Missouri Press Association
Serving Missouri Newspapers Since 1867
Missouri News Network: Statehouse News for MPA Members
This report is written by Missouri School of Journalism students for publication by MPA member newspapers in print and online.
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Missouri News Network coverage this week includes reports on efforts to regulate the hemp industry and grey gambling machines found in many convenience stores.
If you have thoughts or questions, contact Fred Anklam at anklamf@missouri.edu.
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FRIDAY
House passes bill making intoxicating hemp products illegal
By Kennedy Voss, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — The Missouri House of Representatives voted in favor of a bill Thursday that would make intoxicating hemp products illegal.
Currently, hemp and marijuana are considered different products, with hemp being classified as containing under 0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC. Many gas stations, convenience stores and other retailers sell hemp products such as chewables.
The sponsor of House Bill 2641, Rep. Dave Hinman, R-O’Fallon, said his legislation is to make the state’s laws align with new federal regulations that begin Nov. 12 and make those products illegal.
“This bill codifies what the federal government said in November of 2025, that any intoxicating hemp-derived product is illegal as of Nov. 12, 2026,” he said.
Supporters of the bill see alignment as necessary, saying retailers have been abusing the system.
“All we’re saying is that the federal government went back to address the loophole that had been exploited,” said Rep. Jeff Myers, R-Warrenton. “We’re closing that back up, mirroring their language.”
Critics of the bill say it will harm small businesses because if federal law was changed to allow the sale of hemp products, the bill would require them to be sold only through state-regulated dispensaries.
Some said the bill would negatively impact customers who consume the products for medicinal purposes.
“You’re now putting mom-and-pop shops out of business in rural communities where they do not have access to health care,” said Rep. LaKeySha Bosley, D-St. Louis.
Bosley also expressed confusion about an amendment to the bill that she said carves out the sale of THC beverages. She said this amendment does not align with the new federal rules, which apply to all products, including beverages.
“I don’t disagree that there’s a problem,” she said, “but your amendment specifically carves out an entire industry, saying that ‘everybody else is bad, but you guys are OK. You’re good to go.’”
Hinman confirmed that while several hemp trade associations were present for discussions of the bill, they were not aware of the new beverage amendment.
The bill passed 109-34, with six members voting present.
Similar bills have passed in the House in recent years but have stalled in the Senate. The Senate is currently debating similar bills to regulate the sale of hemp products.
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Bill could broaden MU Health Care's reach in rural counties
By Nolan Haberstroh, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — A bill that would remove restrictions on the purchase of hospitals in 25 rural counties by MU Health Care was heard Wednesday in the Missouri House Special Committee on Rural Issues.
HB 3170, sponsored by Rep. Jeff Knight, R-Lebanon, would allow MU Health Care to acquire an interest in or purchase health care facilities in 25 rural counties surrounding Columbia while giving the health care provider immunity from antitrust laws that would typically complicate such purchases.
Knight indicated the intent of the bill is to prevent the closure of struggling medical facilities by allowing these acquisitions.
There was apprehension toward the antitrust immunity among representatives, even those who supported the bill. The primary concern was that of a potential MU Health Care monopoly.
Rep. Kent Haden, R-Mexico, likened the bill to a double-edged sword.
“I’m in a health care desert, so I understand what happens when (hospitals) go away,” Haden said. “But I’d like to raise a caution that (MU Health Care) already has advantages that contribute to some of these hospitals’ closures.”
Ric Ransom, CEO of MU Health Care, spoke in favor of the bill at the hearing, claiming that the widened privileges for his institution would ultimately be in the best interest of the public.
“Many hospitals today are looking for partners and struggling to keep their doors open,” Ransom said. “A passage of this legislation would allow us to be more nimble and more effective in working with communities to try to keep care local, where possible.”
“At its core, this is about preserving access to care,” he said.
Rep. Danny Busick, R-Newtown, asked Ransom directly if a monopoly was in the future.
“What assurances can you give me that, if we authorize this, you won’t use your size to just eliminate some of the smaller hospitals in those areas and just take over?” Busick said.
Ransom cited MU Health Care’s track record of working well to establish programs with smaller hospitals and said the provider wouldn’t behave in any way other than as a safety net.
Multiple doctors from facilities under the purview of MU Health Care spoke at the hearing.
Laura Morris, a family physician in Fulton, spoke for informational purposes, conveying that the problem of hospital closure would exacerbate with time and the greater health issues that can arise with gaps in care.
“The closure of rural hospitals has a significant impact on health care outcomes as well as the local economy,” Morris said. “Residents either delay care or have to travel much further when they have an emergency or need other health care services.”
“This increases the risk of death or disability when accidents or time sensitive medical conditions, strokes, heart attacks, even childbirth occur and increases the risk of health problems going undiagnosed or inadequately treated due to lack of access to care,” she said.
Knight, the bill’s sponsor, acknowledged the committee’s concerns but argued constituent needs for local providers outweighed issues of fair competition or local autonomy.
“I think that if you go into these rural communities and you ask them what they would prefer the most: the name of their town and community hospital on there or the University of Missouri’s name on there or no hospital at all, I think your answer becomes pretty common,” Knight said.
Rep. Adrian Plank, D-Columbia, made his hesitance towards the antitrust exemption known, but ultimately came to the conclusion it was a necessity.
“Seems like we don’t have much choice, right?” Plank said.
“There’s always a choice,” Plank continued, “except for, you know, we’re in a situation with the federal policy and the state policy losing hospitals, and we had to come up with solutions ASAP, in my mind.”
The 25 counties included in the bill are Adair, Audrain, Boone, Callaway, Camden, Chariton, Cole, Cooper, Gasconade, Howard, Linn, Macon, Maries, Miller, Moniteau, Monroe, Montgomery, Morgan, Osage, Pettis, Phelps, Pike, Pulaski, Randolph and Saline.
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Missouri’s cannabis gray market: Donation model thrives at local fairs
By Aminah Jenkins, Missouri News Network
The first vendors arrived at the Common Ground Fair on an October morning just before sunrise. They set up folding tables along gravel pathways, displayed jars of carefully labeled flowers, homemade edibles and concentrates.
But no one here is selling cannabis. Instead, they’re “gifting” it in exchange for donations: a practice that exists in a legal gray area created by a single clause in Missouri’s Constitution.
Adults 21 and older may gift up to 3 ounces of cannabis to another adult “without consideration.” It’s this phrase in the constitution that home growers and caregivers have interpreted as their legal pathway to operate.
Jessie Oxford of Kindway started the Common Ground Fair after medical marijuana was legalized in 2018 to bring patients and caregivers together. As a licensed caregiver herself, she said events like the fair are important to provide options for patients.
“It’s that connection and community that should be established in order for medical and recreational programs to establish healthy boundaries,” she said.
In exchange for a monetary donation, growers gift cannabis products to patrons. Signs displayed around the Common Ground Fair remind visitors that they’re receiving gifts and not making purchases.
“You donate to help me further my cause to do research and growing cannabis (for) genetic research,” said one St. Louis grower who goes by Cosmic Gardeners. “You give me a donation, and, in turn, I give you a gift for the donation.”
