BILL NUMBER: DATE: HB 2020 3/14/2024 COMMITTEE: Budget TESTIFYING: IN SUPPORT OF IN OPPOSITION TO FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES
WITNESS NAME INDIVIDUAL: WITNESS NAME: PHONE NUMBER: BILL NICHOLS BUSINESS/ORGANIZATION NAME: TITLE:
ADDRESS:
CITY: STATE: ZIP:
EMAIL: ATTENDANCE: SUBMIT DATE: nichols4848@sbcglobal.net Written 3/13/2024 7:58 PM THE INFORMATION ON THIS FORM IS PUBLIC RECORD UNDER CHAPTER 610, RSMo. I object to these 17 bills because public input should have occurred weeks ago. The Public getting notice of one hearing on all 17 spending bills the day before deliberations is dysfunctional government (no surprise there with the GOP super-majority), especially after advocacy groups, lawmakers, and other individuals have already been able to comment on the bills. MISSOURI HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES WITNESS APPEARANCE FORM
BILL NUMBER: DATE: HB 2020 3/14/2024 COMMITTEE: Budget TESTIFYING: IN SUPPORT OF IN OPPOSITION TO FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES
WITNESS NAME BUSINESS/ORGANIZATION: WITNESS NAME: PHONE NUMBER: ANDREW KUHLMAN 636-699-8201 BUSINESS/ORGANIZATION NAME: TITLE: STAGES ST. LOUIS EXECUTIVE PRODUCER ADDRESS: 1023 CHESTERFIELD PARKWAY EAST CITY: STATE: ZIP: CHESTERFIELD MO 63017 EMAIL: ATTENDANCE: SUBMIT DATE: akuhlman@stagesstlouis.org Written 3/14/2024 1:08 PM THE INFORMATION ON THIS FORM IS PUBLIC RECORD UNDER CHAPTER 610, RSMo. STAGES St. Louis is the region’s foremost not-for-profit company committed to preserving and advancing the art form of Musical Theatre through excellence in performance and education. In 2024, STAGES celebrates its 38th Season of producing Broadway-quality theatre, presenting 138 performances from June through October to an anticipated audience of more than 50,000 patrons. Today, the company employs a full-time, year-round staff of 25. During the performance season, an additional 180+ actors and crew members bring the productions to life. To date, STAGES professionals have produced 112 shows, with nearly 3,700 performances, playing to more than one million patrons. The STAGES audience includes patrons from a spectrum of ages and socio-economic levels from more than 238 cities located in 30 states. Audience members represent more than 45 counties and 187 zip codes from the state of Missouri alone. STAGES prides itself on providing family friendly, appropriate performances that are suitable for every member of the family. All productions are fully accessible to individuals living with disabilities and each season STAGES provides over 1,000 complimentary tickets to underserved populations including students and seniors. In 2024, the STAGES Performing Arts Academy (SPAA) enters its 17th year of inspiring passion, creativity, and curiosity in students of all ages through Musical Theatre education. The SPAA hosts a faculty of more than 50 professional teaching artists and impacts the lives of over 4,500 students and community members annually through a variety of programs. One such program is Urban Arts Initiative (UAI), which benefits underserved students throughout the St. Louis region in their own communities. This year-round program provides local schools, youth organizations, and community centers that are unable to offer theatre arts education with SPAA teaching artists to teach classes and lead the staging of productions. UAI is offered at little or no cost to all partner organizations. The SPAA hosted outreach programs at 25 locations in the state of Missouri in 2023. A list of anticipated outreach partners for 2024 is included below: Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, Community School, Principia School, Bowles Elementary School, Sumner High School, Henry Elementary School, Reed Elementary School, Kehrs Mill Elementary School, Marian Middle School, Highcroft Ridge Elementary, Claymont Elementary School, City Academy, Lemay Child & Family Center, Shenandoah Valley School, Wren Hollow Elementary School, St. Margaret of Scotland School, Independence Center, Pierremont, Kellison Elementary School, Marquette High School, Promise Christian Academy, Ross Elementary School, Hanna Woods Elementary School, Hermann, The St. Austin School, Carman Trails Elementary School, Ellisville Elementary School, Holt High School, St Francis of Assisi School, River Bend Elementary School, Oak Brook Elementary School, Access the Arts (ATA) Troupe Broadway, Mary Queen of Peace School, Chesterfield Elementary School, Craig Elementary School, St. Justin Martyr, Old Bonhomme Elementary School, Woerther Elementary School STAGES St. Louis is requesting a 1x $500,000 from GR from the department of Mental Health for education & outreach and audience development & artistic programming. STAGES has a 50/50 match for this appropriation request. STAGES St. Louis is also requesting a 1x appropriation of $1 Million in HB 20 from ARPA or Budget Stabilization for capital improvements for our performance hall renovation and several upgrades to our administrative and education headquarters, which include accessibility and safety upgrades. STAGES has a 50/50 match for this appropriation request. MISSOURI HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES WITNESS APPEARANCE FORM
