House Members Prepare for Annual Veto Session

Friday, September 18, 2015

As mandated by the Missouri Constitution, the General Assembly will convene on September 16 to consider bills that were passed by the House and Senate but vetoed by the governor. The annual Veto Session gives legislators a final opportunity to enact their bills into law despite the governor's objections. In both chambers, a two-thirds vote is required to override a veto. In the House that number amounts to 109 votes. Twenty-three votes are needed in the Senate to successfully complete an override motion.
 
In 2015 the governor vetoed 12 House Bills, six Senate Bills, and had one line-item veto in an appropriations bill. While the legislature was still in session, the House and Senate overrode the governor's veto of legislation (SB 24) designed to reform Missouri's system of welfare so that it does a better job of moving Missourians out of poverty and toward self-sufficiency. The House also approved a veto override motion for legislation meant to reform Missouri's system of unemployment, but the Senate failed to act before the clock ran out on the session.
 
The House and Senate will now consider the remaining bills with the override process starting in the House for House Bills, and in the Senate for Senate bills. For some historical perspective, the General Assembly overrode the governor's vetoes on 10 bills and 47 budget line-items during last year's Veto Session. These totals, plus the veto override completed during the 2015 session, push the total override count in state history to 93 with 44 of the overrides coming on vetoes of non-appropriations bills and 49 on budget line-items. Interestingly, 71 of the overrides have occurred during the current governor's time in office.


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