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State Rep. Keri Ingle is the latest guest on St. Louis Public Radio’s Politically Speaking, where she previewed the 2024 legislative session.

Ingle represents Missouri’s 35th District, which takes in a portion of Jackson County. She was first elected to her post in 2018, flipping a seat to Democrats.

Here’s what Ingle had to say on the program:

• She expects the 2024 session to be rough, especially since legislators will be jockeying either for statewide office or to move into the Missouri Senate. Those election year pressures, she said, could affect the ability for lawmakers to pass much of substance.
• Legislators may have difficulty passing what’s known as the Federal Reimbursement Allowance, a tax hospitals place on themselves to help fund the state’s Medicaid program. Lawmakers had to go into special session in 2021 to pass the FRA.
• She discussed efforts to get measures on the 2024 ballot that would legalize abortion. There are competing ideas about how to roll back the state’s abortion ban, with one group taking a relatively modest approach and some abortion rights organizations pushing for something more expansive.
• Ingle talked about a budgetary push to pay Children’s Division workers more money. That issue has gained more attention amid recruitment and retention issues for child abuse investigators, especially in the St. Louis region.

Ingle has a background in social work and previously investigated child abuse and neglect as a Children’s Division employee.

Ingle won reelection in 2020 and 2022. She can run for one more term in 2024 before service limits will prevent her from being elected again in the House.

State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick returns to Politically Speaking to talk about his first year in office, which included a high-profile fight with state Attorney General Andrew Bailey over the potential costs of passing an abortion rights ballot initiative.

Fitzpatrick became state auditor earlier in January after winning election over Democrat Alan Green. He previously served as state treasurer and also was House Budget Committee chairman.

Here’s what Fitzpatrick said on the program:

• Fitzpatrick went into detail about his dispute with Bailey over cost estimates of proposed ballot items to legalize abortion. Fitzpatrick pushed back against his fellow GOP official’s contentions that the measures could cost the state billions.
• Fitzpatrick discussed his transition into office, including how he’s sought to get more money to hire additional auditors. He previously said staffing concerns made it difficult for him to launch discretionary audits, such as one for the Children’s Division.
• He also talked about his decision to launch an audit of the state marijuana program, something he said he would do when he was running for the post last year.
• While Fitzpatrick is not on the ballot in 2024, he talked about whether a series of crowded primaries for statewide offices will hamper GOP chances next year.

Fitzpatrick served three full terms in the Missouri House. Gov. Mike Parson appointed the Barry County Republican to be treasurer in early 2019 after Eric Schmitt was picked to be attorney general. He won a full four-year term in 2020 against Democrat Vicki Englund.
After state Auditor Nicole Galloway decided against running for reelection in 2022, Fitzpatrick won a primary against then-state Rep. David Gregory — and then easily defeated Green in the general election. Fitzpatrick’s victory meant that Republicans controlled every statewide office.

Fitzpatrick is a native of Shell Knob, a community about 40 miles from Branson. He started a dock repair business while he was in high school, a company that grew dramatically while he was in college.

State Rep. Ian Mackey is the latest guest on Politically Speaking, where he talked about his concerns around the upcoming legislative session and the 2024 elections.

Mackey represents Missouri’s 99th House District, which takes in St. Louis County cities like Clayton, Ladue and Olivette. He was first elected to the Missouri House in 2018 and won reelection in 2020 and 2022.

Here’s what Mackey discussed on the show:

• His expectations for the 2024 session, particularly whether his GOP colleagues would try to push restrictions on adult transgender people having hormone therapy or gender transition surgery. Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey issued emergency rules on that subject earlier this year but withdrew them before they went into effect.
• Why he’s not calling for GOP House Speaker Dean Plocher to step down from his post. Plocher has been under fire after the Missouri Independent reported he received House reimbursements for travel expenses that had been paid for by his campaign.
• His support of House Minority Leader Crystal Quade’s gubernatorial bid and why he’s not worried that she’s now facing Springfield businessman Mike Hamra in a Democratic primary.
• Whether a looming primary between U.S. Rep. Cori Bush and St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell will fragment the Democratic coalition that other candidates may need to rely on next year.

Mackey has a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from Westminster College and a law degree from Suffolk University in Boston.

He serves on House committees dealing with crime prevention, K-12 education and the judiciary.

St. Louis Alderwoman Daniela Velazquez is the latest guest on Politically Speaking, where she discussed her first few months in office.

Velazquez represents the city’s 6th Ward, which takes in Compton Heights, Compton Hill, Shaw, Tower Grove South and portions of Dutchtown. She was first elected in April, becoming the first Latina to serve on the board.

Here’s what Velazquez talked about on the program:

• While St. Louis has roughly $250 million to spend from a settlement over the departure of the St. Louis Rams, Velazquez said it would be prudent to hold off on spending the money — especially when the city still needs to expend American Rescue Plan Act funds.
• Some of the big issues that have come before the board since she was sworn in, including regulating short-term rental properties and raising water rates for the first time in nearly a decade.
• How her colleagues are trying to provide more oversight over the corrections department and whether there’s momentum to boost pay for corrections officers.
• Velazquez is the sponsor of legislation that would fine people who file serial numbers off guns. While that’s already against federal law, Velazquez said it would show that city policymakers are trying to take tangible steps to reduce gun violence.

Velazquez spent her professional career as a journalist and communications professional. Before running for office, she worked at FleishmanHillard and the ACLU of Missouri and was a staffer for the Ferguson Commission.
She ran against former St. Louis Alderwoman and former Recorder of Deeds Jennifer Florida. Velazquez won by over 1,000 votes and will serve on the board through 2027.

For Missouri Republicans, making it harder to amend the state’s constitution will remain a priority for the upcoming session.

Rep. Adam Schwadron, R-St. Charles, agrees with his party that public policy does not belong in Missouri’s constitution. However, he also believes there need to be greater protections for statutory changes that are passed by Missouri voters.

Currently, proposed changes to Missouri’s statutes require signatures from 5% of voters in six of the state’s congressional districts to get on the ballot and then a simple majority to win.

However, statute changes mean that lawmakers can edit or undo those efforts during session. Schwadron cited a 2010 statute change that imposed greater restrictions for puppy mills as an example.

“They had the statutory change on puppy mills, and then the legislature the very next year, wiped all of that away,” Schwadron said. “And so people said, ‘Why should we bother doing the 5% signatures, when we’re already out there? Let’s do the 8% and let’s amend it to the constitution.”

Schwadron has proposed legislation that would make it harder for lawmakers to change voter-approved statutes.

“What I am calling for is, it would take three-quarters of the legislature, so far beyond any supermajority than any party holds right now, or possibly will hold,” Schwadron said. “So, it would take 75% of the House and 75% of the Senate to override any changes made by the people.”

Schwadron, who is running to become Missouri’s next secretary of state, is the latest guest on Politically Speaking. Here’s what else Schwadron talked about on the show:

• His bid for secretary of state, including what he wants to accomplish in the position.
• Whether the state should shift to counting ballots by hand instead of using machines.
• Missouri’s current two-week, no-excuse absentee voting period and if it should be expanded.
• If Republican lawmakers should push for any initiative petition changes to be on the August ballot in 2024 instead of November.
• The upcoming session, including whether having many lawmakers running for different positions will affect productivity.

Schwadron was first elected to the Missouri House of Representatives in 2020. He represents the 105th District, which includes the city of St. Charles.

Schwadron received his bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Missouri-St. Louis.