BILL NUMBER: DATE: HB 2020 3/14/2024 COMMITTEE: Budget TESTIFYING: IN SUPPORT OF IN OPPOSITION TO FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES
WITNESS NAME INDIVIDUAL: WITNESS NAME: PHONE NUMBER: ARNIE C."HONEST-ABE" DIENOFF-STATE PUBLIC ADVOCATE BUSINESS/ORGANIZATION NAME: TITLE:
ADDRESS:
CITY: STATE: ZIP:
EMAIL: ATTENDANCE: SUBMIT DATE: arniedienoff@yahoo.com Written 3/14/2024 12:19 AM THE INFORMATION ON THIS FORM IS PUBLIC RECORD UNDER CHAPTER 610, RSMo. Did you cut ALL Government Waste, Abuse and Cut Programs that are NOT working for Missourians? MISSOURI HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES WITNESS APPEARANCE FORM
BILL NUMBER: DATE: HB 2020 3/14/2024 COMMITTEE: Budget TESTIFYING: IN SUPPORT OF IN OPPOSITION TO FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES
WITNESS NAME BUSINESS/ORGANIZATION: WITNESS NAME: PHONE NUMBER: KIMBERLY MCKINNEY 314-757-5242 BUSINESS/ORGANIZATION NAME: TITLE: HABITAT FOR HUMANITY SAINT LOUIS CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER ADDRESS: 3830 SOUTH GRAND BLVD CITY: STATE: ZIP: ST. LOUIS MO 63118 EMAIL: ATTENDANCE: SUBMIT DATE: kimberly@habitatstl.org Written 3/14/2024 9:44 AM THE INFORMATION ON THIS FORM IS PUBLIC RECORD UNDER CHAPTER 610, RSMo. Since its founding in 1986, Habitat for Humanity Saint Louis has completed over 400 homes in partnership with families in need of safe, affordable housing in St. Louis City and St. Louis County. Habitat Saint Louis believes in a world where everyone has a decent place to live and is dedicated to eliminating substandard housing. Habitat Saint Louis works towards that goal with a comprehensive program in which hard-working St. Louis families invest their time in to building and purchasing their own home. While Habitat Saint Louis is an affiliate of Habitat for Humanity International, national funding represents less than 5% of the total budget – and proudly, 85 cents of every dollar raised goes directly into programming defined as home construction, volunteer mobilization and partner family selection/education. Half of renters in the St Louis region are cost burdened meaning too many people spend a disproportionate amount of the income on rent, leaving little left over for childcare, medical needs, and education. Statistics show that more than half of all rental units in the St. Louis region are occupied by people who pay more than 30% of their income toward rent. The average person accepted into the Habitat Saint Louis program lives on $33,000 before taxes and has a household of 4 people. In 2023, the funds allocated by the State of Missouri allowed Habitat Saint Louis to invest in efficiencies that make it possible to build more homes and serve more families. Additionally, funds were leveraged with private dollars for each of the programmatic activities listed previously - construction materials, mobilization of volunteers and both the selection and education of partner families. Nine homes, following the traditional Habitat model, were under construction in The Gate District and Lookaway Summit, both in St. Louis City. Additionally, Habitat Saint Louis took on the role as general contractor and lead agency for a collaborative project with three smaller community organizations for the construction of 18 additional homes. Recognizing that having the ability to stay in a home is equally important, Habitat Saint Louis started a home repair program to address small repairs, code violations, weatherization, and energy efficiency concerns for low-income homeowners through St. Louis. The demand for these services has been overwhelming. Realizing this is likely a need that extends beyond the St. Louis region; Habitat Saint Louis is also working diligently to document programmatic information that could be utilized in other areas.The funding request for 2024 represents a strong need and desire to serve more families in need – whether by increasing organizational capacity by owning equipment that is currently rented which can sometimes result in costly delays, enhancing volunteer training that prepares much needed Construction Leaders, or by in actual construction dollars, leverage with private funds. MISSOURI HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES WITNESS APPEARANCE FORM
BILL NUMBER: DATE: HB 2020 3/14/2024 COMMITTEE: Budget TESTIFYING: IN SUPPORT OF IN OPPOSITION TO FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES
WITNESS NAME BUSINESS/ORGANIZATION: WITNESS NAME: PHONE NUMBER: OPAL M. JONES 314-328-2701 BUSINESS/ORGANIZATION NAME: TITLE: DOORWAYS PRESIDENT & CEO ADDRESS: 1101 N. JEFFERSON AVE. CITY: STATE: ZIP: SAINT LOUIS MO 63106 EMAIL: ATTENDANCE: SUBMIT DATE: ojones@doorwayshousing.org Written 3/13/2024 10:32 PM THE INFORMATION ON THIS FORM IS PUBLIC RECORD UNDER CHAPTER 610, RSMo. Distinguished Members of the House of Representatives Budget Committee,Please allow me to introduce myself as the President and CEO of DOORWAYS. We are an interfaith nonprofit organization dedicated to providing housing and healthcare services to our most vulnerable citizens – those battling HIV, homelessness, mental illness and more, due to a lifetime of marginalization and limited opportunities. DOORWAYS serves 62 counties in Missouri, bringing critical services to areas where there is unmet need for those low-income and living with HIV. Those services include housing, whether it