On the Issues

Jeff Harris: Standing Up for Hardworking Missouri Families

Keeping Families and Communities Safe

Jeff has a record in the legislature of being tough, but fair, on crime. Jeff has successfully passed numerous bills to protect children, including legislation which increased the penalty for persons who manufacture drugs in a house where children live and legislation prohibiting judges from letting sex offenders out on bail while they are awaiting sentencing. Jeff was one of a handful of legislators to vote against early release of certain felony offenders. Later he sponsored the repeal of this law. As your Attorney General, Jeff will fight for Missouri’s children and families against those that abuse women, children, and other Missourians.

Securing Missourians’ Privacy

While the Internet has been a valuable tool for many Missourians, it also poses a threat to the privacy of our citizens. There have been numerous instances where people’s personal information stored on computer databases has been compromised. At the University of Missouri, a number of employee and student Social Security numbers were compromised. Jeff has a record as a legislator in protecting the Missourians’ privacy. As your Attorney General, he will place a special focus on Missourians’ privacy and preventing the growing number of criminal activities associated with the Internet often called “cyber crimes”. Jeff will keep the bad guys from getting our personal information.

Open Government is Good Government

Government business should not be conducted behind closed doors. Jeff has sponsored legislation to put some teeth into Missouri’s Sunshine Law. Jeff successfully sponsored the Sunshine Law Electronic Upgrade Act, which brings the Sunshine Law up to date with Technology. As your Attorney General, Jeff will vigorously defend the right of every Missouri citizen to access their government by designating a Sunshine Law advocate in the Attorney General’s Office.

Protecting Consumers

Jeff is a strong proponent of Missouri’s No Call program and has supported legislation to expand the No Call program to prohibit calls made on behalf of political candidates. Jeff also has sponsored numerous bills to protect consumers including legislation to make it more difficult to raise utility rates. As your Attorney General, Jeff will aggressively fight for Missouri consumers and against higher utility rates, unscrupulous business practices and unwanted political solicitations.

Preserving the Environment While Supporting Agriculture

Jeff has sponsored and supported numerous bills to preserve Missouri’s precious natural resources environment including legislation which prohibited large hog farms from being located next to our state parks. As your Attorney General, Jeff will aggressively preserve Missouri’s precious natural resources by cracking down on polluters while protecting and enhancing agriculture and the quality of rural life.

Safeguarding Senior Citizens

Jeff has supported legislation to toughen regulation of nursing homes and to lessen the financial burden on Missouri seniors who need long term care. Seniors are often targets of con artists who prey on our most vulnerable citizens. As your Attorney General, Jeff will safeguard the rights of our senior citizens by aggressively prosecuting con artists who prey on them and by vigorously enforcing safety standards in facilities where Missouri seniors reside.

Educating Our Children

Our greatest obligation as Missourians is to our future. Jeff has sponsored legislation to make tuition more affordable and to give a college scholarship to every child who stays in school, stays off drugs, and maintains an adequate grade point average. As your Attorney General, Jeff will fight to ensure that every child has an opportunity to be educated.

Restoring Healthcare

The devastating cuts to Missourians’ healthcare were particularly hard on the disabled, children and the elderly. As your Attorney General, Jeff will fight to restore healthcare for the more than 100,000 Missourians who lost it.

Defending Missourians Who Work Hard and Play by the Rules

Too often special interests are able to manipulate government for their own benefit. Missourians who work hard and play by the rules are left behind. As your Attorney General, Jeff will aggressively enforce minimum wage and prevailing wage laws to ensure that Missourians who work hard and play by the rules are fairly compensated.

Discrimination helps no one. As Attorney General, I will support domestic partner benefits for state government employees, and I will support the inclusion of sexual orientation in our state's non-discrimination act.