The Daily Dish, May 6, 2012

Budget clock ticking; senate trouble threatened (AUDIO) By Bob Priddy, Missourinet

As our legislators return to Jefferson City, there’s only five days left to decide how to spend 24 billion dollars in te next fiscal year. House and Senate negotiators have to deal with some strongly-held positions taken by lawmakers in both chambers.  Some senators have wanted to tell their negotiators not to give in on three issues–two of them being budget cuts for Southeast Missouri State University advocated by Cape Girardeau Senator Jason Crowell.  St. Joseph Senator Rob Schaaf  has tried to force senate negotiators to refuse to discuss those issues. 

Minimum wage, payday loan petitions submitted for Missouri ballot, ByThe Associated Press

Supporters of raising Missouri’s minimum wage and limiting payday loans submitted petitions Sunday to get the separate measures on the November ballot, beating this weekend’s deadline to turn in signatures. The proposed minimum wage increase would put Missouri’s minimum pay at $8.25 an hour starting in 2013, with an annual cost-of living adjustment in subsequent years. If the federal minimum wage were to rise above the state rate, then Missouri would adopt the federal wage and apply cost-of-living adjustments to that.