Capitol Report 5/26/2026

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 this week took a look at major accomplishments of the 2026 legislative session and focused on some bills of particular interest.

If you have thoughts or questions, contact Fred Anklam at anklamf@missouri.edu.

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FRIDAY

Bill in motion: how a physical activity bill changed under pressure

By Hailey Sanford, Missouri News Network

JEFFERSON CITY — What began as a sweeping proposal to reshape the school day was repeatedly revised this year as lawmakers tried to balance health goals with learning outcomes.

By the legislative session’s end, an effort by Rep. Bishop Davidson, R-Republic, to add more physical activity to the K-12 school day had failed to gain final passage. The bill’s journey through the Missouri General Assembly illustrates the challenges of making new laws.

When Davidson filed House Bill 2748 earlier this session, the bill included all K-12 students. After concerns from lawmakers and school officials over scheduling and implementation, Davidson first scaled the bill back to K-8, then K-5, to keep it moving.

Davidson said the proposal grew out of concerns that physical education has been deprioritized both in and outside of schools, impacting students’ ability to learn.

“Instructional time is obviously one factor, but another factor is how ready and capable your brain is of actually learning that instruction,” Davidson said in a recent interview, “and that’s why physical activity is so important.”

Davidson’s parents are both in the school system, with his father being a teacher and his mother being an occupational therapist. He said he’s “in tune with some of the challenges our educators are facing.”

The bill included a required 60 minutes of physical activity, including at least 20 minutes of recess.

It advanced through the legislature on slim margins.

It passed the House General Laws Committee 6-4, and a revised version cleared the House on an 82-65 vote — the minimum needed for passage.

The Senate Education Committee added amendments before passing it in a 4-1 decision. But it never made it to the Senate floor for debate and a possible vote before the session ended on May 15.

The narrow votes reflect concerns from lawmakers in both parties about whether the legislature should dictate how schools structure the day.

“I think we’re going to fundamentally disagree on how much the legislature should get involved in planning, you know, the school district’s day,” Rep. Mark Matthiesen, R-O’Fallon, told Davidson during the House committee hearing.

Despite these concerns, Matthiesen voted for the bill both in committee and on the House floor, even speaking in favor of it on the floor.

School officials and lobbyists also questioned whether districts could realistically fit the requirement into already packed schedules.

“There’s kind of a flow against (physical activity) caused by the structure of accountability and standardized testing in areas that do not include physical literacy,” Otto Fajen said on behalf of the Missouri NEA. “We’re not sure that a legislative solution is necessary, but we do think this is important for kids.”

Despite those concerns, some lawmakers and educators supported the proposal because they believed physical activity could improve students’ mental health, learning outcomes and social development.

“Play is important. Play is how you learn,” said Rep. Jamie Gragg, R-Ozark, during the committee hearing. “You’re learning your social skills, you’re learning your motor skills, you’re learning your experiential learning. You’re learning all these things through play.”

Davidson said that when fellow legislators disagreed with his proposal, he focused on selling them on the principle of physical activity, on “fundamentally what ought to be happening in our schools.”

Throughout the process, Republicans and Democrats were on both sides of the bill.

“I don’t know that I go out of my way to build bipartisan support. I think I just file legislation that I think is a good idea,” Davidson said, “and if people from both sides of the aisle think that’s a good idea, then that’s great, and if they don’t, then they don’t.”

After receiving feedback from the House Committee members, Davidson agreed to change the bill to include only K-8 graders. Davidson decided to further decrease the grade level to K-5 because he was not confident in being able to secure enough votes when it went to the House.

“You know incrementalism? I don’t think it means taking small steps. It means taking the largest step available to you, and so this is the biggest step that I could take this year,” Davidson said.

He was able to work with the people around him to shape the bill into its current form.

“Ideas kind of ebb and flow,” Davidson said. “But you’re sort of working on your legislation always, and so even back home in the district, you might talk with constituents or stakeholders who are interested in it.”

One of Davidson’s constituents, Haley Edwards, a senior at Republic High School, testified in support of the bill at its initial House committee hearing.