Oxford acknowledged the ambiguity.
“I’m a normal citizen and small business owner trying to go with my interpretation of the public regulations,” she said.
Personal growing restrictions
Cannabis was first legalized for medicinal use in 2018 when Missouri voters approved a ballot initiative, and later amended the state constitution to legalize it recreationally in 2022. Supporters argued in part that sales tax revenue would support state and local economies, and that keeping the tax rate lower than surrounding areas would prevent black markets.
Missouri allows three types of noncommercial cultivation: patient cultivation, caregiver cultivation and personal cultivation. Residents are required to apply for one of these licenses in order to grow. As of late 2025, the state had 2,507 active caregivers and 2,130 personal cultivators.
Shayna Arndt is the director for patient and application services for Missouri’s Division of Cannabis Regulation. She said the state works to ensure both growers and consumers are aware of how much they can possess.
“We really focus on making sure that you are not over possession, because that could come with other legal implications,” Arndt said.
Cultivators and caregivers are required to follow what the division refers to as the “six, six and six rule.” Growers can have up to six flowering marijuana plants, six nonflowering plants that are 14 inches tall or more and six nonflowering plants under 14 inches tall. The structure accounts for different growing phases so cultivators can maintain a continuous harvest cycle.
Cultivators and caregivers must also store their products in an enclosed, locked facility. But outside of plant amounts and storage requirements, there are few restrictions for home growers.
Unlike commercial cultivators, personal growers aren’t required to test their cannabis or track it through a state system. The only explicit rule is that they cannot sell their product.
The legality of gifting
The key question is whether a donation-for-gift exchange truly qualifies as “without consideration.” Dan Viets is a criminal defense attorney who advocated for legalizing cannabis long before the ballot initiatives. He said the interpretation that drives events like the Common Ground Fair is understandable, but carries risk.
“It’s foreseeable that somebody might think they can require a donation to gift marijuana,” Viets said. “But whether that’s truly a gift is up to the courts of appeals to decide.”
The division is aware of events like the Common Ground Fair. The agency’s investigation team reviews reports of home grower festivals case by case, providing education or enforcement when necessary.
Arndt said some of the events operate “outside of the regulated market,” meaning they don’t overlap with legal sales through Missouri’s state-licensed dispensaries.
But when asked whether the state considers donation-based exchanges to be sales, Arndt said the division cannot definitively weigh in.
“It is sort of a two-pronged situation where our rules just say the cannabis cannot be directly sold, and that it has to be noncommercial,” she said. “I don’t know that we could really weigh in on that portion of it the way the regulation is written.”
The constitution’s gifting clause means the exchange can’t involve payment that resembles a sale. Caregivers can be reimbursed for time and overhead costs, but there are no rules specifying how much they can receive or how they must track those funds.
That regulatory gray area can create a false sense of security, with some caregivers assuming enforcement will be limited to the largest, most obvious violations. Viets warned that the state now has expendable resources — in part because about 20,000 fewer marijuana cases are being prosecuted since legalization — making that assumption a risky one.
“There may indeed be larger fish,” he said. “But it is foolish for anyone to rely on that notion. That is not a legal defense.”
Why home growers participate
For many participants, the appeal of obtaining marijuana outside the state dispensary system is affordability and freedom from dispensary regulations.
Justin Griffin, a personal grower who also accepts gifts from other cultivators, said the options at events like the Common Ground Fair are more affordable than dispensaries.
“The market controls the price here,” he said. “You’ll notice that people start out selling weed a little higher, and then as the day goes through, all the prices will be kind of the same.”
Another grower named Justin said prices are the primary motivation for many people, especially medical marijuana patients. “Not everybody can go to a dispensary and spend $80 to $100 on their medicine when they could take that and grow three or four times as much as what they could get at the dispensary,” he said.
The lack of testing requirements and state tracking gives home growers freedom to experiment with different strains tailored to individual patients’ needs.
“You can find the (cannabis) that would work for you versus going to a dispensary and asking a budtender if something will help with back pain, and they just hand you a jar of weed,” Justin said.
Prior to legalization, Missouri had some of the strictest penalties for cannabis possession. Cannabis was partially decriminalized in 2014, eliminating jail time for first-time offenders possessing up to 10 grams of cannabis. First-time offenders were instead punishable as a class D misdemeanor and carried a fine of up to $1,000.
Griffin said he avoids dispensaries not only because of cannabis prohibition’s legacy, but because he does not want to contribute tax revenue to a system that once criminalized it.
“They didn’t just ban it,” he said of past marijuana laws. “They ruined people’s lives over it.”
The state’s concerns
Arndt emphasized that the division’s primary concern is safety. “Marijuana products purchased outside of licensed dispensaries may not have been tested and are possibly unsafe for consumption,” she said.
The department can conduct inspections of licensed cultivators’ spaces to ensure they comply with growing regulations.
Arndt also said the state is not aware of any adverse reactions to cannabis from home growers, but said cases may not have been reported.
Despite the legal uncertainty, growers say they’re operating with good intentions.
“There’s no underlying factor other than me trying to grow my medicine the absolute best I can,” grower Cosmic Gardeners said.
Harshawn Ratanpal contributed to this story.
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Bills respond to end of penny production with cash-rounding plan
By Chase Pray, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — Two proposed bills would permit Missouri vendors to round cash transactions to the nearest 5 cents.
House Bill 2819 and Senate Bill 1620 address potential challenges after President Donald Trump’s decision last year to halt the production of the penny as a cost-saving measure. The U.S. Treasury Department estimates an immediate $56 million will be saved from the end of penny production.
But the elimination of the penny has produced challenges for cash transactions, with varying approaches offered by retailers. The bill seeks to legally set how cash transactions would be determined through rounding.
The bills would allow cash transactions ending in 1, 2, 6 or 7 cents to be rounded down. Totals ending in 3, 4, 8 or 9 cents could be rounded up.
Transactions not completed with cash, such as those done with credit and debit cards, would not be affected.
All rounding would be applied only after discounts and taxes have been calculated.
HB 2819 sponsor Rep. Brenda Shields, R-St.Joseph, calls the bill a “must pass” due to the clarity it provides to businesses.
“It’s become necessary that we pass this piece of legislation so that our retailers and our businesses can know exactly how they need to handle cash transactions,” she said.
Shields noted that a lack of anything statutory regarding the issue has led several retailers to reach out to ensure they were rounding correctly.
“(The retailers) were looking for guidance for the Department of Revenue so they would round correctly, and we were not able to give that advice because we had nothing in statute,” she said. “It’s nearly impossible with our tax laws on sales tax that you’re ever going to come to an exact nickel amount.”
The Department of Revenue expects the bills will have a limited impact on revenue since most transactions are already noncash. The Department of Commerce and Insurance also expects no fiscal impact for its organization.
Missouri joins a growing list of states implementing rounding systems as pennies begin to be phased out. Several states, such as North Carolina, New Jersey, Kentucky and Iowa, have already allowed retailers to round cash transactions.
