Yet another to study possible changes to government structure in St. Louis and St. Louis County and issue recommendations on better ways of doing things. This one could be different because at least one powerful Missouri legislator wants to get involved.
The task force has the support of St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson and the St. Louis County Executive Steve Stenger. It will be assisted by the staff of , the Rex Sinquefield-funded civic organization that’s been studying the issue since 2013.
At a press conference Monday, the parties stressed that there’s no preconceived notion of what a new governance structure would look like. Because the subject is politically touchy, great efforts were made to avoid using terms like “reunification,†“consolidation,†“merger†or even “re-entry.â€
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St. Louis has seen over the decades, some more serious than others. What could make this one different is that the Missouri Legislature is itching to get involved.
In May, Senate President Pro Tem Ron Richard, R-Joplin, said St. Louis governance will be on the Legislature’s agenda next year. :
“St. Louis keeps getting in the way of themselves. They have a governance in St. Louis City that’s — I mean, they have an entrenched bureaucracy that keeps them from functioning in my mind. The county has all of these municipalities and these little bitty fiefdoms. Someday, guys like me from rural Missouri are going to say: Enough is enough, you guys are out of money, keep passing taxes. I think that’s not in the best interest of Missouri, so we’re going to have to start merging municipalities, fire districts, police districts, public safety, merge county and city, sell Lambert Field, take the $2 to $3 billion and do infrastructure in the city.â€
Richard added, “Let’s shake things up.â€
Making that threat more credible is that the Legislature in recent years has been overriding local decisions in St. Louis on guns laws, the minimum wage and abortion. And city-county governance issues are a big priority for Sinquefield, the billionaire Republican megadonor.
³§¾±²Ô±ç³Ü±ð´Ú¾±±ð±ô»å’s funds Better Together. The group reported this week that overall municipal spending in the city and county has grown to $2.5 billion a year, up $119 million in three years. Call it what you will, a new governance structure might well be more efficient.
If the Legislature took on the issue, it would override the local politics involved in dissolving or merging government entities. But if the effort involved not only municipal governments and police, but fire districts and airport ownership, it would create legal challenges and a lobbying tsunami the likes of which Jefferson City has never seen.
Buckle your seat belts.
