A sparse apartment, meant only for sleeping and showering, is home to three men. With 15-hour workdays common, there isn’t time for much else. But these men aren’t simply college students used to squalid apartments or sleepless nights — they’re state legislators.
Rep. Tim Jones, R-District 89, the newly appointed Speaker of the House, is one of these men. When the Missouri House of Representatives is in session from January to May, he lives in such an apartment Mondays through Thursdays in Jefferson City, two hours from his family and home.
“I don’t think people understand how hard we work or how long the days are,” Jones said.
The 41-year-old Jones has been in the state political scene since 2006, when he earned a seat in the Missouri House of Representatives. Since then, he has built a career, first as majority leader, then as speaker-elect. With former Speaker of the House Steven Tilley’s unexpected departure from the position in August, Jones stepped up to the position.
In Missouri, a representative can serve a maximum of eight years. The Speaker of the House generally serves as speaker for the final two years of that eight-year period.
“I was chosen because of the previous six years of work I have done,” Jones said. “I worked very hard with members on both sides of the aisle.”
As speaker, Jones said he has three main goals for the upcoming year: economic development and job creation, education reform and energy. He also said he hopes to improve communication while in office, including more participation from the governor in the legislative process.
Jones said he feels drawn to politics because of the public service aspect. Coming from a Jesuit high school, Jones has always had lots of community service in his life.
“Running for office was more of a calling to help serve the people in my state where I’ve lived most of my life and love very much,” Jones said.
Politics was always his goal in some form, but the position and timing were just unknown, he said.
Jones attended law school and became a prosecuting attorney. He now works for a 10-person law firm in St. Louis, which focuses on business and litigation. Jones works on the litigation side, handling tax appeals, promotional litigation and business counseling, among other services.
Referring to the public service pay of representatives, Jones dispelled the misconception that state politics is a full-time job.
“A lot of people think this is a job that you can do and do it full-time,” he said. “Unless you are independently wealthy or retired or your spouse has a good job, if you live in St. Louis or Kansas City and support a family of four, it’s not possible.”
As Speaker of the House, Jones is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the entire legislative body. He compared it to being the CEO of a midsize company. Jones is ultimately responsible for 326 people — the House having 163 representatives, each with a legislative assistant — along with committees, departments and offices, not to mention the politics and legislation that come with the territory.
State representatives are each responsible for a district of 35,000 to 37,000 people. They, along with one full-time staff member, run the district.
“It is a satisfying, but very busy job,” Jones said. “It’s an honorable position.”
Being the speaker does have its advantages, Jones said. As majority leader of the Republican Party, Jones helps the 105 members do constituent work, fundraise and campaign through TV, radio or mail. This, along with other legislative opportunities, has allowed him to experience Missouri in a new way.
“I’ve lived here most of my life, and it’s a large state,” Jones said. “I’ve been to every nook and cranny and met people of all walks of life. There is lots of diversity in cities and the county.”
But traveling does have its consequences. Jones, the father of two young daughters, spends five months in Jefferson City and travels around the state all year.
“I don’t really have a social life anymore,” Jones said. “When I’m home, I try to be with my family as much as possible.”
Since becoming Speaker of the House, Jones has been trying to oust the assumed hatred between the parties. With the exception of occasional arguments involving abortion, gun rights or labor unions, cooperation is a daily occurrence.
“The parties get at each other (on the three issues) and have some pretty heated debates,” Jones said. “But what goes unreported is our fairly bipartisan ways. I have just as many people I would call ‘friends’ on the other side of the aisle as on my side. There is a lot of cooperation that exists between members, a lot of respect between members that the public doesn’t see.”