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Committee pushes back on monthly stats on public assistance
By KJ Drazen and Brandon Lorenz, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — A bill that would require both the Department of Health and Senior Services and the Department of Social Services to report monthly data relating to public assistance programs on their websites ran into criticism in committee Thursday morning.
There was bipartisan questioning on the need for the bill. Committee members said they felt this information on programs such as SNAP benefits and Medicaid is made public on an annual basis, so making the information public on a monthly basis would waste government resources.
House Bill 1817, sponsored by Becky Laubinger, R-Park Hills, would require public assistance programs to report data including the total number of households enrolled, the total number of people served, the average benefit in dollars received by each household and the number of households that became ineligible to receive benefits. This would apply for cities, villages, towns and counties with more than 1,000 residents.
"It really helps to know if the public assistance and the charity work are being effective in the community," explained Laubinger. "If you see numbers rising every year, then what we're doing isn't effective."
Questions arose about the need for this bill as some committee members felt this would waste government resources.
"Rather than creating a law which would mandate our department to dedicate resources for something that they are already doing, can't we just see if we're going to get turned down first?" asked Rep. Don Mayhew, R-Crocker, referring to constituents asking for a data request from these departments instead.
According to Laubinger, there are currently 655,000 to 662,000 people, or 10% of the population, receiving SNAP benefits. There are also 150,000 people receiving housing assistance and between 15% and 23% that are on Medicaid, she said.
These kinds of numbers are what nonprofits and charities are looking to be reported on monthly, she said.
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THURSDAY
Bill to regulate gaming machines narrowly passes in House
By Abigail Didonna and Sawyer Bess, Missouri News Network
The Missouri House of Representatives narrowly passed a heavily debated bill Wednesday that would legalize and regulate “gray” gaming machines.
House Bill 2989, the “Missouri Video Lottery Regulatory Act,” would establish a centralized regulatory, licensing and taxing system for the gaming machines, which have become popular in gas stations, bodegas, bars and restaurants.
The House voted 83-66 in favor of the bill — the same amount in favor as a similar bill that passed in the House last year before dying in the Senate. It now moves to the Senate, where Republican leadership has indicated the bill is unlikely to pass.
President Pro Tem Sen. Cindy O’Laughlin, R-Shelbina, has noted that she does not see regulation on the machines as a top priority.
“If I had the capacity to simply have my personal view of the world today, I suppose they would all cease to exist immediately,” Rep. Bill Owen, R-Springfield, said. “If they’re going to exist in a legal setting, I think they should be regulated, I think they should be taxed.”
The bill, sponsored by Rep. Bill Hardwick, R-Dixon, would also give local municipalities more control over the level of enforcement of illegal gaming machines and even allow them to ban the machines.
The gaming machines are often dubbed “no-chance” machines because the outcome is not selected randomly like other slot machines, but instead operates on a series of predetermined outcomes.
These machines have operated in a legal gray zone and are also often referred to as “gray machines” as a result. The bill would permit similar machines to exist but would require them to be connected to a central computer system and operate with a random outcome. The bill refers to the potential gaming machines in compliance with new rules as Video Lottery Terminals, or VLTs.
Under the proposed legislation, a tax on the revenue from VLTs would be directed to public elementary and secondary education and public higher education institutions. Additionally, a series of licensing fees on operators and manufacturers would pay for the enforcement of the regulations and also contribute to education funds in the state.
Machines currently in operation would be allowed to continue operating through August of 2027 only if owners submit the machine’s full financial, installation and maintenance records to the commission and attorney general for review.
On the House floor Wednesday, the bill received both support and opposition from both sides of the aisle. While some House members echoed concerns over gambling, others said that this bill allowed the state to properly regulate it and receive funding from it.
“If we continue to follow this principle, I think this body, on this principle, should be perfectly fine with legalizing other vices such as prostitution or harmful drugs; we’ll just slap a big ole tax on top of it,” Rep. Bryant Wolfin, R-Ste. Genevieve, said.
Rep. Dean Van Schoiak, R-Savannah, questioned why the House should want to regulate something that has been declared illegal. Last week, a federal judge ruled that slot machines made by Torch Electronics, the primary producer in the state, are illegal gambling devices under state law and Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway has vowed to go after the machines.
“These machines are illegal,” Van Schoiak said. “Why in the world are we changing our laws for an industry that knows the laws of the state of Missouri and says, ‘You can’t keep us from doing this, we’re going to do it anyway,’ and so now we want to make it legal? What in the world are we thinking about here, folks?”
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Senate hears bills to modify property tax system
By Emma Farrel and Anika Austvold, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — The Senate Select Committee on Property Taxes heard several proposals Wednesday aimed at overhauling Missouri’s current property tax system.
Most of the discussion centered on SB 919, a bill focused on capping property tax assessment increases and limiting growth of homeowners’ taxes.
The bill is sponsored by Sen. Joe Nicola, R-Grain Valley. It would cap assessment increases at 15% and implement the limit through a tax credit. The bill specifies that the cap does not include new additions or expansions to property, and voter approved levies would not be counted in the cap.
“We have to do everything we can to preserve personal property rights,” Nicola said.
Under the bill, increases in personal property taxes, for example on cars or tractors, would be prohibited on items purchased in or before 2024. New vehicles would be taxed at their market value when purchased after the date and would not be taxed higher in future years.
Bill supporters argued the measure is necessary to prevent those who own real estate from being priced out of their homes amid rising assessments.
Discussion at the hearing revolved around Jackson County and how it faced significant backlash in 2023 after steep assessment increases led to widespread appeals and public outcry over property tax bills. Jackson County Legislator Sean Smith testified in favor of the bill.
“We still have ongoing litigation in Jackson County, we still have homeowners who were overbilled to the tune of about a quarter of a billion dollars unlawfully,” Smith said. “And what I see in this bill is tremendous, actual individual protections that are prescriptive.”
Jackson County resident Diana Knittel Pace also testified in favor of the bill. Pace owns 85 acres of agricultural property in Jackson County. She said the value of her property increased from $58,000 to $510,000 within the span of a year, despite no change in use and no new construction.
Pace said she rejected the assessment, but her reluctance raised the value to $700,000 within the span of just five days.
“I’m just a small entity. I’m a small farm, but I also support a small agricultural community in Jackson County. There’s hay farmers, independent feed stores, veterinarians,” she said. “So to tax me out of my land will not just affect me.”
Opponents to the bill include county assessors and school officials. They said capping assessment increases could create unintended
consequences. Howell County Assessor Daniel Franks opposes the bill. He argued assessment classifications already determine tax rates.
“Capping the assessment increases is not a viable way to manage our problem,” Franks said. He suggested revisiting the Hancock Amendment, a voter-approved limit on state tax increases.
“It needs to be fixed, it needs to go back to the original tenants of it because that is the protection for the taxpayers,” Franks said.
This bill is similar to HB 2780, sponsored by Rep. Tim Taylor, R-Bunceton. HB 2780 was debated and amended on the House floor last week. Taylor on Tuesday asked that the bill be sent back to a special committee to address clarifications requested by various members.
