Kander releases legislative proposals

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Secretary of State Jason Kander released his 2016 legislative proposals on Tuesday, hoping to “keep elections secure, open and accurate, protect Missourians, restore public trust in government and grow Missouri business.”

“These commonsense solutions will help move Missouri forward—from making it free to start a new business with my office to strengthening our program to help protect survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and rape,” Kander said. “I look forward to working with legislators on both sides of the aisle to deliver these proposals to the governor this year.”

Included in the proposals are no-excuse absentee voting, increased ballot access for emergency disaster workers, strengthening the Safe at Home program by expanding the set of aggravating factors in existing stalking laws to include situations where the victim is a Safe at Home participant and subjects violators to a class E felony, and expanding the Safe at Home program to protect survivors of human trafficking

Kander also hopes to see ethics, lobbying, and campaign finance reform and to lower business fees to the lowest in the country.

The Secretary of State also hopes to expand the Startups for Soldiers program to include veterans and conditionally exempt family farms from filing as corporations.

The Secretary of State’s office said bills have been filed for all of Kander’s proposals.

Kander also voiced support for passing the Missouri Nondiscrimination Act and expanding Medicaid.

In past sessions, the legislature has passed proposals, including the Senior Savings Protection Act, a bipartisan bill to expand military voter registration, and a bill to provide safer voting options to survivors of domestic violence.

The full agenda can be viewed here.