“I think it’s really good that we open a healthy conversation,” Edwards said, “we see the signs that tie back to more physical wellbeing and mental wellbeing.”

The Senate Education Committee added a few amendments unrelated to the bill’s original purpose, including provisions involving private school bathroom policies and the presidential fitness test.

Davidson said he knew about the private school amendment but was unaware of the presidential fitness provision before the hearing.

“I think it’s important you don’t marry your legislation,” Davidson said. “You don’t want to be too emotionally attached so that you can be calm and cool and thoughtful about things that happen, especially things that happen outside of your control.”

Davidson said he is unsure if he’d file a similar bill next year because he might have additional responsibilities, including a possible appointment as budget chair.

Still, he said that if he revisits the proposal in a future session, he would likely begin with the broader K-12 version.

After scaling the bill back several times, Davidson said the experience reinforced how unpredictable the legislative process can be.

“I was reminded that it is indeed a difficult process, and it’s full of ups and downs. Davidson said. “There have been several times I thought this bill was dead, and then it wasn’t.”

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'Calvin's Law' effort reflected a family's pain and hope

By Faith Jacoby, Missouri News Network

Grief is strange. You find yourself making cups of coffee for someone who can’t drink it. You accidentally order their favorite pizza topping and have to peel it off each slice. You sleep in their spot on the bed, or you don’t sleep at all.

No matter what you do, it finds you. It’s an intimate and personal process that looks and feels different for everyone.

Anyone familiar with this painful procedure knows the toll it can take, which can sometimes lead to the need for a change. For some, it’s playing a new instrument or running a few miles each day. Maybe for others it’s painting landscapes or planting a garden to maintain.

For Janet Bond, it meant going to legislators.

On March 30, 2025, Calvin Spurlock was flung off of a street bike and died in the ambulance en route to the hospital. He was 4 years old.

After the sudden, traumatic loss of her young grandson, Calvin, Bond decided enough was enough. 

During the candlelight vigil, held at the site of the tragedy in St. Peter’s, Bond recalled speaking with Rep. Terri Violet, R-St. Peters. Out of this meeting, House Bill 1831 was born and later merged with similar legislation.

The bill, known as “Calvin’s Law,” sought to establish more safety precautions required for children on motorcycles and motor-tricycles.

For Bond and her family, if this legislation had passed, it would have been a victory — a victory that would hopefully save more lives. But despite coming close, even after being offered as an amendment to another bill, no legislation passed the Missouri General Assembly this year. 

“I hope that it protects the children in the future,” Bond said in an interview.

She vowed to continue to work for change. “I cannot fathom another family going through what we’ve done with the simplicity of having a law that prohibits it,” she said.

Since the tragedy, Bond has also been active on social media, specifically Facebook, to advocate for motorcycle safety, and more importantly, pay tribute to Calvin.

“We only had 4 years, 7 months, and 9 days with him,” Bond said. “So, I share pictures, videos, and things just to keep his memory alive.”

On March 3, the House Transportation Committee heard the bill, with Bond testifying in favor in front of the committee. Along with Bond, the bill sponsors also testified, including Violet.

“For me, at the end of the day, this bill is about prevention," Violet said during the hearing. "It's about making sure the young children are protected, reducing the risk of serious injuries, or even worse.”

Also at the hearing was Tony Shepherd, a lobbyist for American Bikers Aimed Toward Education. Speaking on behalf of the organization, Shepherd testified against the bill.

During the committee hearing, Shepherd expressed concerns about the infringement of rights and an overbearing government involvement in lives, especially those of responsible riders.

"Most of us are responsible adults that are asking the government to stay the heck out of our lives," Shepherd said.

Shepherd also mentioned that his oldest son had died due to a traffic accident.

Diving deeper into the bill’s contents, Shepherd voiced issues with the logistics.

The bill would require the motorcycle or motor-tricycle to have a passenger seat, and all passengers 10 years of age or younger must be wearing protective headgear. The bill also would have allowed authorities to stop, inspect or detain a motorcycle or motor-tricycle operator when there is "reasonable basis to suspect that a violation involves a child passenger under 10 years of age."

