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MISSOURI (*Supported by the RCGA in 1999)
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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Brownfield Redevelopment Funding & Reform*: Support an appropriation of $10 million from general revenue to the “Brownfields” program. Also support legislation that would include demolition costs as eligible for Brownfield remediation tax credits.
Broad-based Business Tax Relief/Burden of Proof*: Support legislation that is a broad-based tax relief such as the reinstatement of Federal tax deductibility for corporations or an elimination of the corporate franchise tax. Also support expanding the burden of proof legislation to include large businesses and tax credits and deductions.
Public Purposes Clarification*: Support two constitutional amendments to clarify the definition of public purposes to cover economic development and job creation for state and local governments.
Workers’ Compensation*: Support appropriate changes in the Workers’ Compensation law to encourage economic development and provide more job opportunities in Missouri.
Capital Tax Credit: Support legislation that authorizes the State to issue $20 million a year for five years in Tax Credits and reduces the ownership requirement to 20% from 50%.
Research & Development Tax Credit: Support a 10% Tax Credit (25% in a Distressed Community) of up to $5 million in expenditures over a given year for research, development and testing, and for emerging companies.
Seed Capital Tax Credit: Support legislation that authorizes the State to issue $10 million in a 50% Tax Credit to those who invest in qualified emerging companies.
ST. LOUIS COUNTY COMMUNITY REINVESTMENT FUND: Support the creation of the St. Louis County Community Reinvestment Fund.
State Earned Income Tax Credit: Support a State Earned Income Tax Credit.
TORT REFORM
TRIAL VENUES*: Support legislation allowing defendants in lawsuits to have a discretionary, one-time right to change the venue for the trial of matters filed against them.
CERTIFICATE OF MERIT*: Support legislation providing that all lawsuits against licensed professionals must have merit before they are filed.
STATUTE OF REPOSE*: Support legislation to clarify language of “substantial completion” and add “economic loss” to the 10-year Statute of Repose.
SMALL BUSINESS
ADMINISTRATIVE HEARING REPRESENTATION*: Support legislation to allow an individual taxpayer or small business to represent themselves without an attorney before the Administrative Hearing Commission.
RECORD RETENTION*: Support rule change revising the retention period of records for auditing purposes from five to three years.
ARTS
ARTS FUNDING: (1) Support a $5.166 million core budget for the Missouri Arts Council programs; (2) Support a transfer of $5.194 million to the Missouri Arts Council Trust Fund; (3) Support $510,000 expenditure authority from Arts Council Trust interest; (4) Support $450,000 appropriation to core budget of Missouri Fine Arts Academy.
EDUCATION
HIGHER EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT: Support programs designed to enhance educational opportunities for all students, especially those developed through collaborative efforts with schools, businesses and community colleges.
UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI–ST.LOUIS (UMSL): Support a $20.626 million appropriation for facility upgrades and property acquisition as outlined in the Master Plan; and a $19.185 million appropriation for the Science Complex renovation and upgrades.
TRANSPORTATION
STATE APPROPRIATION FOR PUBLIC TRANSIT*: Support legislation appropriating a minimum of $11.7 million to meet the operating needs of public transit systems throughout the State. Additionally support a $10 million appropriation to the Bi-State Development Agency.
TOTAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN*: Support a total transportation plan with responsible funding that ensures a fair rate of return on the St. Louis region’s investment that addresses all of our region’s transportation needs, including highway, transit, aviation, rail and ports.
ENVIRONMENT
SECTION 643.055 R.S. MO.
PROVISIONS APPLICABLE TO OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS*: Support legislation that prohibits all Missouri environmental laws from being stricter than or put into effect sooner than federal law, but permitting the state to regulate in any case based upon clear and convincing scientific evidence that the pollution to be regulated adversely impacts public health or the environment.
RISK ASSESSMENT AND COST/BENEFIT ANALYSIS*: Support the implementation of requirement for risk assessment and cost/benefit analyses when the Missouri Department of Natural Resources promulgates rules relating to the environment.