The committee also heard testimony on other property tax legislation. SB 1301, sponsored by Sen. Rick Brattin, R-Harrisonville, would cap assessments at 100%. SJR 102, sponsored by Sen. Jill Carter, R-Granby, proposes constitutional changes to taxation. SJR 111, sponsored by Sen. Brad Hudson, R-Cape Fair, reduces property tax levies when the total assessed value increases more than inflation.
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Senate looks at standardizing minimum prison terms, repealing conditional release
By Noah Symes, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — A group of bills standardizing mandatory minimum prison terms and repealing conditional release provisions was heard by the Senate on Wednesday.
The Senate Judiciary Committee heard three bills, sponsored by Curtis Trent, R-Springfield, Jill Carter, R-Granby, and Joe Nicola, R-Grain Valley, which include identical provisions for restructuring prison time requirements.
Currently, the amount of prison time required to serve before parole is based on the specific charge received. These bills would standardize prison time to a range based on the class of the felony conviction, rather than the specific charge.
Prisoners convicted of class A felonies, such as first-degree murder, would serve at least 60% to 80% of their prison term. As felonies decrease in class, the percentage range decreases as well. This creates what Trent calls a “fixed minimum parole eligibility requirement” for prison time.
Trent said these bills give attorneys, judges, the public and “especially victims,” a clear and predictable outcome.
Locke Thompson, a prosecuting attorney from Cole County, testified in favor of the bill and said this would lead to more transparency.
“When I’m trying to tell the victim how long their attacker is going to go away, unless there is a minimum set in the specific statute, it’s really, really hard, if not impossible,” Thompson said.
Conditional release occurs once a set percentage of a prison sentence has been served, and it mandates that a prisoner be released under supervision unless there is a reason barring their release. All prisoners have a required period of up to five years at the end of their sentences, during which they can be supervised under conditional release until their time is served. All of the bills heard on Wednesday would eliminate mandated conditional release.
Mallory Rusch, executive director of Empower Missouri, an anti-poverty advocacy organization, testified against the bills. She said these bills go too far in repealing conditional release.
“Doing away with conditional release without simultaneously reforming the state’s parole process, we believe, would have a lot of unintended consequences,” Rusch said.
Rusch added that conditional release is where prisoners can undergo supervised rehabilitation and acclimate to living in a community outside of prison.
Rusch also said she is concerned about the legislation’s reliance on parole boards
“The proposed changes to the sentencing structure rely heavily on the parole board functioning fairly and effectively,” Rusch said. “Without any reforms being made to that process, while implementing these bills, we think it’s going to come at a very large cost to the state.”
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Catalytic converter theft targeted in House bill
By Jackson Cooper, Missouri Independent
JEFFERSON CITY — The sale of catalytic converters in Missouri could face tighter regulations under a bill heard by a House committee Wednesday.
House Bill 2206 is intended to minimize theft and illegal trade of catalytic converters. Both crimes skyrocketed nationwide between 2019 and 2022, sparked by increases in the market prices of the raw elements found inside converters.
Though thefts have declined in recent years amid fluctuation in the price of component parts, the bill sponsor, Rep. Don Mayhew, R-Crocker, said it was important to have additional measures in place before thefts could rise again.
“A Google search will tell you that it is still happening, including right here in Missouri,” Mayhew said.
He added that insurance coverage on catalytic converter replacement is unreliable, and repair costs often fall on the victim; he referenced an older woman whose mobility was affected by a stolen converter.
“She had a catalytic converter stolen, had to move off the farm, move into town,” Mayhew said. “She would be more than willing to come here and testify, but she says she can’t because she can’t afford to get a catalytic converter put back on her car.”
Replacement converters cost between $1,000 and $4,000 on average, according to AAA Automotive.
HB 2206 places more of catalytic converter trade under government control by designating new crimes and holding scrap and auto dealers to higher standards.
The bill tightens record-keeping requirements for scrap dealers when purchasing catalytic converters. Dealers would now be required to track the make, model, year and vehicle identification number of the source vehicle to provide a clearer accounting of where converters are
obtained. Catalytic converters are attached to a vehicle’s exhaust pipe and are intended to reduce pollution. Federal regulations mandate their use in any gasoline or diesel-powered vehicle manufactured after 1975.
Converters work by using precious metals, like platinum, rhodium and palladium, to change toxic compounds in car exhaust into less harmful water vapor, carbon dioxide and nitrogen gas.
However, these components are also what make catalytic converters so appealing to thieves. Stolen converters can sell for up to $1,000 on the black market, according to Kelley Blue Book. They are typically sold fast and disassembled for scrap, where the precious metals can be leveraged for greatest value.
The bill also expands Missouri’s existing salvage-dealer licensure requirements to those trading detached catalytic converters, placing them under the regulatory supervision of the Department of Revenue.
The clause mandates additional paperwork to be filed to the DOR. Witnesses testifying against the bill opposed the clause.
Shannon Cooper, a lobbyist advocating on behalf of scrap metal buyer Advantage Metals Recycling, said the legislation gives more work to law-abiding salvage operations without targeting those violating current law.
“What frustrates us is the number of operations out there that operate illegally every day,” Cooper said. “Nobody wants to do a single thing to them, except come over here and ask for more record-keeping burdens on those of us who do things the right way.”
Cooper said the law requires extensive documentation of sales with photographic records, including pictures of sellers, products and source vehicles.
The bill also criminalizes possession with intent to sell a catalytic converter known to be stolen. It would be designated a Class E felony.
Mayhew said this is the sixth legislative session in which he has presented the bill. It passed the House with bipartisan support last spring before dying in the Senate. It now awaits a vote from the Judiciary committee.
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Opponents of abortion-rights make their voices heard at Capitol
By Margaret Stewart, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — Activists gathered Wednesday at the Missouri State Capitol to promote their views opposing abortion.
There are currently four bills in the legislature regarding equal protection and personhood resolutions. They’re being offered after voters approved abortion rights in Missouri in 2024.
Members of Abolitionists Rising traveled to the Capitol from across Missouri and from other states, such as the Abbott family from Alabama.
Wes Scroggins, executive director of Abolish Abortion Missouri, said that the group believes “the killing of the pre-born human being needs to be completely abolished with no exceptions.”
Scroggins emphasized the importance of personhood bills. HJR 109 and SJR 72 “would place the personhood of the pre-born person into the state Constitution.” These bills seek to clarify being a “person” starts at conception.
The equal protection bills, HB 1682 and SB 951, would provide equal protection and justice under the law “from the beginning of biological development.”
About 75 people were present, including families and children of all ages.
Activist Brigette Abbott and her son Paul Abbott II said they initially joined the cause 11 years ago because they were “called as Christians.” They said their movement is distinct from “pro-life” movements because it allows “no exceptions” for abortion in reference to cases of rape or incest.
Paul Abbott II said he chose the abortionist cause over pro-life because it is “more consistent,” and pro-life “doesn’t go far enough.” He advocated for “no distinction at all” between homicide of “an unborn person and a born person.”
The group highlighted the importance of justice for “pre-born persons.” Scroggins said abortion should be treated as a homicide.
“It would work like any other charge of murder,” he said. If so, any person over 18 who receives an abortion would be eligible for the death penalty.