One issue raised by Shepherd was how police officers would identify children.

“So now you’re going to put it up to an officer’s discretion to stop, pull you over, and go on a fishing expedition,” Shepherd said. “It kind of gets into your Fourth Amendment rights, it touches on a little bit of profiling.”

On the issue of identification, Bond is well aware children don’t carry IDs, but proposed other ideas, like having to confirm a child’s age with their birth certificate.

“Now, obviously, no, a 10-year-old child is not going to have an ID to (show proof of age),” Bond said. “But, (authorities) can at least look at the bike, make sure the motorcycle rider is not impaired, ask the rider’s age, the passenger’s age, and then perhaps even require within a 7-day or 14-day period, bring a birth certificate in.”

Bond said the birth certificate requirement would be in discussion as an addition to the bill.

Finally, Bond made it clear that, if the riders simply followed the proposed law, there would be no issue.

“We’re really not trying to take away rights, we’re really not trying to invade your privacy,” Bond said. “If you follow the law, you don’t have anything to worry about.”

On May 5, Calvin's Law was added as an amendment to Senate Bill 1421 in hopes of being passed as a part of the large bill. Along with many other amendments tacked on, Calvin's Law falls under the umbrella of SB 1421, sponsored by Sen. Nick Schroer, R-Defiance, which "modifies provisions related to public safety." The bill was passed by the House. 

Last Thursday , the day before the end of the session, the amendment was removed from the Senate bill by a conference committee of Senate and House members. 

Bond said they plan to refile the bill in December and vowed to keep bringing awareness to the issue, no matter how painful.

"The process has just been talking about it, bringing light to what happened," Bond said. "Even as much as it hurts and the pain we're going through reliving the conversation, it bring awareness."

While still disappointed, Bond refuses to give up. 

"Hopefully the representatives we've been working with are voted back into office, or into their position in the next election, and we pick up where we left off," Bond said. "We start it over again." 

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Legislature considered a slate of environmental protection bills this session

By Hannah McDonough, Missouri News Network

A slate of environmental protection bills were offered in the House and Senate this session with just some getting close to the finish line.

These bills covered many issues from littering to data center regulation and included issues that Missouri environmental groups have pushed for legislation on.

The Missouri Coalition for the Environment kept track of legislation this session, noting which bills it was for or against, as well as each bill’s priority level. Some of these high priority bills included regulating disposal of foam fire suppressants and increasing renewable energy usage in the state.

The Mid-Missouri Sierra Club listed 41 bills that it supported, 63 that it was watching and 55 that it opposed. Some bills were obvious environmental issues, but others impact the environment in a less direct way.

“We’re just rushing towards a point of no return,” said Carolyn Niswonger, Mid-Missouri Sierra Club field organizer. “And it’s scary. So having advocates for the environment in places where policy’s decided, it’s invaluable.”

Data centers

One issue Niswonger focused on is the emerging data centers in the state. HB 3362, HB 3364, HB 3390 and SB 1750 dealt with data center regulations.

Data centers use a large amount of energy, which causes carbon emissions to rise. They also require water to cool down the centers. This uses up resources that could be otherwise used elsewhere.

Niswonger said these bills focus on the consumption of those resources at a state level “by establishing permit requirements and ensuring equitable cost allocation.” She also said that the topic of data centers is relatively new for this legislature.

However, Niswonger feels this legislation could go further in future sessions. She cited Texas as an example, as it passed a bill that allows the state power grid, ERCOT, to shut off power to data centers during emergencies. This is essentially a “kill switch” for data centers during grid emergencies.

Waste

HB 3193 sought to eliminate single use plastics in state parks. HB 2261 would have implemented a fine for purposefully releasing balloons outdoors, as the materials in balloons are harmful to the environment and the release of balloons contributes to littering.

HB 2162 made it out of committee, quite a bit of progress compared to some of the other environmental bills. The bill would have started a post-consumer paint recycling program.