MISSOURI STATE ENVIRONMENTAL AUDIT PRIVILEGE ACT*: Support legislation that would protect the confidentiality of communications related to voluntary internal environmental audits.
VOLUNTARY CLEAN-UP PROGRAM (VCP): (1) Support legislation that will reduce the number of “re-open provisions” in the VCP; (2) Support for DNR’s commitment to the program; (3) Support revision of the risk-based assessment program (CALM) in order to provide increased incentives for redevelopment.
ELECTRIC UTILITY DEREGULATION: Support, in concept, that the electric utility industry should be deregulated and opened up for competition. The RCGA should work with its member companies – large and small – to determine what plan for deregulation would best serve the entire community.
HEALTH CARE
HEALTH CARE PRINCIPLES: Support sensible, effective health care reform changes and positions that preserve business-driven cost containment and quality control measures.
TOBACCO SETTLEMENT: Support the concept that the money received under the Tobacco Settlement should be treated outside of Total State Revenues and, therefore, not subject to the Hancock Amendment. The State should then invest the receipts on anti-smoking programs, health care-related initiatives and research.
CAMPAIGN FINANCE
PUBLIC FINANCING OF ELECTIONS: Oppose raising the Corporate Franchise Tax as a means to publicly finance elections.
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ILLINOIS (*Supported by the RCGA in 1999)
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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
CERTIFIED CAPITAL COMPANIES (CAPCO)*: Support legislation that creates CAPCOs and allows the state of Illinois to grant tax credits to insurance companies that invest in these venture firms.
BROWNFIELD DEVELOPMENT: Support a useful remediation program that will enhance the Brownfield Redevelopment program, including the increasing or removal of the tax cap and an effective grant program.
STORMWATER*: Support creating a solution to the stormwater problem in Southwestern Illinois.
DISTRESSED COMMUNITIES TAX CREDITS : Support legislation that allows for State tax credits against the costs of new construction or the rehabilitation of owner-occupied, market-rate housing in distressed communities and State tax credits against the costs of rehabilitating older, owner-occupied residential dwellings in declining areas.
ENTERPRISE ZONES EXTENSIONS: Support legislation that changes the length that an enterprise zone shall be in effect from 20 to 30 calendar years.
QUICK TAKE AUTHORITY FOR SOUTHWESTERN ILLINOIS DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY: Support a two-year extension of SWIDA’s quick take authority. This authority allows for SWIDA to further economic development and is a necessary tool to help develop important projects in Madison and St. Clair counties.
WORKERS’ COMPENSATION*: Support changes in the Workers’ Compensation law to encourage economic development and provide more jobs opportunities in Illinois.
TRANSPORTATION
INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS*: Support the following priority projects in District 8: (1) Continued progress on an additional bridge across the Mississippi that would ensure adequate access to Madison and St. Clair Counties; (2) Solution to the McKinley Bridge; and (3) Rt. 15 bi-pass study.
WATER PORTS LOAN PROGRAM*: Support the state of Illinois funding the Port Loan Program at the rate of $5 million per year for five years.
PORTS AS INTERMODAL FACILITIES: Support efforts to acquire eligibility for transportation funds via East-West Gateway Coordinating Council and the State of Illinois for access roads between ports and the National Highway System and Trade Corridors.
EDUCATION
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY AT EDWARDSVILLE CAPITAL PROJECT REQUESTS: The RCGA will continue to support the following capital project funding requests by Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville to the Illinois General Assembly: 1.) $3.13M Chilled Water Unit Replacement; 2.) $32.67M Science laboratory Building Renovation and Expansion; 3.) $750K Lovejoy Library/Textbook Services Renovation and Expansion (planning); 4.) $ 3.53M Edwardsville Campus Road Repairs; 5.) $2.29M Americans with Disabilities Act Compliance Renovations; 6.) $6.08M Alton Dental Facilities Consolidation; 7.) $690K Infrastructure Repairs, Phase III, Peck Hall; 8.) $690K Infrastructure Repairs, Phase IV, Rendleman and Dunham Halls; and 9.) $868K Alton Campus Infrastructure Repairs.