Paul Abbott, a Baptist pastor and Brigette Abbott’s husband, addressed the crowd at the Capitol.
“Never in history have we made homicide and health care somehow working together,” he said. “We have a right to life, not opinion. Keep your opinion to yourself.”
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House shows support for bill extending vehicle registration to five years
By Jordan Davis and Hailey Sanford, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — The House gave initial approval Wednesday to a bill that would provide car owners the option to register their vehicles for up to five years.
House Bill 2189 would give Missouri residents the option to register their vehicles annually, biannually or every five years. Only cars 6 years old or newer would be eligible for five-year registration.
Rep. Bob Bromley, R-Carl Junction, sponsors the bill. He said that having the option would make people’s lives easier.
“I’m looking at the greater good, and I believe this bill does that,” Bromley said.
Currently, cars with odd-numbered model years are required to have their registration renewed every odd-numbered year. Every car with an even-numbered model year must be renewed every even-numbered year. Car owners may also choose to register their vehicles annually. Bromley’s bill would add the option for five-year registration renewal for newer vehicles.
In order to obtain vehicle registration, owners must have a personal property tax receipt or an official authorization that no taxes were due, proof of insurance and proof of a vehicle safety inspection. Safety inspections are required for registration every two years after a vehicle has driven 150,000 miles or 10 years, whichever is first.
If residents choose to purchase a two- or five-year registration, there will not be a discount. Residents will pay the annual fee for all five years of registration up front.
Registration would cost $9 for a one-year renewal, $18 for a two-year renewal and $45 for a five-year renewal. The annual cost for registration renewal changed from $6 to $9 last year.
The bill now awaits a final vote in the House.
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WEDNESDAY
Major property tax bill sent back to House committee
By Kate Leverenz, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — A major property tax reform bill in the House was sent back to a special committee Tuesday over concerns that the bill needed more changes.
House Bill 2780, sponsored by Rep. Tim Taylor, R-Bunceton, is a wide-ranging bill that would change how property taxes are calculated and when property tax measures are voted on.
“There have been concerns with this bill, and from the very beginning we have strived to try to do the very best we can,” Taylor said. “It was finally decided, after many meetings, that we’re going to bring it back to our committee.”
The Special Committee on Property Tax Reform was formed last June to examine Missouri’s property tax system and recommend solutions. Six informational hearings were held across the state last summer by the committee to allow Missouri residents to share their perspectives on rising property taxes.
Rep. Kathy Steinhoff, D-Columbia, who is also the ranking minority member for the committee, commended Taylor for his leadership and his decision to send the bill back to the committee.
“I want to thank you for your leadership and having it go back,” Steinhoff said. “I think that is a good place for it to go.”
Steinhoff said that she believes the bill was sent back to committee because of needed clarification over a provision of the bill that would change when voters approve property tax levies from April to November.
Steinhoff also said that because the House did not thoroughly debate the bill on the floor, she believes the move back to committee is a wise decision.
The House initially voted to move the bill forward last Wednesday.
Currently, the assessed value used to determine if property tax rollbacks are required is being diluted because the assessed values on all property classes — residential, commercial and agricultural — in a taxing district are lumped together.
The central provision of the bill is the “siloing” of tax subclasses. This would stop increases in assessed value in one subclass from being diluted by stagnant values in another, allowing the state constitution’s Hancock Amendment to take effect and limit how much personal property taxes can increase.
The bill would also move voting for property tax measures from April elections to November, something that drew concerns from representatives when the bill was brought to the floor last week.
As the bill returns to committee, it will revert to its original form, removing all amendments made on the House floor last week, Taylor said. He added that another public hearing will be held for the bill. On Tuesday, Taylor indicated that he is open to including other amendments.
“He said ‘Bring everything you’ve got,’” Steinhoff said. “I think he is open to hearing some other ideas of what could be included.”
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Hemp bills see heavy debate in House and Senate
By Jack Schouten, Nolan Haberstroh and Anika Austvold, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — A $1 billion Missouri industry is under fire from Senate and House bills that change regulations regarding hemp and cannabis.
Members of the Missouri House argued Tuesday over HB 2641, which would make intoxicating hemp products illegal. The bill aims to change the definition of hemp and industrial hemp to match the federal regulations that take effect Nov. 12.
Currently, hemp-based goods and products for people or animals are legal, as long as they contain no more than 0.3% delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, by dry weight. The new regulation changes the definition to .3% total THC, which would make many products that are now available in convenience stores and similar locations illegal.
“This bill codifies what the federal government has put in place that says on Nov. 12 they become illegal,” said bill sponsor state Rep. Dave Hinman, R-O’Fallon.
Opponents of the House bill say it would drive responsible retailers, who have been self-regulating for years, to close their doors and lay off dozens of employees and that Missouri should focus on clear regulation and taxation rather than eliminating the industry.
“If the issue is child safety, then we should regulate for child safety,” said state Rep. Matthew Overcast, R-Ava. “Instead this proposal attempts to structurally reclassify forcing an entire industry into another licensing regime and labeling it as regulation.”
The debates come after the Senate held an extended debate over SB 904, sponsored by state Sen. David Gregory, R-St. Louis, that would prevent hemp-derived cannabinoids from being sold anywhere other than licensed dispensaries.
The Senate bill creates the Intoxicating Cannabinoid Control Act, which classifies hemp-derived cannabinoid products as marijuana and subjects them to the same regulations enforced by the Department of Health and Senior Services under the Missouri Constitution.
“It’s either intoxicating, or it’s not. If it’s intoxicating, it’s marijuana. If it’s not intoxicating, it’s hemp,” Gregory said during debate last week.
Hemp and marijuana are virtually indistinguishable in taste and aroma. However, industrial hemp, the particular variety from which medicinal derivatives are produced, has a lower THC level.
“For several years now, we have been hearing from law enforcement, child advocates and even our state courts about the dangers of unregulated cannabis products,” Gregory said. “In all kinds of places including gas stations and different street corners.”
Sen. Karla May, D-St. Louis, who is sponsoring a differing bill to regulate hemp-derived cannabinoids, cast doubt on the idea that these products being sold to minors were largely responsible for cannabis-based hospitalizations.
“A lot of the times it’s actually cannabis products that people are growing in their homes, or have at home, that children have gotten a hold of,” May said.
As opposed to Gregory’s proposed limitation of vendors to dispensaries, May’s bill, SB 1026, would regulate hemp-derived cannabinoid products by requiring vendors to register with the Department of Health and Human Services and pay an annual $1,000 fee.
Gregory presented his bill as a means to protect consumers from misinformation, later noting that it would serve to move state regulation laws closer in line to the federal standards passed late last year as part of an overall government spending bill.
“These products are being completely mis-marketed, completely misrepresented as to whether or not THC is in it and how much,” Gregory said.
May questioned certain timing provisions of the bill, specifically an emergency clause that, if enacted, could lead to the policies going into effect prior to equivalent federal law.
“Your bill basically cuts everybody out. Now, you say, ‘Well, we’re mimicking the federal law.’ The federal law doesn’t come into effect until November of 2026,” May said.
