Tuesday, February 8, 2022
12:00 Noon – 1:00 p.m.
Lunch & Learn

100 % Renewable Energy by 2030

Hear from local climate action leaders Carolyn Amparan, chair of the Sierra Club-Osage Chapter, Mark Haim and Erica Ascani, calling for the City of Columbia to commit to attaining 100% of our electricity from renewable energy sources by 2030.

A Q&A session will follow the panel’s presentation.

Co-sponsored by the Columbia Public Library.

Register for a Zoom link. This program will be recorded for later viewing.

Register

At least 14 bills filed in the Missouri House seek to make it harder for Missourians of any political persuasion to circumvent partisan divides in Jefferson City and directly get things done for the people.

Among the most onerous is HJR 79, which would dramatically raise the number of verified voter signatures needed for state constitutional amendments to qualify for the ballot from 8 percent in six of the state’s eight congressional districts to 10 percent statewide. It would also increase the threshold for initiative petition passage from a simple majority to 67 percent. A public hearing on the legislation is scheduled for noon on Wednesday, Jan. 12 before the Committee on Elections and Elected Officials.

 “Missouri’s initiative petition system has been in place for 115 years,” Marilyn McLeod, president of the League of Women Voters of Missouri, says in prepared testimony. “This valuable and trusted process is not easy, and the citizens of Missouri have not abused it. Just 28 of 69 citizen-initiated Constitutional amendments have ever been approved.”

McLeod said two-thirds approval would not only be the highest in the country, it would be virtually impossible to reach. A large majority of voters recently approved a higher minimum wage, Medicaid Expansion and medical marijuana, but none passed with more than 65 percent of the vote.

If approved by lawmakers, the proposed changes would still require voter approval in the November general election, or during a special election that would cost the state an estimated $7 million. The measure is sponsored by Rep. Mike Henderson (R-Bonne Terre).

Virtual Vigil for Democracy and Remembrance
Thursday, January 6, 2022
6:30 p.m. – Online on Zoom or Facebook* (see below)

It’s been nearly one year since militants attacked our Capitol and tried to overturn the results of the 2020 election. We must not forget what happened — and we must demand action from our leaders to prevent another attack on our democracy

Missouri lawmakers return to Jefferson City on Jan. 5 to consider legislation that would undermine our democracy. Around the country, voting advocates are marking the one-year anniversary.

Here in Missouri, frigid forecasts have forced us to pivot multiple planned in-person Jan. 6 Vigils across the state to this Statewide Virtual Vigil at 6:30pm on Jan. 6. Join fellow voter advocates in this day of remembrance and learn how you can take action to protect our democracy.

*Sign up to join us on Zoom at: https://wustl.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJEtfuitrDItHNUxx9OZN9sRrqVyr01N8_hw

*And tune in to the event live-streamed on our Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/ProtectMissouriVoters.

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Minority Men’s Network, Working in our Community
Tuesday, January 11, 2022
Noon-1 p.m.
On Zoom

Live event via Zoom

At this virtual presentation, you’ll get an update from Minority Men’s Network Vice President Fred Williams III and learn about the work this organization does to improve the lives of ethnic minorities through leadership and service. Co-sponsored by the Columbia Public Library.

Please register to receive a Zoom link for this online event. This program will be recorded for later viewing on our YouTube channel and will be available via our website tab “Videos”.

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Fair Redistricting
Here is a link to resources about Legislative Redistricting in Missouri:
https://lwvmissouri.org/fair-maps-2/

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Medicaid Expansion

Now, more adults can get low-cost or FREE health insurance through Missouri Medicaid (called MO
HealthNet). Medicaid through MO HealthNet may be an option for you. This includes parents who have not qualified before, as well as childless adults.
For example, a single adult making up to $17,774 a year, or a family of 4 making up to $36,750 a year, may qualify for Medicaid through MO HealthNet.
Even if you tried to get Medicaid before and did not qualify, check again!
Call 1-855-373-4636.

Missouri’s Senate Bipartisan Commission could not agree to a map, so the final map will be drawn by a panel of judges. The House panel is still debating areas of Kansas City, St. Louis, Springfield and Boone County. It has until Jan. 23 to get 14/20 of the bipartisan members to agree on one map.

Missouri’s General Assembly comes back today to start work on congressional redistricting. In December, LWVMO shared two maps with legislators that have a 5:3 Congressional District split that would more fairly represent the voice of Missouri voters than the map at left submitted by Rep. Dan Shaul (R-113) as HB2117. His map uses the “least change” approach (helpful with a March filing deadline) and would likely keep six Republicans and two Democrats in the U. S. Congress.