“So anyone that sells architectural paints, they must create a plan for collection, reuse, recycling, environmentally sound disposal of leftover paint,” Niswonger said.

This bill had been introduced in the 2024 and 2025 legislative sessions. By the end of the session on Friday, the bill failed to get considered on the House floor.

Along the same vein of proper disposal, SB 1725 and HB 1925 introduced by Rep. Gregg Bush, D-Columbia, would have created rules surrounding how foam fire suppressants are disposed of to avoid polluting air and water.

The Missouri Coalition for the Environment listed this as a high priority topic that it supports.

Abandoned landfills

SB 1586 and HB 2761 address the issue of the 29 abandoned landfills across Missouri. Currently, the Department of Natural Resources does not have funding or jurisdiction to manage these landfills.

However, leaving those sites unmanaged poses an environmental hazard.

“They’re leaching this horrible toxin into our water systems,” Niswonger said.

These bills sought to give DNR the tools it needs to handle these abandoned landfills and address the environmental ramifications of leaving them there. SB 1586 passed the Senate and a House committee but did not get a floor vote in the House.

Despite many bill sponsors and supporters from across the state, these environmental protection bills did not gain enough traction to pass this session. Niswonger said that it is likely not because people don’t care about the environment, but because it isn’t a top priority.

“We’re forced to keep pushing the boundaries for people to actually realize or start being affected by these decisions,” Niswonger said. “I’d say the landfill bill is a really good example of that.”

These bills saw bill sponsors and support from both sides of the aisle.

“In my opinion, I think it’s a nonpartisan issue,” Niswonger said. “I don’t even think it’s bipartisan, because, you know, we all share the Earth. We all care. We all should care about our ecosystems. We’re all affected by it.”

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TUESDAY

Attorney General Catherine Hanaway's strategy plays out in 2026

By Sawyer Bess, Missouri News Network

The announcement last week by Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway that 35 illegal gambling machines were seized across four counties illustrated another move toward weeding out the estimated 25,000 gambling machines in the state.

In a recent interview with the Missourian, Hanaway said removing machines is about more than the illegal gambling itself, it’s about ending crime related to the illegal machine market. She estimated the slots alone make up a $1 billion market.

“When you have that much cash floating around, there are plenty of other crimes associated with it,” Hanaway said, sitting in a St. Louis restaurant. “It’s kind of ironic, but there’s crimes against the companies that run those machines, like embezzlement … You start to get the kind of turf wars and violence that was around prohibition.”

The machines’ outcomes are pre-determined or “no-chance,” and were ruled illegal in February by U.S. District Judge John Ross. Not only do the machine owners operate under an illegal market, Hanaway said she believes the machines can draw other kinds of crime to certain locations.

“My biggest objective is to reduce violent crime in Missouri,” Hanaway said. “Where these machines are located … you do tend to find 7-OH or illegal hemp or cannabis being sold, and then they become gathering places for people who are engaged in some of those more violent crimes.”

County prosecutors have original jurisdiction over violent crime, meaning the attorney general’s office only gets those types of cases if they are referred. So instead of taking a direct approach, Hanaway said her office targets these areas to prevent violent crime from happening there in the first place.

She has also gone after the sale of 7-OH drugs, claiming that they are three times more powerful than morphine but still legal to sell in Missouri.

“(7-OH) is my highest priority, because it’s killing people,” Hanaway said, calling them highly addictive and intoxicating. Her request for a temporary restraining order against CBD American Shaman to stop their sale of 7-OH drugs was denied last Friday.

American Shaman cited experts to claim their products did not pose a public health risk. Hanaway’s team produced evidence of the drugs potency, suggesting state law could be used to block their sale.

The judge hearing the case asked for further information and the case continues.

Hanaway’s strategy also puts illegal machines and 7-OH drugs in the spotlight and brings them to the attention of local officials.

“I would count as my biggest accomplishment the fact that I’ve been able to get our office but also other law enforcement authorities all focused on those priorities,” Hanaway said.