ETHANOL PILOT PLANT MATCHING MONEY — SIUE: Supports legislation, which authorizes appropriations for an Ethanol Research Pilot Plant and supports $14 million appropriation for the research to be conducted at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville.
SOUTHWEST ILLINOIS COLLEGE: Continue to support the capital project funding requests of the Southwest Illinois College.
HEALTH CARE
HEALTH CARE PRINCIPLES: Support sensible, effective health care reform changes and positions which preserve business-driven cost containment and quality control measures.
ARTS
America’s Music Center in East St. Louis: Support funding from the state of Illinois at $5 million begin construction of Phase I, which includes the building of the museum and infrastructure improvements to support the AMC. Phase I is estimated to cost $30 million.
COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT
TARGETED TAX INCENTIVES: Support the following initiatives to spur redevelopment efforts in the center city and other economically distressed areas:
- Federal Historic Tax Credit – Restore this Tax Credit to its pre-1986 status that allows investors to receive a 25% tax credit against the costs of rehabilitating an historic building or a building within an historic district.
- Economic Incentives for Private Investment – Legislation, such as Congressman Jim Talent’s American Community Renewal Act, that offers several across-the-board incentives for private investment in distressed areas through tax credits and tax reductions or elimination.
- Brownfield Redevelopment – Older, abandoned industrial sites are very common in distressed areas. Many of these sites have—or are perceived to have—environmental contamination, which serves as a disincentive for redevelopment. There should be direct funding, tax credits and meaningful liability reform to have a successful Brownfield program.
SMALL BUSINESS
SMALL BUSINESS GOALS IN FEDERAL CONTRACTS*: Support less contract bundling when feasible, support the swift implementation of the HUBZone legislation, which is designed to steer federal contracts to small businesses in economically distressed areas.
TAXES
FEDERAL
BROAD-BASED TAX RELIEF: Support several across-the-board tax reductions that would encourage investment and savings such as:
- Reduction or elimination of the capital gains tax
- Reduction or elimination of taxes on dividends
- Reduction or elimination of the estate/death tax
- Reduction or elimination of federal unemployment tax
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
LOUISIANA PURCHASE BICENTENNIAL COMMISSION: Support the establishment of a St. Louis-based Commission that would promote and coordinate activities associated with the bicentennial celebration of the Louisiana Purchase.
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT: Support Federal funding for Research and Development, such as National Aeronautics and Science Administration (NASA), National Science Foundation (NSF), National Institutes for Health (NIH), and Housing and Urban Development (HUD), etc.
INFRASTRUCTURE, PLANNING AND ENHANCEMENT
Support the following modes of transportation:
- highways and bridges;
- transit;
- airports;
- rail;
- waterports.
HEALTH CARE
HOSPITAL REIMBURSEMENT: Support financial relief from the Federal Balanced Budget Act for hospitals, particularly teaching hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, home health, outpatient prospective payment systems and Medicare-plus Choice plans.
OTHER ISSUES SUPPORTED BY THE ST. LOUIS RCGA
INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR *: Support legislative efforts to clarify the complex independent contractor versus employee determinations.
MEAL AND ENTERTAINMENT EXPENSES *: Support the restoration of full deductibility of valid meal and entertainment expenses.
OSHA REFORM (SAFE ACT)*: Support the Safety Advancement for Employees Act (SAFE Act).
CAFE STANDARDS *: Support legislation that would put a moratorium on mandated increases in CAFE for cars and trucks pending a review by Congress to determine future fuel economy policy for the country.
INTERNATIONAL TRADE: The RCGA should continue to support any legislation or agreement such as the ones listed above and any others that enhance our member companies’ abilities to compete in the global economy by breaking down barriers and increasing export trading.
