ACROSS MO

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REP. RUSTY BLACK Room 115

State Capitol Building 201 W. Capitol Avenue Jefferson City, MO 65101

E-mail: rusty.black@house.mo.gov 573-751-2917 NEWS FROM THE SEVENTH DISTRICT

Hello 7th District; During the timeframe of July 10-13 I attended the Southern Legislators Conference annual conference in Nashville. I was fortunate to attend the conference in 2018 that took place in St. Louis. The conference was canceled in 2019 due to a hurricane and also canceled in 2020 because of Covid-19. Participation in the meetings allows me to learn from experts in various fields.

This year, in addition to the general meetings, I participated in meetings discussing Ag and Rural Issues, Fiscal Affairs and Government Operation and Education. All three areas offered information that improved my knowledge and will benefit my decision making.

The Ag meeting I attended focused primarily on access to high-speed internet.

I attended Fiscal Development twice, with discussions focused on the economy, inflation and federal dollars that have and continue to be distributed to various local and state governments. Pension systems were also discussed during one of these meetings. The Education meetings discussed staffing difficulties primarily in rural areas and high stakes testing our country continues to increase in the public schools.

Participating in meetings such as these I believe provide new perspectives and contribute positively to our state. During the years I taught I attended several meetings and listened to others discuss their experiences at “Professional Development” meetings and conferences. My greatest takeaway was: if I wanted to learn something, “I DID”. I tried to gain something at each conference I attended. Sometimes I had to work harder to learn but I could gain something.

Something I also wanted to do was to give an update to the district in regard to the money allotted for use here in the capitol office. As many of you may not know, our fiscal year starts on July 1. I always try to use as little money as possible so at the end of the fiscal year I can return whatever is unused. This past fiscal year I did spend some money on a district directory and a few pieces of much needed office equipment. Even after that money was spent, I was still able to return $3,832.35.

As always, if you have any questions, comments or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact my office at the following: (Phone): 573-751-2917) (Email): rusty.black@house.mo.gov

Social Media:

Twitter: @rep_rusty

Facebook: Rusty Black

My legislative assistant, Ashley Wright, or I will be happy to assist in any way that we can. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to serve the 7th District of the Missouri House of Representatives.

Mask Opponents At Risk After Virus Case At Missouri Meeting

O'FALLON, Mo. (AP) — Many people were maskless as they expressed their displeasure with a mask mandate during a boisterous, four-hour St. Louis County Council meeting, and now contact tracers are trying to determine if anyone picked up the coronavirus after someone at the meeting tested positive for COVID-19.

The delta variant of the coronavirus that emerged in rural areas of Missouri has made its way to urban areas, prompting new mask mandates in St. Louis city and county last month and one that began Monday in Kansas City.

The St. Louis County mandate was the subject of a turbulent meeting last Tuesday. Democratic County Executive Sam Page said Monday that many of those who spoke and attended ignored the mandate that requires masks in indoor public places.

A St. Louis city resident who was at the county meeting began showing symptoms the next day and tested positive for COVID19. Health officials issued an advisory asking everyone who attended the meeting — even those who are fully vaccinated — to quarantine through Aug. 10.

“Yes, it’s unfortunate that many of those Tuesday night ignored the law, but that’s what happened," Page said during a livestreamed video from his home.

Among those quarantining is the county's health director, Faisal Khan. He spoke in support of the mask mandate and claimed that afterward he was assaulted and bombarded with racial slurs. County Councilman Tim Fitch, a Republican, questioned if Khan, a U.S. citizen who is originally from Pakistan, was really assaulted.

Page's office and the County Council are both investigating.

Inquest: Violence, Not Suicide, Killed Man At Missouri Party

PARK HILLS, Mo. (AP) — A Black man who died during a party at the Missouri home of a man with a history of bigoted social media posts was killed by violence, not suicide, a jury found after a coroner's inquest.

Friday's inquest into the death of 19-year-old Derontae Martin came after his family and racial injustice activists questioned the initial finding that Martin shot himself in the head during a party at a rural house on April 25.

Martin was found in the attic of a home near Fredericktown, about 27 miles (43 kilometers) south of Park Hills, where Martin and his family had lived until shortly before his death. Some of the people at the party initially told police he had shot himself.

The six-person jury that heard testimony from about 20 people Friday had to decide whether Martin’s death was the result of violence, suicide, accident or natural causes.

It is unclear how the case will go forward now and Madison County Prosecutor M. Dwight Robbins declined to comment after the hearing, The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.

Dr. Russell Deidiker, the pathologist who performed the autopsy on Martin, testified that Martin died from a gunshot wound fired at close contact to his head.

A second autopsy, which was commissioned by Martin’s family, indicated the gun had been fired from a different range. Deidiker said that autopsy was done after Martin’s body was cleaned and didn't change his opinion.

Toxicology results also found drugs in Martin’s system, Deidiker testified.

Other witnesses testified that Martin was acting paranoid at the party, that various people might have been involved in his death, or that the homeowner had killed Martin.

The homeowner testified that he had used racial slurs in the past and on social media but said he did not kill Martin.

Because the man is not charged with a crime, The Associated Press is not naming him.

Martin’s mother, Ericka Lotts, danced in the courthouse hall after the decision was announced, shouting praise to God before briefly collapsing in a chair and crying heavily.

STRAIGHT TALK WITH SAM

Sixth District U.S. Rep. Sam Graves 1415 Longworth House Bldg. Washington D.C. 20515 Phone: 202-225-7041

MAKING PROGRESS IN BRIDGING THE DIGITAL DIVIDE Early last month, I wrote to you all about a bill I introduced to help bridge the digital divide—the E-BRIDGE Act. I’m proud to report my bill passed out of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee this week. Now, it will head to the whole House for consideration.

It’s not a big or flashy bill, it’s just six pages long—and one of those is the title. Only in Washington, right? What it lacks in length though, it more than makes up for in common sense.

See, it doesn’t create some massive new government program or try to re-invent the wheel. My bill simply gets rid of some red tape that prevents local communities from using Economic Development Administration (EDA) grants for internet infrastructure projects. It just gives local communities more control and allows them to partner with the private sector to get internet infrastructure projects done.

It’s that kind of common sense that Washington seems to be missing a lot of these days. In the era of the 24-hour news cycle where everything has to be a fight, sometimes we just need to take a hard look at the federal government and find ways to fix it—however small—that we can all agree on. That’s exactly what the EBRIDGE Act is all about. It isn’t some $18 bajillion monstrosity of an “infrastructure” bill, it’s a big step forward for folks that still can’t get reliable high-speed internet service—whether they live in rural areas, in the suburbs or even in some cities. This kind of bipartisan solution won’t make the nightly news of cable TV, but that’s not what it’s about. It’s about getting something done and giving more control back to local communities. After all, folks around here know a lot more about how to bolster their local economy than a couple of desk-jockeys in Washington, DC. I’m proud that we got this bill out of committee and even prouder that we were able to get it done unanimously. Now, I hope we can keep moving this critical legislation forward to help get these internet infrastructure projects done without breaking the bank.

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