be one of our apartment buildings, or rental and utility subsidies for people to remain in their own accommodations, in their own neighborhoods. One of our housing programs, Cooper House, is a 36-bed assisted living facility serving the sickest people living with AIDS in our region, accepting clients from across the state, who would otherwise be destitute or deteriorating alone without the program. We also provide empowerment services that stabilize people and help them reach higher levels of independence. This includes behavioral health therapies to address mental illness and substance abuse, as well as career services that advance skills and employment opportunities. What I’ve described is just the tip of the iceberg. Below the surface is the heart of the agency, which provides love, encouragement and support with a can-do attitude to foster hope within our clients. Many of whom have been written off or cast aside. With this approach, and evidence-based philosophies and services, we have saved lives and demonstrated meaningful outcomes, such as 90% viral suppression in many of our programs among participants. Those who achieve viral suppression are healthy AND they do not transmit HIV to other individuals. Yes, we are stopping the forward transmission of HIV, which means a $500,000 savings to the State of Missouri for each infection prevented.Saving lives costs money and we hope that once again, as you did last year, funds will be appropriated to our cause. Specifically, we request:• $750,000 in HB 10 from General Revenue for programming and general operations• $850,000 in HB 20 from Budget Stabilization or ARPA for one-time funding to assist with the historic renovation of the Cooper House facility that I mentioned above. DOORWAYS has recently received a $1M grant from the St. Louis Affordable Housing Commission, and another $850K in Federal Community Project Funding just signed into law, that will serve as the match for any ARPA funds granted through the state.As always, we appreciate the support provided by the State of Missouri, which has been a long-time partner in aiding our mission.I thank you ever so greatly for your thoughtful consideration.Opal M. JonesPresident & CEODOORWAYS MISSOURI HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES WITNESS APPEARANCE FORM
BILL NUMBER: DATE: HB 2020 3/14/2024 COMMITTEE: Budget TESTIFYING: IN SUPPORT OF IN OPPOSITION TO FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES
WITNESS NAME BUSINESS/ORGANIZATION: WITNESS NAME: PHONE NUMBER: STUART DUNCAN 636-251-0367 BUSINESS/ORGANIZATION NAME: TITLE: CHESTERFIELD SPORTS ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT ADDRESS: 150 N. EATHERTON RD. CITY: STATE: ZIP: CHESTERFIELD MO 63005 EMAIL: ATTENDANCE: SUBMIT DATE: stuart@chesterfieldsports.com Written 3/13/2024 10:06 PM THE INFORMATION ON THIS FORM IS PUBLIC RECORD UNDER CHAPTER 610, RSMo. The Chesterfield Sports Association is a nonprofit organization that owns and operates a state-of-the- art Athletic Facility in Chesterfield Valley known as the Chesterfield Sports Complex. The new facility houses 9 basketball courts that can be converted into 18 volleyball courts. The facility also includes a performance training space that is 4,000 square feet to keep student athletes healthy and mitigate injuries. The total cost of this facility was 17.5 million dollars with 2 million coming from the state of Missouri from an ARPA appropriation, 1 million from The High-Performance Volleyball Club, $625,000 in donations from the community and 12 million dollars from a bank loan.It was through the state’s direct investment in our organization that this facility was able to become reality. From the state’s investment our organization has seen the following number of athletes through the facility in just year 2023:- 1,800 athletes for a gymnastics tournament- 3 martial arts tournaments that brought in 2,000 athletes- 11 national Elite Basketball Tournaments that brought in 11,000 athletes- Local basketball league games that brought in 75,000 athletes- A collegiate volleyball tournament that brought in 400 athletes- Total number of athletes through the facility: 90,000Sports Tourism is one of our nation’s leading industries. Sports Tourism nationwide generated an estimated 50.42 billion dollars. By year 2033 that number is estimated to reach 185.32 billion dollars. At our facility alone, we estimated the economic impact to Missouri to be the following:- 12,000 out of state athletes- 30,000 total out of state visitors and athletes- Estimated Hotel nights 24,000- Average dollar amount spent per traveler $359ESTIMATED OUT OF STATE VISITOR SPEND: 10.8 millionOur organization’s facility is having tremendous success- but our capacity is limited due to a lack of parking. Our facility has access to an additional 10 acres to accommodate additional parking. Due to rising costs and our organization working to pay down our bank loan- we are not in a position to finance the additional parking needed to allow the facility to meet full potential. We are requesting a $2 million-dollar 1x appropriation in HB 20 from ARPA to assist in covering the cost to expand our parking and increase our capacity. This investment by the State of Missouri would further increase our economic impact by allowing more out of state teams to