“With that, the feds have also basically recognized that they’ll be making corrections to that, and they’re going to be given a two-year extension for the new language that they are going to create for the definition of hemp,” she added.
A central concern May had with Gregory’s bill was its potential effects on free competition from a business perspective, a stance she echoed in the past when similar legislature was discussed.
“I have met with several of the companies on the cannabis side and the hemp side, and the problem is the bills that you’re putting forth, and that have been put forth, are not trying to create a balance between the businesses in the free market industry,” May said.
“What you’re doing is trying to create an unfair market advantage for cannabis marijuana people, who wrote their own legislation,” she said.
After debate on the floor, no vote was taken, and the bill was put on the informal calendar for the Senate. Similar bills have been held up in the Senate in the past two years.
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Legislators try again to limit judges' role in ballot working changes
By Noah Symes, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — Republicans took action to restore a law that would grant the secretary of state more power over the language voters see when they head to the polls. A law with a similar provision was struck down by the state Supreme Court earlier this year, because it strayed too far from the bill’s original meaning.
Sponsored by Rep. John Simmons, R-Washington, HB 3146 aims to increase the number of words a summary statement can contain from 50 to 100. It also grants the secretary of state the ability to rewrite summary statements three times before a judge could rewrite the bill. Currently, if language is found to be insufficient or unfair in court, a judge is responsible for revisions to the language.
On Tuesday, the House Elections Committee passed the bill, and it will now pass to the House floor for debate.
A summary statement is the description included on a ballot for ballot measures — the laws and constitutional amendments passed by voters.
Simmons said he would rather the secretary of state write summary statements, instead of being written by a judge.
“(Judges) need to stay in their lane, need to stay in the confines of their checks and balances,” Simmons said.
In late January, the Missouri Supreme Court struck down a law that included a provision allowing the secretary of state the ability to rewrite ballot language three times if it was challenged in court before a judge was permitted to rewrite the language. The law, which was passed last April, also had a provision granting the attorney general the power to appeal preliminary injunctions from the court, which halt state actions. The Supreme Court said that it struck down the law because this provision, as well as others added to the original bill, too greatly changed the bill’s original meaning, violating a constitutional requirement.
Simmons said his bill is the same as the law that was struck down but without the amendments that saw it struck down. He added that it was “a response to the Supreme Court.”
A summary statement is originally written either by the secretary of state or the General Assembly. If the statement is challenged in court and found to be insufficient or unfair, meaning that it does not accurately represent the ballot measure, it is currently up to judges to rewrite the language.
Simmons’ bill would add an extra step to this process, allowing the secretary of state three attempts to rewrite the summary. These summaries need approval by a judge to appear on the ballot, and if the secretary cannot create fair language after three attempts, a judge will make revisions.
Before the previous law was struck down, the secretary of state was permitted to rewrite language from April 2025 until January 2026. During this time, Simmons said, “the process worked beautifully.”
Rep. Eric Woods, D-Kansas City, said the secretary of state should not be granted this power because he has previously written ballot language that does not reflect the true meaning of the law.
“The majority and the secretary of state have made a habit out of crafting ballot language that is intentionally designed to deceive and obfuscate,” Woods said.
Woods pointed out that Secretary of State Denny Hoskins has admitted, in court, to writing prejudiced ballot language.
He added that the bill was “an opportunity to test the limits in terms of what they can get away with in terms of dishonest ballot language.”
Woods said his biggest concern is that the secretary of state could use this revision power to get around challenges to summaries. He said that because the secretary of state has multiple attempts, language that is deemed insufficient or unfair in court can be passed back and forth until after the deadline for a measure to be added to the ballot, potentially delaying a vote.
“The challenge may expire based on the timeline, and we are faced with ballot language that is intentionally dishonest,” Woods said. “We need to have the courts as neutral arbiters in this process.”
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House bill would update child car seat regulations
By Emerson Smith, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — A bill seeking to update requirements for child passenger restraint systems was heard in a House committee on Tuesday, however legislators worry how it will impact struggling Missouri families.
House Bill 2170, sponsored by Rep. Bruce Sassmann, R-Bland, would update the requirements for all child passenger restraint systems to the latest safety code.
State regulations haven’t been updated since 2006. The bill also would also enact penalties to those who violate these new requirements.
“Children under 3 years of age should be secured in a rear facing child restraint system, rather than a forward facing child restraint system” Sassmann said. “Studies have shown minor changes can create a safer environment for our kids traveling on highways”.
According to statistics from SaveMoLives, in 2024 alone, 16 children under the age of 8 were killed and 62 suffered serious injuries from motor vehicle crashes in Missouri. Of the children killed and seriously injured, 21% were not restrained in a car seat or safety belt.
Officials from the Missouri Department of Transportation spoke highly of the bill saying they believe it advances the department’s mission to support roadway safety for the traveling public.
“Safety recommendations alone are not enough to protect Missouri’s children. However by updating Missouri’s law to reflect these recommendations, the importance of these practices can be reinforced to Missouri families” said Lillian Hinkson, the child passenger safety coordinator for MoDOT.
While there was no public opposition to this bill, House members raised concerns about the bill’s penalties, specifically the “fine of not more than fifty dollars and court costs.”
“My concern is the difficult financial situation for families, where resources are lean … I mean car seats are incredibly expensive, shockingly so,” said Rep. Pattie Mansur, D-Kansas City.
Other House members questioned whether or not this bill penalized parents for not being able to afford proper car seats. In 2024, about 12.3% of Missouri’s population lived below the federal poverty line.
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House Committee hears resolutions on chamber term limits
By Hailey Sanford, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY – Lawmakers are pushing to overhaul term limits, filing a series of joint resolutions that would eliminate the current eight-year cap in each legislative chamber while imposing new limits on leadership positions in the House and Senate.
Currently, representatives and senators can serve a total of 16 years in the Missouri General Assembly, with eight years maximum in either chamber.
The identical joint resolutions, HJR 104, HJR 122 and HJR 149, would remove the eight-year limit for the chambers but keep the 16-year overall cap in place.
The resolutions would also prohibit representatives from serving as speaker of the House for more than three terms — six years total — and would restrict senators to two terms as president pro tem — eight years total.
Rep. Peggy McGaugh, R-Carrollton, is the sponsor of HJR 122. This is the second time she has brought this bill forward, but she did not have bipartisan support last session. Rep. Bruce Sassman, R-Bland, is sponsoring HJR 104, and Rep. Marty Joe Murray, D-St. Louis, is the sponsor of HJR 149.
While the resolutions would be voted on in November, they would not go into effect until 2030. McGaugh said this was to prevent self-serving biases from the legislators.
“This resolution just isn’t about adjusting numbers on paper. It’s about rebalancing who holds power in Jefferson City,” Murray said in a House Elections Committee hearing Tuesday. “Influence has drifted out of the voter’s hands and into the hands of unelected lobbyists.”
HJR 121 was presented, alongside the other resolutions, by Rep. Jeff Myers, R-Warrenton. This resolution would also remove the single chamber prohibition, but it specifies that the limits on upper leadership roles would be for consecutive terms.