In regards to Hanaway’s approach, Rep. John Martin, R-Columbia, said that he is “very happy with her work as far as protecting Missouri citizens and doing her job as attorney general in various areas.”

Rep. Adrian Plank, D-Columbia, said he approved her targeting of illegal machines but questions her judgment because she had represented Monsanto in lawsuits regarding the herbicide Roundup, which has been tied to cancer.

“She was defending a company that is known for their products causing cancer, so I lost a little respect for her there, but I respect her on the VLT stuff, I don’t want to see those things in my community,” Plank said. “My disdain for her on the Monsanto stuff, it always makes me question what she does in the future.”

Hanaway was appointed Sep. 8, 2025, after a string of three people who were attorney general took and left office in the eight-year span since 2017. Josh Hawley and Eric Schmidt became U.S. senators, while Andrew Bailey now serves in President Donald Trump’s cabinet as FBI co-deputy director.

The three Missouri Attorneys General before Hawley had served for 32 years.

“The office does need some continuity,” Hanaway said, “and that is not a dig to my predecessors.” Hanaway has expressed intention to finish out her current term and run for another.

Originally from Nebraska and Iowa, Hanaway has previously held multiple offices in Missouri across all branches. She served as the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri and was speaker of the Missouri House, the first woman to hold that position.

Hanaway said she has a long to-do list for the rest of the year, and seeks to target Medicaid and consumer fraud, as well as fight price fixing to lower insulin prices.

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MONDAY

Divide between legislative and judicial branches grew this session

By Eric Hughes, Missouri News Network

JEFFERSON CITY — This legislative session saw the divide between the state legislative and judicial branches grow, with calls to change how judges are appointed.

By session’s end, proposed changes to the judicial system never received the votes to advance to final consideration.

In January, Sen. Rick Brattin, R-Harrisonville, slammed the Missouri Supreme Court for throwing out one of his bills from last session. Brattin aired his complaints at length on the Senate floor Jan. 28 in a filibuster that forced the cancellation of the chief justice’s annual State of the Judiciary address normally delivered to a joint session of the legislature.

“I’m highly upset that they would cancel because their butts needed to be sitting over in this chamber while they see everybody stare them in their face for the crap they pull,” Brattin said on the Senate floor. “Instead, they get to hide behind their little brick building like little kings and queens in their black robes.”

The Supreme Court had just thrown out Senate Bill 22, which was originally intended to restrict state courts’ ability to rewrite ballot language. The court ruled that the law was invalid because it strayed too far from its original purpose. An amendment added during the bill’s progress through the legislature gave power to the attorney general to appeal temporary restraining orders issued by circuit court judges.

“SB 22 as enacted violated its original purpose,” Chief Justice W. Brent Powell wrote in the opinion. “The power section 526.010 grants to the attorney general goes beyond SB 22’s initial purpose related to ballot summaries.”

According to the Missouri State Constitution under Article III, section 23, “no bill shall be so amended in its passage through either house as to change its original purpose.”

The court said the amendment that gave additional powers to the attorney general was fundamental in the bill’s passage. Therefore, the whole bill needed to be thrown out rather than just the amendment.

“While it remains possible the General Assembly would have passed SB 22 without the amendment to section 526.010, this mere possibility is not enough for this Court to save the non-offending provisions of SB 22,” Powell wrote.

Brattin disagreed, writing in his Capitol report the week of Jan. 29 that striking his bill was judicial overreach because it threatened the courts’ ability to change ballot language.

This session, a similar bill was initially approved by the House of Representatives but failed to win Senate approval. House Bill 3146 would double the word limit allowed for ballot measure summaries and disallow the Supreme Court from rewriting ballot language.

Multiple bills have also been introduced this session, seemingly in retaliation for the ruling.

Brattin introduced SB 856, a measure that would move Cole County Circuit Court into the Eastern District Court of Appeals, rather than the western, and make all appeals challenging Missouri laws go through that circuit court. The bill was passed by a Senate committee the same day as Brattin’s floor speech, but never received a Senate floor vote — a necessary step before the House could consider the legislation.

