Progress in Fight for Less Government in Missouri

On Friday, Combest linked to several stories that involve less government in our state. First, the state Senate has approved a proposal to allow voters to decide on reducing our number of state reps. Granted, it is a lot easier for the Senate to do this than for the House itself to agree to reduce its numbers, but I believe this is the first time in decades that the proposal got through at least one of the chambers. (Feel free to correct me if I am wrong.)

Reducing our number of state reps will save money on legislative salaries and benefits. It will reduce the number of people who can introduce new laws to dictate how Missourians live their lives. For more information about why this change would benefit Missouri, check out these prior posts.

Affecting far fewer people — but equally exciting — is the upcoming meeting about the disincorporation of Saint George, a small suburb in Saint Louis County that has long been a speeding ticket revenue hotspot. A group of newly elected city leaders campaigned for the idea of disincorporation, and now the chickens get to come home and roost. I have long felt that disincorporation was an overlooked option for small Missouri towns and villages, especially in Saint Louis County towns like Saint George.

However, the article certainly makes it seem that the newly elected leadership has quickly started acting like politicians. They appear to have taken a liking to being in office instead of moving ahead with their campaign promises. If your real goal were to disincorporate the city, why would you appoint political allies to fill all the positions? I know that to the victor goes the spoils, but not if the city no longer exists:

[Mayor Carmen] Wilkerson nominated [Susan] Preis to be a full-time city clerk for about $40,000 a year with no benefits to replace Marilyn Schneider, who works part time and earns $14,000 with benefits.

City Treasurer Dave Pozzo was replaced with Cathy Heins. John Malec, the city’s attorney and prosecutor, resigned before the meeting and was replaced by Paul Martin, who had led Wilkerson’s steering committee to look at dissolving the city.

I hope they prove me wrong and are serious about returning to disincorporated status within the county.