Empowering You February 2019 Newsetter

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FEBRUARY 2019 NEWSLETTER

February 2019
NEWSLETTER
Missouri General Assembly Moves Swiftly To Hear Major
Legislation as 2019 Session Convenes
By Jeanette Mott Oxford (JMO), Executive Director p. 3-4
Join the —>
Introducing our 2019 Legislative Interns
By Molly Pearson, Brennan Keiser, Kneeshe Parkinson
and Nicole Lynch, p. 6-7
Mental Health Care for Uninsured is Economic Development
By Bruce Eddy, Community Mental Health Fund, p. 8-9
St. Louis Chapter Legislative Happy Hour p. 4
Kansas City Chapter Legislative Preview p. 5
Good Food Policy Advocacy Day p. 9
MO HIV Justice Coalition Legislative Advocacy Day p. 10
Over-Policing, HIV Criminalization, & Black Communities
p. 11
S E C T I O N S
12 Calendar
12 Staff Contacts
Donate Now!

FEBRUARY 2019 NEWSLETTER
MISSOURI GENERAL ASSEMBLY MOVES
SWIFTLY TO HEAR MAJOR LEGISLATION
AS 2019 SESSION CONVENES
By Jeanette Mott Oxford (JMO), Executive Director
What a difference a year makes!
In January, 2018, then-Governor
Eric Greitens gave his second
State of the State address, and
media reports noted the
adversarial nature of his
relationship with General
Assembly members. By
January16, 2019, Missouri had
a new governor, and Gov.
Michael Parson delivered his
first State of the State address,
with a much different tone than
that of his predecessor. A
former legislator, Gov. Parson
clearly respects those who offer
public service in the House and
Senate and is an “insider”, not
an “outsider.”
Whether one is supportive of the
bonding plan for transportation
proposed by Gov. Parson or not,
it is possible to admire his
courage in proposing that
Missouri policymakers stop
kicking the can down the road
and tackle major issues like
infrastructure and workforce
development that are so crucial
to Missouri’s future. Empower
Missouri volunteers were
especially glad to hear his vow
not to build more prisons and his
support for criminal justice
reform.
Empower Missouri’s priority
issues are among the first to
move in this historic 100 th
General Assembly:
Our criminal justice reform
priorities will draw major
discussion this year due to the
creation of a Special Committee
on Criminal Justice by Speaker
of the House Elijah Haahr (R-
Springfield). Rep. Shamed
Dogan (R-Ballwin) is Chair of
the committee, while Rep.
Steven Roberts (D-St. Louis
City) is Ranking Minority
Member.
As this newsletter was going to
press, two bills that we support
were scheduled to be heard on
January 31 in that committee.
Rep. Cody Smith (R-Carthage)
is sponsor of House Bill (HB)
113 to reform mandatory
minimum laws. Forcing those
convicted of certain crimes to
serve
long
sentences before release is one
of the major factors in Missouri’s
growing prison population, and
many other states have moved
away from this practice. Older
prisoners are also being
considered for a parole hearing
in many states, since data says
those over 50 seldom re-offend.
HB 352, sponsored by Rep.
Tom Hannegan (R-St. Charles),
would allow for the possibility of
a parole hearing for prisoners
who are 65, although Empower
Missouri supports lowering this
age to 50 or 55.
A hearing has also been
scheduled for two bills to
modernize Missouri’s outdated
and medically inaccurate HIVspecific
criminal codes.
Sponsors of these bills (HBs
167 & 166) are Rep. Holly
Rehder (R-Sikeston) and Rep.
Tracy McCreery (D-Olivette).
Alderwoman Annie Rice filed
Resolution 227 in the St. Louis
Board of Aldermen in support of
Cont’d on p 4
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FEBRUARY 2019 NEWSLETTER
Cont’d from p 3
this legislation. If you would like to join our
coalition in providing written or oral testimony to
the House Health & Mental Health Policy
Committee this Monday, February 4 th , email
mohivjustice@empowermissouri.org.
It is wonderful to have so many proactive
opportunities in 2019, but that does not mean
that we can abandon our role as defender of
Missouri’s most vulnerable citizens. We again
must struggle to block several bills that would
increase hunger in Missouri by imposing
documentation-heavy work-hour-tracking on
parents with dependents who receive benefits
from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance
Program (SNAP). We have convened advocates
statewide to testify against Senate Bill (SB) 4
from Sen. David Sater (R-Cassville) and House
Bills 474 and 475 from Rep. J. Eggleston (R-
Maysville) and Rep. Hannah Kelly (R-
Mountain Grove).
As the Legislative Session continues,
stay up to date on the latest hearings
and concrete action steps you can take
for social justice by joining our Under the
Dome and Across the State briefing
calls for advocates. We are
experimenting with alternating morning
and afternoon briefings so that more of
you will be able to join at least once per
month. The schedule of calls for
Legislative Session is as follows:
Friday, February 8, 8-9:30 a.m.
Thursday, February 28, 4:30-6 p.m.
Friday, March 8, 8-9:30 a.m.
Thursday, March 28, 4:30-6 p.m.
Friday, April 12, 8-9:30 a.m.
Thursday, April 25, 4:30-6 p.m.
Friday, May 10, 8-9:30 a.m.
Thursday, May 23, 4:30-6 p.m.
The number to dial to join the call is 515-603-
3103, and the passcode is 167856#. Briefing
documents are posted on our website before
each call. See the documents for the January 24
briefing call at: http://empowermissouri.org/
briefing-2019-session-1-january-24/. (In June, we
will return to once per month briefings, barring
EMPOWERING YOU | 04

