise good metaphors? Anyway here is my plan for the summer.

I am up for reelection to my fourth and final term. I am challenged in the primary by the same young man who has run against me twice before. Last election I was the only Democrat Rep in the entire state to be challenged in the primary a second time by the same person.He has now set a record by coming back for a third try. August Fifth is the election. So:

The session ends at 6:00 P.M. this Friday, May 16th. I will then drive back to KC to attend Truman Days the annual Jackson County Democrat celebration. Here is the link to that.

On Saturday we are attending a high school graduation of my niece who is Valedictorian of her class! That will be my day off.

Sunday, May 18th, I will begin my campaign for reelection by knocking on the same door where I started the campaign two years ago. That worked well last time so I am going to try that again. I will then spend the summer going door to door in the district talking to voters about my record and listening to their concerns.

In about a week I will be sending out a year end wrapup issue. And, as always, I will mail that out to the district.

I will continue this newsletter through the summer. I will include campaign updates as well as other issues.

Thank you for your support. I would appreciate your help in my reelection effort.

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P.S. No tax dollars are spent on this newsletter. It is typed by me on my trusty laptop computer and the web hosting is paid by my campaign account.

Second Injury Fund of the Worker Compensation system would have been destroyed by Senate Bill 901 this week Disabled Veterans and others with major disabilities were target of House Republicans

Warning: this article is very technical and could put you to sleep. But it is an important public policy issue. So here goes:

The Workforce Development Committee that I serve on has been dealing with Worker Comp for several years now. Republicans on the Committee have fought to restrict and cut back on Work Comp in dozens of ways. One major issue is the Second Injury Fund of the system.

It is a fund where workers who are already disabled before they suffer a workplace injury can recover some money for the extra disability they suffer because of the pre-existing disability. Example. A worker who is blind in one eye suffers an injury to his good eye. Now he is blinded. But the employers insurance does not have to pay for the total blindness only the loss of the second eye. Then the Second Injury Fund pays for the difference. This works on all body parts. A bad back and a hand injury can make a worker much more disabled that either injury taken separately.

Second Injury Funds were created around the country to encourage employers to hire disabled veterans and others. this is thought to be a good public policy. It spreads the cost of workplace injuries of already disabled people and makes it easier for them to find employment.

The money all comes from Work Comp Insurance all employers are required to carry. The fund is maintained by a surcharge on the insurance premiums employers pay for Work Comp. The entire premium base, the total paid by all employers, is given a surcharge, currently 3% and this is divided among employers on a percentage basis. This fund is maintained by the State and the Attorney General's staff defends the fund and the Treasurer makes the payments from the insurance dollars that are collected and paid to the State.

Now a few years ago, coincidentally (?), when the Republicans took over in Jeff City the surcharge on the fund was cut from 4% to 3%. At the same time a very restrictive Worker Comp law was passed in 2005. Now for some reason there is not enough money in the fund to keep on paying the claims. Suddenly there was a mini crisis. So audits were ordered. The auditors said the Attorney General is doing a great job defending the fund but he should be given more authority to settle cases and the surcharge should be raised back up.

So an Interim Committee was ordered. I served as one of the two Democrat lawyers on that committee. We held hearings all over the State during "interim" which was Summer and Fall of 2007. Now normally an interim committee will make a report to the General Assembly with recommendations. But the Chair of the Committee refused. He never did issue a report. He instead filed and advocated legislation that would destroy the fund and blamed the pending insolvency on the Attorney General! Had he filed a report with those recommendations I would have filed a Minority Report pointing out the audits and other testimony that directly contradict his positions. But since no report was issued that was not possible.

I told you this was not simple.

Senate Bill 901 came to Workforce Committee from the Senate as a "clean" bill. It was a modest bill that contained one item - the fix of an issue about what happens when people die while receiving work comp benefits. That issue was agreed upon by all parties who testified. Then in late April the Bill was substituted in Committee with this Second Injury issue and voted out to the floor. On straight party lines. Here is the link to the House website for the bill. You can see the evolution of the bill if you are interested.

We debated it this week. I stood at the microphone at length explaining all of the above to the House. The bill was defeated by a vote of 65 to 87. Although that does not show how close it really was. When the board opened for the electronic vote the vote surged to 74 to 77. It held for almost five minutes as Republican leaders twisted arms. Then suddenly it fell to 73. It was like a break in the dam. Republicans began jumping ship. It sank to 65 in less than one minute and they scrambled to close the board before it got worse. It was a Major defeat for the Republican Majority. For me it was the culmination of almost two years of debate in the Workforce Committee, the Interim Committee, the Rules Committee and on the Floor of the House. For disabled people in this State it was a stunning victory that virtually all of them are unaware of. For me it makes serving in the Minority worth the part of my life I devote to this.

HOUSE APPROVES PHOTO VOTER ID AMENDMENT BATTLE NOW MOVES TO SENATE FOR FINALE

With only a week remaining in the session, the House on May 8 endorsed a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow lawmakers to require voters to show a photo ID at their polling place as a condition of voting. The House approved the measure on a near party-line vote of 88-69 with all Democrats opposed and all but one Republican in support.

HJR 48 seeks to overturn a Missouri Supreme Court decision that declared a 2006 photo ID law unconstitutional. In that case the court ruled that since the Missouri Constitution guarantees voting rights to all Missouri residents who are age 18 or older, U.S. residents and registered to vote, the legislature is prohibited from imposing additional voting rights restrictions, such as photo ID, that aren't constitutional authorized.

Because the measure must still go through a Senate committee and win approval of the full Senate, where Democrats are expected to filibuster, with just five days remaining in the legislative session, the chances of it winning final passage are uncertain. If the measure clears the legislature, it would automatically go on the statewide ballot in November unless Gov. Matt Blunt exercises his authority to set the vote for August.

This is the issue that basically shut down the Senate when it came up in 2006. This will probably be the last major issue of the year.

Since Republicans have lost the Court Plan reorganization, the Minimum Wage repeal, and the Second Injury fund votes in the House in the last month it is likely there are some in the Senate who are spoiling for a fight. In recent years the battles we in the Minority won this month in the the House have been reserved for the Senate because Republicans have had such tight control in the House. The headliners have been fought in the Senate many times and House Dems have had a lesser role in the final outcome. This year we have had major victories and the Senate has been on the sidelines so it is likely some will grandstand on this final issue. I cannot wait to seen how this shakes out.

FIVE BALLOT MEASURES MAKE SIGNATURE DEADLINE FOR NOVEMBER BALLOT

Supporters of five initiative efforts cleared the first hurdle in getting on their proposals on the ballot when they submitted signed petitions to the Secretary of State's Office by the May 5 deadline. The measures include three statutory changes - lifting the casino loss limit, requiring utilities to use more renewable energy and allowing home health care providers to unionize - and two separate proposed constitutional amendments to restrict the use of eminent domain.

Submitting signatures, however, is no guarantee the issues will make it on the November ballot. The Secretary of State's Office first must verify that the petitions have sufficient numbers of valid signatures from registered voters. In 2006, only three of six submitted petitions had enough signatures to go before voters. The minimum number ranges from 86,000 to 95,000 for statutory change and 140,000 to 150,000 for a constitutional amendment. The verification process must be completed by Aug. 5.

I have entered the 21st century on campaigning. So now you can contribute online to my campaign! Here is the link

Thank you for the opportunity to serve. State Rep John Burnett