House Joint Resolution 153 and HJR 119, introduced by Rep. Darin Chappell, R-Rogersville, and Rep. Cathy Jo Loy, R-Carthage, would change the way judges are appointed in Missouri.

“(This) House joint resolution is not about weakening the courts,” Loy said in a public hearing for the bill. “It’s about examining whether the current system of selecting our judges best serves Missourians and maintains public confidence in the judiciary.”

The state currently appoints judges for the Supreme Court, appeals courts and selected circuit courts when vacancies occur through “the Missouri Plan,” where a nonpartisan commission gives the governor three qualified candidates to choose from within a 60-day window. If the governor doesn’t choose within that period, the commission appoints one.

The proposed legislation would change that process so that judges are appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the Senate.

Chappell said that the legislation was introduced because of recent poor decision-making from the courts, and that the current Missouri Plan wasn’t truly nonpartisan.

In the bill’s public hearing, it faced criticism from both parties.

“This is a supermajority Republican state, you all control every branch of government,” Rep. Keri Ingle, D-Lee’s Summit, said. “The governor and the commission that he puts together in order to pick a judge panel is comprised of Republicans and because the rulings from the courts aren’t conservative enough for you, you want to throw out the entire plan.”

Rep. Rudy Veit, R-Wardsville, said that the point of the judiciary branch is to protect the minority party from the majority.

HJR 153 passed two House committees but failed to be called up for a vote in the House.

Brattin is running for Congress, where he has also been critical of the balance of power.

“The 3rd branch of government is completely out of control!” Brattin wrote on Facebook. “They feel they are the supreme authority over all things and don’t have to be accountable to anyone!! They will literally rule the constitution to be unconstitutional by the time they are done.”

“I emphatically stand with President Trump and hope the Legislative branch will use the power of the purse to make them squeal like the pigs they are!!!!” he wrote.

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A look inside the relationships in the Missouri Senate

By Jackson Cooper, Missouri News Network

JEFFERSON CITY — It’s 12:30 a.m. on April 16, and the Missouri Senate is gearing up for a roll-call vote.

The body is in session unusually late, well outside the Capitol’s standard operating hours. Capitol tours have long since ceased operation for the day, the building’s doors shuttered to all new visitors. The only people in the building were there before 5 p.m., or have employee badges granting them access. A hardy few political geeks across the state are tuned in to the Senate’s audio-only web feed, but most ordinary Missouri residents are locked out of the legislative process.

What followed that early morning illustrates the dynamics of legislating in the Senate and changing approaches by members of both parties after contentious debate and votes last year.

The measure before the Senate is House Joint Resolution 173/174, which would ask voters in the November general election whether they’d like the state to continue collecting income tax. It’s likely the most consequential piece of legislation making its way through the General Assembly this year, holding the potential to upend Missouri’s known conventions of gathering revenue.

The move is a gamble to reverse Missouri’s stagnant economic growth and address projected budget deficits in the coming years. Republicans argue that shifting from an income tax to more sales-based levies would incentivize growth and make Missouri more attractive to business.

Democrats say that doing so would place more of the tax burden on low-income and middle-class residents, disenfranchising them while giving a tax break to the wealthy.

A matter of this magnitude would typically be expected to face hours of debate on the Senate floor, with kinks ironed out while dissenting senators kill time through filibusters. That’s how it played out last spring, when Senate Republicans spent months attempting to pass legislation that proposed a constitutional amendment banning abortion. The same played out last year when the body debated a House bill that repealed voter-approved paid sick leave measures.

Time and time again, Senate Democrats held the floor and blocked debate with filibusters, forcing bills to be tabled. It was only after Republican leadership invoked a rarely used motion to cut off debate that the bills were passed on the final day of the legislative session last May.

But the night of April 16 is different, unusually streamlined for debate on a consequential measure. The resolution’s Republican floor handler sponsor speaks on his legislation, calling on a Democratic senator to offer some mutual congratulations for achieving a compromise. Three Republicans opposed to the measure, and the manner in which it reached the floor, speak out, and two Republicans speak briefly in support.