FEBRUARY 2019 NEWSLETTER
Introducing our 2019
Legislative Interns
By: Molly Pearson
My name is Molly Pearson, and I
am currently earning dual Master’s
degrees in Social Work and Social
Policy at Washington University’s
Brown School of Social Work. I am
honored to be a part of the
Empower Missouri team. My work
this year will be centered on the
Missouri HIV Justice Coalition,
working to modernize our state’s
outdated, harmful HIV-specific
criminal statutes.
In addition to my role with
Empower Missouri, I am working
with the Metro Trans Umbrella
Group, a St. Louis-based
organization providing support and
advocacy for the transgender
community. I am also a group
facilitator for the Diversity
Awareness Partnership, as well as
a faculty member of Campfire,
where I teach Intro to Storytelling.
Prior to my current endeavors, I
worked with PROMO to coordinate
constituent lobby days and
assisted with programming for
older LGBTQ adults. I also have
experience in bicycle and
pedestrian advocacy, framing
transportation as a social justice
issue.
Gender, sexuality, and sexual
health are deeply important to me.
I advocate, educate, and build
community around these topics,
toward a vision of a world where
who you are and who you love do
not determine your outcomes in
life. I am thrilled to be a part of the
Missouri HIV Justice Coalition and
for the opportunity to work with
advocates across the state and
beyond.
pearson.molly.m@gmail.com
By: Brennan Keiser
Hello, I’m Brennan
Keiser, here. I’m
currently a working on
my Master of Social
Work at Washington
University in Saint Louis.
I originally sprouted in a
small farming
community rural
Nebraska, but my
natural curiosity has
taken me all around the world from
Costa Rica to Tanzania and
Germany to Easter Island. Through
my travels, I began to appreciate
just how much the world needs
more social workers.
One of the most pivotal
experiences for me was serving as
a Peace Corps Volunteer in an
indigenous region in
Panama. I was sent to
work on agriculturebased
initiatives, but
one of the ten core
expectations they
explained to us on our
first day was the need
to be flexible. I ended
up focusing a lot more
on education, youth
development, gender
and sexual health
during my service. In an
unfortunate episode with a parasite
(I totally won though), I also
experienced the flaws of a health
care system that failed to account
for social and cultural diversity. My
daily struggles as well as those of
the community where I lived helped
to kindle my desire for positive
social change.
I ended up back in Saint Louis four
years ago for a job and graduate
school opportunity. My studies
broadly touch themes including the
politics of sexual/reproductive
health, human rights, economic
inequality as well as gender and
LGBT equality. I aim to stay
globally minded while at the same
time plugging into to advocacy
networks to make local impact. I’m
excited to continue working with
the Missouri HIV Justice Coalition
and the staff of Empower Missouri
in order to help our state laws align
with scientific consensus and
principles of social justice.
keiser.brennan@gmail.com
Cont’d on p 7
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FEBRUARY 2019 NEWSLETTER
Cont’d from p 6
By: Kneeshe Parkinson
I am Kneeshe Parkinson, and I am
proud to be working with Empower
Missouri to complete a policy
fellowship with Positive Women’s
Network – USA (PWN), a
program training and preparing
participants to be effective
advocates for policy change. The
focus of the practicum will be
criminal justice reform, especially
modernizing Missouri’s outdated
and medically inaccurate HIV
policies and strengthening the
current Missouri HIV Justice
coalition.
In addition to being a PWN policy
fellow, I am the PWN State Lead
for Missouri. I was named PWN
Shero of the Month for October
2018 and was inducted into the
2020 Leading Women’s Society by
SisterLove, an organization
dedicated to eradicating “the
impact of HIV and sexual and
reproductive oppression upon all
women.” I am especially
passionate about advocating for
pregnant women with HIV.
I am a St. Louis native and felt
driven at a very young age to begin
work in the social services field by
volunteering with the Helena Hatch
Center for Women, an
organization serving women with
HIV/AIDS named for my aunt. I
motivated other youth to get tested,
stay on medications, and attend
support groups. I became active in
the “ADHERE” program to help
women get tested & adhere to
treatments using the motto “women
need to know.”
As an HIV
specialist
and a
certified
health
coach, I
help
educate
the St.
Louis
community about HIV, hepatitis C,
addiction, harm reduction,
treatment adherence, and
addressing stigma. I am on a
steering committee for ViiV
Healthcare and work with the Ryan
White HIV/AIDS Program Center
for Quality Improvement and
Innovation (CQII). Having been in
the HIV trenches for half my life, I
think it is accurate to say “I am a
bad-ass leader.”
Kneesheparkinson@gmail.com
By: Nicole Lynch
Hello, I’m Nicole Lynch. I am a
Master of Social Work student at
the University of Missouri-
Columbia. I am currently enrolled
in my final semester before
graduation! I am excited to have
the opportunity to be a full time
Legislative Intern for Empower
Missouri.
My journey to this point started in
2016 when I graduated with a
bachelor’s degree in psychology. I
started my MSW program with
intentions to become a licensed
mental health professional.
Throughout my time in graduate
school, I have worked with varying
populations. My experiences range
from doing entry-level work with
adolescents in foster care, to
facilitating psychotherapy sessions
with uninsured adults. My most
extensive experiences involve
working in residential care of adults
with severe and persistent mental
illness.
While I enjoy being involved with
direct client focused work, my time
spent with clients has shown me
how policy can result in social,
economic, and emotional
injustices. As a social worker I feel
compelled to be involved in the
“bigger picture” by advocating for
those being directly impacted by
social policy. I am very excited to
be making this transition from
micro to macro level work, and I’m
honored to build my foundational
experiences at Empower Missouri.
nicole.lynch@empowermissouri.org
EMPOWERING YOU | 07

