Burlison's First Time

"WE WERE MERELY FRESHMEN"

#136th District Republican freshman Eric Burlison talks about speaking on the House floor for the first time this week about the adverse impact of a new federal consumer law.

Burlison spoke in favor of a House resolution that urges the Consumer Product Safety Commission to provide a waiver for youth ATV's and motorcycles from new federal lead limits.

Said he's received lots of calls from ATV stores in Springfield, complaining about large inventory they can't sell. "These kids are not eating the engine block," said Burlison in an interview.

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Burlison also said he favors term-limits for state lawmakers, but added that the 8-year limit now makes it easier for freshmen to speak up sooner. "Freshman are more encouraged to speak."

"Now with term-limits, you've got to hit the ground running. You've got to come in here as an expert in some capacity and be able to contribute immediately," he said.

Burlison's speciality is health care. He's the vice-chair of the Special Standing committee on Health Insurance.

Burlison told The Notebook he would support "Any Willing Provider" idea with some changes to the existing legislation. "Transparency would be a necessary aspect of the bill," Burlison said. "For a patient, when they are making a decision about which provider to go to, I feel it's important to know a lot about the provider. Sometimes it's important to know if a doctor has made a mistake in the past, what their history is and how they perform. It's good to know what the costs are upfront."

This week, Speaker Ron Richard assigned HB 303 to committee. Proponents view the move as a significant first step towards getting their legislation passed.