COLUMBIA, Mo. — A Cole County judge on Tuesday ruled that Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey had no authority to inflate the estimated cost of a ballot measure to restore abortion rights.
The 28-page order, filed by Cole County Judge Jon Beetem, requires Bailey, a Republican, to approve a series of identical fiscal notes filed by Republican Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick within 24 hours. The estimates say that the ballot measure would have no cost to the state.
Bailey had rejected Fitzpatrick’s estimates, arguing they should include a projected loss of $12.5 billion in Medicaid dollars, citing as an example Catholic hospitals that could be cut off from Medicaid reimbursements. The figure was pushed by anti-abortion groups. Fitzpatrick said it was inaccurate.