In 2013, a House joint resolution passed and was sent to the Senate; however, the resolution did not progress past a public hearing in the Senate. A similar resolution has been presented every year since 2018.
Rep. Eric Woods, D-Kansas City, supports the bill, but he questioned if legislators would be able to run for office if they could not complete the full term.
In the past, these resolutions often had a clause that barred running for election if the legislator would not be able to fulfill the entire term.
Sen. Joe Nicola, R-Grain Valley, is sponsoring SJR 97, which has the same propositions as the three identical House resolutions, but it would go into effect in 2026 rather than 2030.
Term limits are widely popular with Missouri residents — Woods said 75% of his constituents still support term limits. On the other hand, a lot of legislators spoke on the drawbacks of term limits.
“Those of us who walk the halls and see the sausage being made, we understand this system and its limitations and how it hurts the legislative process, but ultimately, term limits were, when they were passed, and remain very popular,” Woods said.
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Bill would require public schools to teach religious influence on American history
By Sophia Gromowsky, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — Public and charter school teachers would be required to provide instruction on the positive impacts of religion on American history under a bill considered by the Senate Education Committee on Tuesday.
Senate Bill 1238, sponsored by Sen. Nick Schroer, R-O’Fallon, provides a list of 19 events and figures that would become a part of required teaching in American history classes.
The religious background of those that signed the Declaration of Independence, the role of the Ten Commandments in shaping American law and how religious influence shaped the Civil Rights Movement would be among the required topics.
“There is a growing movement across this country to rediscover and reclaim the truth about America’s founding,” Schroer said. “Not a skewed or biased version shaped by modern political preferences, but by the uncontested historical account itself.”
Schroer testified that the bill does not aim to impose faith in public and charter schools. Its purpose, he said, is to provide students with a historical perspective on how Christianity influenced the country’s founding and cultural evolution.
“Christianity has been central in defining the national purpose during crisis, from the abolitionist movement, the Civil War, the Civil Rights Movement and more,” Schroer said. “Christianity did not merely exist alongside American history, it actively shaped it.”
The bill’s text does not mention Christianity directly, but each of the 19 points on the list are connected to the Christian faith or Americans who practiced Christianity. Schroer specified that the bill is modeled after the Charlie Kirk American Heritage Act that was passed by the Ohio House of Representatives in November. The Ohio bill says specifically that instruction pertains to “Judeo-Christian values on history and culture.”
Sen. Maggie Nurrenbern, D-Kansas City, raised concerns that the bill focuses solely on Christianity, at the exclusion of other religious traditions. Her sentiments were echoed by witnesses testifying in opposition to the bill.
“There is a diversity of Missouri families across the state that either adhere to another faith or no faith at all,” said Sage Coram, speaking on behalf of the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri. “This will prevent schools from providing an equal education to all students, regardless of faith.”
Nurrenbern also worried that mandating the teaching of religious topics would lead some educators to present religion inappropriately, possibly distorting or politicizing the material.
The committee’s chair, Sen. Rick Brattin, R-Harrisonville, showed support for the bill. He said he believes that many Americans are uneducated on the history of how religion played a role in the nation’s founding.
“It’s the intentional erasing of our founding and not wanting people to know the real, true religious backing of what brought America to be America,” Brattin said.
Brian Kaylor, a Baptist minister and president of Christian media outlet Word&Way, said the bill would require students be taught only the positive influences of religion and Christianity throughout American history, rather than taking a more holistic view.
He pointed to instances of the Christian faith being invoked by slaveholders and Confederate leaders in attempts to justify slavery and also by segregationists to defend discrimination.
“I wish it was all good, but sadly, it is not,” Kaylor said. “We must teach history as it was, not as we wish it was.”
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Latino organizations lobby for a more united Missouri
By Hannah McDonough, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — About 200 people from across Missouri came to the Capitol on Tuesday to draw attention to issues that matter to the Latino community.
“At the end of the day, we want a better Missouri,” said Melissa Gutierrez, board member for the Hispanic Networking Group in the Ozarks.
“We want to work together, and we want to make sure that the focus is on community and not on hatred,” Gutierrez said. “We want to avoid that separation, avoid that division, because we are all one community.”
The group was participating in Hispanic Capitol Day and started the morning with a conference, then met with legislators representing their areas and ended the afternoon with a rally in the rotunda.
Specifically, the groups talked to some legislators about two bills they support, House bills 2522 and 2063, and one that they oppose, Senate Bill 1070.
SB 1070 was introduced by state Sen. David Gregory, R-St. Louis. The bill text outlines what defines an undocumented immigrant and the grounds for their arrest.
If the bill were to pass, a “certified bounty hunter” could detain an undocumented immigrant and if an arrest were made, the punishment could be “life imprisonment” or being taken into Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody.
HB 2522, introduced by state Rep. Ray Reed, D-St. Louis, would allow more people with federal employment authorization to obtain a professional license. This would help immigrants by removing restrictions to certain professional licenses.
HB 2063, introduced by state Rep. Wick Thomas, D-Kansas City, would ensure that any printed material from the secretary of state is available in Spanish.
“I mean, I just think it makes sense for the secretary of state to present, you know, any official communications in English and Spanish, since it’s the second most spoken language in my district and in several others,” Thomas said.
The advocates spoke about the day-to-day impact these bills would have on the lives of the Hispanic community in Missouri.
“It’s also great when they meet with the representative because they get a sense of what is going on here, and also their lawmakers understand how people in their districts feel,” said Guillermo Villa-Trueba, Hispanic outreach manager of the Missouri Catholic Conference. “They get not only their theoretical opinions but their lived experiences.”
Following conversations with legislators, participants gathered back at the rotunda for a rally where they heard from speakers, cheered and displayed signs.
Hispanic Capitol Day was started by the Hispanic Leaders Group, an organization from St. Louis. Now, the group hosts the event alongside the Missouri Immigration Policy Coalition, Revolcuión Educativa and Hispanic Networking Group in the Ozarks and have representation from all over the state.
Ben Molina, chair of the Hispanic Leaders Group, said that ultimately he hopes that participants will learn about advocacy and feel empowered to do so going forward, as he wants representatives to hear from their constituents about the issues that matter to them.
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Senate bill seeks to alleviate confusion over Amendment 3
By Sophia Gromowsky, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — A Senate bill could help to alleviate voter confusion by preventing the reuse of the same amendment numbers for referendums in consecutive elections.
The proposed legislation, sponsored by Sen. Mike Moon, R-Ash Grove, would require that the series of numbers assigned to proposed constitutional amendments be restarted only after general elections that take place in years ending in eight.
This would mean that no proposed constitutional amendments featured on the ballot would have the same number as any previously proposed amendments within a 10-year span.
Currently, ballot measures are numbered in the order they are received by the Secretary of State’s office, with the same series of numbers restarting every general election cycle.
Introducing the bill on the Senate floor recently, Moon cited specific concerns over voter confusion surrounding Amendment 3. The abortion-related ballot measure set for the 2026 Missouri general election shares the same number as a previous high-profile abortion-related ballot measure voters passed just two years ago.
The 2024 Amendment 3 overturned Missouri’s near-total abortion ban and legalized abortion under the Missouri Constitution up to the point of fetal viability.