FEBRUARY 2019 NEWSLETTER
Mental health care for uninsured is
economic development
By: Guest Columnist, Bruce Eddy,
Community Mental Health Fund
What does mental health care
for the uninsured have to do with
economic development? It turns
out, a lot. Missouri allows counties
to establish mental health tax
levies to serve uninsured
Missourians. Missouri also allows
cities to use TIF, Chapter 100 and
other tools to divert, discount or
even eliminate taxes in the name
of addressing blight and supporting
economic development. This
means tax revenue that would go
to schools, libraries, and mental
health services are reduced for 20
years or more. As Executive
Director of Jackson County’s
mental health levy, my job is to
oversee mental health funding that
serves 16,000 county residents.
Tax abatement makes my job
harder.
Like most people I appreciate a
revitalized downtown. To achieve
that Kansas City has expended a
huge amount of resources on
things like an entertainment
district, high-end apartments and
luxury hotels. So far, very little has
gone to meet the urgent need for
affordable housing. Kansas City is
about 15,000 units short of
meeting the need for our neighbors
earning less than 30% AMI. This
hurts mental health consumers in
important ways. It’s hard for us to
deliver effective care when people
don’t have safe and affordable
homes. These days affordable
housing often cannot be
found. Moreover the data is
showing the importance of stable
housing on long term outcomes,
including reducing health care
costs.
Incentives in Kansas City tend
to reward employers looking to
expand high-paying jobs and
attract high earning workers to our
city. That’s okay, it will lead to
earnings tax income for the city
and long term economic
advantages to our community. But
our city shouldn't serve only the
highest paid citizens. For persons
with a chronic illness who are
struggling to achieve selfsufficiency,
access to living wage
employment, and services
supported by taxes: education, job
training, and effective transit are
essential to economic wellbeing.
Kansas City’s corporatecentered
tax subsidies typically
don’t treat public services as
essential ingredients to economic
development or emphasize the
well-being of working class
residents.
It’s useful to remember that
incentives like TIF and Chapter
100 are simply tools intended to
address blight and attract jobs. But
our laws define blight loosely. It’s
easy for corporations to hire skilled
lawyers who bend the definitions to
suit their plans. You are likely to
hear that everyone benefits over
time from these incentives,
because taxes increase after the
20-year incentive period is over.
My colleagues in schools point out
that 20 years is a long time for kids
to wait for education funding! In
mental health, the situation is even
more dire, because without
treatment our consumers face a
host of serious risks from cooccurring
health issues,
incarceration, and
homelessness. It’s hard for them
to survive 20 years of economic
development.
Schools, libraries, and other public
services in Missouri are working
together with Empower Missouri in
an effort we call economic
development reform. To me this
means not eliminating TIFs, but
designing them in ways that are
more fair. Proposed reforms may
include a cap on the percentage of
taxes which may be diverted or
lessening the length of time a
development may be tax free,
especially in areas that are not
truly economically
distressed. Missouri could enforce
a claw back or look back so
developers must prove that the
abatement has spurred the
economic development as
promised, or lose the
incentive. Reform must include
the ability for taxing jurisdictions
Cont’d on page 9
EMPOWERING YOU | 08

