SB 509: That’s a mighty interesting legal citation you got there…

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General Assembly, governor, Jay Nixon, missouri, SB 509, taxes, veto, William Ray Price

There’s a nice little legal citation having to do with the literal meaning in a bill and legislative intent in Governor Jay Nixon’s veto of SB 509:

….Legislators have speculated in public comments that a court might ignore this clear and unambiguous language to avoid dramatic consequences to the state’s fiscal well-being that would result. However, post-enactment statements of individual legislators after a problem has been identified do not constitute legislative intent. “legislative intent can only be derived from the words of the statute itself.” State v. Rowe, 63 S.W. 3d 647, 650 (Mo. banc 2002); see also Spradlin v. City of Fulton, 982 S.W. 2d 255, 261 (Mo. banc 1998)(Price, J.)(“[C]ourts must give effect to the language as written.”). Once a law has been enacted, a court must enforce the law by its terms and not by what individual legislators believed they were enacting. See, e.g., Pipe fabricators, Inc. v. Director of revenue, 654 S.W. 2d 74, 76 (Mo. banc 1983)(affidavit of a former state senator as to intent of use tax provision was inadmissible since court is bound by express written law, and not what may have been intended)….

[bold emphasis added]

Price? Price? Where have we seen that name before?

In the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

Editorial: Oops. Legislature accidentally eliminates the income tax

April 22, 2014 4:30 pm • By the Editorial Board

….Former Missouri Supreme Court Justice William Ray Price said he thought Missouri courts would read the language as Mr. Lamping intended….

Evidently that was then, this is now.

Again, from Governor Nixon’s veto:

….More fundamentally, passing a bill with a problem and then hoping a judge will fix it is an abdication of the legislature’s responsibility under our tripartite system of government. Under our Constitution, “[t]he legislative branch is exclusively vested with the power to make laws.” Mo. Const. Art III, section 1. This means that lawmakers must enact laws, not merely ideas for a court to one day mold into something workable. The words on the page are what matter, for those are the words that guide the conduct of Missourians. The test is not what individual legislators say they meant – the test is what the words actually say….

Do you think they included that particular Missouri Supreme Court opinion on purpose?

Previously:

New Missouri Rule: if the governor governs right of center you can’t call him a “liberal” (July 1, 2013)

Bill signing Kabuki (July 12, 2013)

Rep. Chris Kelly (D): HB 253 – “I’d like to know what your opinion is.” (July 19, 2013)

Rep. Denny Hoskins (r): probably not gonna sustain the Governor’s veto of HB 253 (August 19, 2013)

Sec. of State Jason Kander (D) to Texas Gov. Rick Perry (r): You forgot about that Medicaid thing? (August 23, 2013)

Rep. Denny Hoskins (r) to UCM on HB 253: I don’t care, I’d rather be the new Speaker Pro Tem (August 24, 2013)

Rep. Denny Hoskins (r): your constituents know what you’re doing to them (August 26, 2013)

HB 253: Because those dissolute leeches at the public trough should shut up, that’s why! (August 28, 2013)

Missouri Democratic Party on HB 253: Yes, yes, let’s talk about Texas Gov. Rick Perry (r)…. (August 28, 2013)

AG Chris Koster (D) to Speaker Jones (r) on HB 253: you all certainly made a mess of things… (August 29, 2013)