The new Amendment 3 that will be on the ballot in November would reverse this decision, banning abortions in Missouri, except in cases of rape or incest up to 12 weeks or certain situations where the mother’s life is at risk.
“In this case, we have a conflicting resolution,” Moon said. “In 2024 we had an Amendment 3. In 2025 we passed a resolution that is also Amendment 3, and there is some confusion among voters as to which is which.”
Other legislators and advocacy groups have also expressed worry that it could be unclear to voters that the new Amendment 3 and the previous Amendment 3 have opposing goals.
Rep. Stephanie Hein, D-Springfield, posted a video on the topic to her social media channels in October, captioned “Missouri voters – this one’s confusing on purpose.”
In the three-minute video, she emphasized to constituents that voting “Yes” on the 2026 Amendment 3 will have the opposite effect of voting “Yes” on Amendment 3 in 2024.
“The same amendment number, completely opposite outcomes,” Hein said in the video. “Public education will be absolutely critical heading into the 2026 election.”
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Fife and drum corps kicks off celebration of America's 250th anniversary
By Kennedy Voss, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — The Lewis and Clark Fife and Drum Corps performed in the House Lounge on Tuesday to honor the 250th anniversary of the United States' founding.
A group of about 20 people filed into the lounge to see the corps perform classic American songs in traditional military uniforms.
The corps was introduced by several members of the House from St. Charles, where the corps is based. Rep. Colin Wellenkamp, R-St. Charles, introduced the performance.
"These kids are incredible and brilliant," Wellenkamp said, with the corps standing at attention behind him.
They began with a rendition of the "Star Spangled Banner," and played many other classic American songs such as "Yankee Doodle" and "Washington Artillery March." They finished with an encore of "Explore the Purchase," which was written expressly for the group.
They ended their performance with a signature "Huzzah!" shouted by all members of the corps.
The corps has members between the ages of 10 to 18. Vice President Janelle Stone-Heffner, who is also the event coordinator, said that youth outreach was a core principle of the group's founding.
"So, we're going on 30 years, and the mission is still the same, to educate our youths about military music from the past," Stone-Heffner said. "Ultimately, the fife and drum music is a dying art; there's not many fife and drum tours."
"We're teaching these kids music that doesn't really exist anywhere outside of this sphere," she added.
Five members of the group acted as color guard, one played snare drum and five others played the fife. The fife is a wind instrument similar to the piccolo, and has been commonly used in military music dating back to the 16th century.
The corps, which was founded in 1992, wears historically accurate uniforms that would have been worn on the battlefield between 1804-1810.
One key aspect of the historical uniform is the hat, which includes real bear fur and a deer tail as an ornament. The color guard wore blue coats with red facing, or trim, on their uniforms and musicians wore red coats with blue facing.
The red uniforms of the musicians could easily be mistaken for British redcoats, but according to the group's website, there is a reason for the coloring. Historically, musicians would wear opposing colors to military members, to not be confused as combatants.
Sixteen-year-old Teddy DuBois has been in the corps for four years and has played the snare drum in the band for one; while he is a fan of the historical accuracy, sometimes the uniform can cause problems.
"The reason for the neck stock was you would wear it as a piece of leather around your neck, so if someone would try to slash your throat, it would protect you from that," DuBois said. "But nowadays it's mostly worn for historical accuracy, and like, it's really hard to tie it behind your back."
However, DuBois said the real enjoyment comes from sharing history and his camaraderie with other members of the group.
"Back in the 1800s, you could be as young as fifteen and join the army, and a lot of us are about that age," DuBois said. "If you look at America, we've had our ups and downs, but being able to reenact it shows the world the good parts of history."
The group has performed all over the state and country, and Stone-Heffner said the group has busy this year because of the 250th celebration of the founding of America. This was the first time the current group's members had performed in the Missouri Capitol building.
Throughout the state, there are several other events and learning opportunities to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of America.
Other local events can be found by county at showme250.mo.gov
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House committee passes child care tax credit bill
By Jordan Davis, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — A bill centered on creating child care tax credits unanimously passed a House committee on Tuesday.
Bills similar to HB 2409, sponsored by Rep. Brenda Shields, R-St. Joseph, have died in the Senate the past three years. Shields is hoping for a different outcome this year.
Shields did not make any adjustments to HB 2409 but said she is willing to make changes if the Senate has any input.
“I have never been approached with what a solution should be. I just think it has to do that it’s never fallen right on (the Senate’s) calendar to work with what they’re working with over there,” Shields said.
Shields said she hopes that the bill will reach the Senate before spring break, which is the week of March 16.
“The crisis around child care hasn’t reduced any, and I’m hopeful that we will pass the House here fairly quickly, especially with the 14-0 vote that we had in committee,” Shields said.
The bill creates the “Child Care Contribution Tax Credit Act,” which provides a tax credit to the taxpayer for up to 75% of the monetary contribution to a child care provider, between $100 and $200,000 per tax year.
Child care providers must first apply to the Department of Economic Development to be eligible for the credit.
Provisions include:
The bill also incorporates the “Employer Provided Child Care Assistance Tax Credit Act.” If an employer with two or more employees is eligible, they can receive 30% of the child care costs they paid for those employees with a maximum of $200,000 per tax year.
The goal of the bill is assisting in areas with a “child care desert.” These are areas that have a poverty rate of at least 20% or a family income that is below 80% of the state average.
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House committee votes to restrict minors' access to pornography
By Anika Austvold, Missouri News Network
JEFFERSON CITY — In a 17-0 vote Tuesday morning, the House Children and Families Committee advanced three bills requiring adult websites to verify users are 18 or older before accessing explicit content.
HB 1839, introduced by Rep. Sherri Gallick, R-Belton, HB 2921, introduced by Rep. Melissa Schmidt, R-Eldridge, and HB 3015, introduced by Rep. Jeff Farnan, R-Stanberry, which were all combined by the committee into a substitute bill, would apply to commercial websites in which at least 33% of the material is considered harmful to minors .
The bills define harmful material as content that appeals to prurient interests and depicts explicit sexual conduct, taken as a whole, without serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value for minors.
Heidi Olson, the founder and president of Paradigm Shift Training and Consulting, a program to equip health care workers with skills-based training to be able to identify human trafficking and exploitation, testified in favor of the bills during the public hearing last week.
“Children are very susceptible to what they see in pornography. The more they view pornography, the more they want to perform the acts they are seeing,” she said.
Under the legislation, companies must verify a user is at least 18 years old before granting access and are prohibited from retaining the user’s identifying information after verification.
Affected websites will also be required to display warnings about the potential dangers of pornography and promote a free mental health or substance use disorder helpline. However, this does not apply to bona fide news or public interest broadcasts, and will not affect the rights of a news-gathering organization, according to the bill.
Paul Dupont, policy director for the American Principles Project, a pro-family public policy organization in Virginia, also testified in favor last week explaining that online age verification works in other industries.
“Today, a child cannot buy tobacco or alcohol or place a sports bet online because of age verification. There is no reason the same should not be true for online pornography,” Dupont said.