FEBRUARY 2019 NEWSLETTER
Cont’d from p 8
(libraries, school districts, and other
public services like the Jackson
County Mental Health Levy) to opt
themselves out of the
package. Taxes in 20 years will
not help the students of Hickman
Mills school district today. Over the
objection of the school district, in
2016 Kansas City gave Cerner a
23 year development package
worth over a billion dollars. Now
that district is talking staff lay-offs
and school
closings.
Like many cities around the
country, Kansas City and St. Louis
have coalitions working for racial
and economic equity, and
explaining the social impacts of
incentives to citizens and elected
officials. I am optimistic for the
future of reform. Reform advocates
in Kansas City successfully placed
an initiative on an upcoming
election ballot which will lower the
length of time a development can
receive abatement. I am especially
grateful to Empower Missouri for its
skillful approach to addressing
these issues in the Missouri
legislature. Each year we find new
allies and are heartened by the
bipartisan response.
Good Food Policy advocacy Day
Click to join us February 6
Do you care about food justice in Missouri?
Do you want to protect SNAP/Food Stamps?
Do you want to ensure safe and healthy food is available to all Missourians?
Then join a broad coalition for an advocacy day in Jefferson City on Feb 6th!!
Lobby Day Logistics
DATE and TIME: Wednesday, February 6, 2019 10:30am– 3:00pm
LOCATION: Missouri capitol building. Lobby day lunch (free) and training location TBD
Lobby Day Timeline
10:30AM: Arrive in Jefferson City & find parking (map to be provided)
11:00AM: Lunch and lobby day briefing (location TBD)
12:00-3:00PM: Lobby day meetings with lawmakers
3:00PM: Debrief and depart for home
CLICK TO RSVP
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FEBRUARY 2019 NEWSLETTER
EMPOWERING YOU | 10

FEBRUARY 2019 NEWSLETTER
EMPOWERING YOU | 11

FEBRUARY 2019 NEWSLETTER
CALENDAR
KC United Way Legislative Preview, Friday February 1, Grace and Holy Cathedral, 8:00 - 11:00 AM
Good Food Policy Advocacy Day, Wednesday, February 6, Missouri State Capitol—Register for Details,
10:30 AM
STL Chapter Legislative Happy Hour, Thursday. February 7, Schlafly Bottleworks, 5:00 - 7:00 PM
Under the Dome and Around the State Briefing, Friday, February 8, 8:00 - 9:30 AM
MO HIV Justice Coalition Regular Working Conference Call, Friday, February 8, 1:00-2:00 PM
MO HIV Justice Coalition Legislative Advocacy Day, Tuesday, February 12, Missouri State Capitol—Register
for Details, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM
STL Chapter Friday Forum: Overview of 2019 Legislative Session, Friday, February 15, Paraquad 12-
1:30 PM
Over-Policing, HIV Criminalization, & Black Communities, Friday, February 15, Saint Louis University 6:00
PM
Over-Policing, HIV Criminalization, & Black Communities, Saturday, February 16, Kansas City 3:00 PM
MO HIV Justice Coalition Regular Working Conference Call, Friday, February 22, 1:00-2:00 PM
Under the Dome and Around the State Briefing, Thursday, February 28, 4:30 PM
Advocating for justice | Empowering Change
Headquarters’ Address
308 E. High St., Suite 100
Jefferson City, MO 65101
(573) 634-2901
(888) 634-2901
@EmpowerMissouri
www.EmpowerMissouri.org
Executive Director, Jeanette Mott Oxford
Jeanette@empowermissouri.org
Assistant Director, AJ Bockelman
AJ@empowermissouri.org
St. Louis, Christine Woody
Christine@empowermissouri.org
Southeast MO, Tracy Morrow
Tracy@empowermissouri.org
Springfield, Ashley Quinn
Ashley@empowermissouri.org
Kansas City, Sarah Owsley Townsend
SarahOT@empowermissouri.org
EMPOWERING YOU | 12