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The Truth about the City County Merger

Although Better Together , Rex Sinquefield and the St. Louis City/County Merger are constantly in the headlines, we really know very little about what they are proposing (and more importantly why they are proposing it), even though we are told that they have a petition and will gather signatures for a state wide vote in Missouri. This frightens me as it is common sense that if someone is doing something that it going to be good for me, they will do their best to let me know everything about it. If they are doing something that it going to be bad for me and they know I don't want it, they will do their best to hide what they are doing.

It seems to me that proponents of the merger are hiding what they are doing. It is clearly less than honest to say that a City County merger would require a change in the Constitution and therefore requires a state-wide vote as the Missouri Constitution already clearly provides for the opportunity of a merger which is to be left up to a vote of the City and County residents.  In the two and a half pages of their proposed changes to Article VI of our Missouri Constitution, and in their twenty-two pages of "Definitions" which state "January 1, 2021...the territory of the county of St. Louis is extended to embrace the territory heretofore in the City of St. Louis and the County of St. Louis." hides the true intent of Better Together and their fellow proponents, which is to take away the existing right of the St. Louis County and City residents to vote on whether they want to be merged (as it obviously would not pass if up to just them) and bring it to a state wide vote of people who would be less educated to and less affected by all of its potential harmful effects.

Article VI of the Missouri Constitution already clearly sets out a legal pathway for the City and the County of St. Louis to merge. And, most of the proposed revisions and amendments to Article VI, Sec. 30 (a) are very close in context to the existing Missouri Constitution. So again, if the Missouri Constitution already provides for a legal way (through a vote of City and County residents) to merge and the proponents are making little or no substantive changes to the actual constitution, why would they go through the time and expense of amending the Missouri Constitution? BECAUSE CLEARLY THE PROPONENTS KNEW THAT A MAJORITY OF THE RESIDENTS OF THE COUNTY AND CITY WOULD NOT VOTE FOR A MERGER, AND THE ONLY CHANCE THAT THEY WOULD HAVE WOULD BE TO PUT THIS TO A VOTE OF STATE RESIDENTS, most of whom would not be as affected by it.

The Constitution of Missouri clearly intends for any merger of the City and County to be decided by only the residents of the City and County, as they would be most affected by the change.  Article VI, Section 30 (a)(4) sets out,  "The power so given shall be exercised by the VOTE OF THE PEOPLE OF THE CITY AND THE COUNTY."  The newly proposed Section 30 (a) (5) sets out, "The power so given shall be exercised by the vote of the people of the city and county upon a plan prepared by a board of freeholders consisting of nineteen members, nine of whom shall be electors of the city and nine electors of the county and pone an elector of some other county." However under the 22 pages of "Definitions" is found, "Effective...January 1, 2021...the territory of the county of St. Louis is extended to embrace the territory heretofore in the city of St. Louis and the County of St. Louis so expanded shall continue its corporate existence as a new political subdivision, body corporate and politic, and municipal corporation, which is hereby created, with its name, 'The Metropolitan City of St. Louis' and its seat of government within the territory heretofore in the city of St. Louis". So, obviously there could be NO "vote of the people of the City and the County"  IF THE COUNTY NO LONGER EXISTS.