And just like that, the resolution is up for a vote. It’s approved by a constitutional majority of 18-11. Just over an hour after HJR 173/174 was brought up for floor debate, it’s approved and sent back to be rubber-stamped by the House before appearing on ballots later this year.

The final resolution, approved by the Senate in those early morning hours of April 16, was the product of a day’s worth of intense negotiation across the aisle. Those were all behind closed doors, taking place as senators gummed up debate on other bills all day in order to buy time.

In the end, Democrats won enough concessions to begrudgingly let the bill go without speaking their minds on the floor — all eight Democrats present that night voted no — and Republicans saw the core of their effort stay intact. That was enough.

Becoming the House?

For the entirety of its existence, the Missouri Senate has served as the voice of reason in the Missouri General Assembly. It’s the upper house, where legislation that passes the House of Representatives is slowed down and tightly vetted, the final scrutinizer before a bill becomes law.

Individuality is historically preserved as the highest of its values — senators can speak their minds on any bill before the chamber, granting a large degree of individual influence on legislation.

The individual focus also preserves filibustering, or holding the floor to block debate, as a key tool to sink or stall legislation that a senator might take issue with.

The Senate is governed by a supermajority of Republicans, meaning that Democrats are not needed to muster a quorum or override governor vetoes. In theory, the business of the Senate would continue if no Democrats showed up.

As such, the filibuster is perhaps the most critical component in Democrats’ toolkit to stall legislation that they disagree with.

But lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have criticized the chamber’s trajectory this session, echoing years of concern that the Senate is losing its individuality.

Democratic senators have criticized the chamber’s general direction, sparked by leadership’s decision last spring to cut off debate and vote on bills where a compromise could not be reached. Meanwhile, some Republicans have lamented that their caucus leadership too often appeases Democrats and has been ignorant to some of the most conservative bills.

The common thread between these critiques? Both sides say the Senate is becoming more like the House.

A not-so-subtle jab at the House, the claim makes reference to the restrictions that the Missouri House places on debate. The House has five times as many members as the Senate, meaning more bills introduced, more bills passed and more members wanting to speak their piece.

The House is far from short on strong individual voices, but those perspectives are necessarily limited to allow the chamber to remain productive. Representatives can speak for no more than 15 minutes on a particular piece of legislation, and the majority leader regularly cuts off debate to force a vote on contentious bills.

Senators from both parties have been vocal against similar infringements on debate in the Senate.

“No matter how great I think my ideas are, I recognize they’re better when they’re not crafted in a silo,” Sen. Maggie Nurrenbern, D-Kansas City, said. “I think they’re better when they’re crafted together, when I get feedback and that constructive criticism.”

“I don’t think good policy is drafted in echo chambers,” she added.

While the concerns of Nurrenbern and others in the minority party are to be expected, some members of the majority have expressed fears that their party is shutting out voices.

“The rules that we have and the procedures that we have in place here are designed such that, whether Republicans are in control or Democrats are in control, you can’t just run over someone else,” said Sen. Lincoln Hough, R-Springfield.

Hough has long been a fixture of the Missouri legislature. He was first elected to the House in 2010, where he served three terms, and is now serving his eighth and final year as a senator.

First as a representative and then as a senator, Hough made a name for himself as an adept budget drafter and a shrewd negotiator, propelling him to the helm of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee in 2023.

But now, he’s been removed from the committee, the result of an independent streak that saw him break with the party line on several consequential votes within the last year.

This session, he’s been perhaps the most outspoken senator within the GOP’s ranks.

He frequently calls out his own party for actions that he sees as detrimental to the health of the Senate, such as the body’s refusal to prioritize education in the state operating budget.

One concern that Hough has shared frequently on the floor is his belief that the Senate moves too quickly through important legislation.

“Sometimes around here, especially recently, we’ve become too concerned with moving things more expeditiously than, in my opinion, we probably should,” he said in an April debate.

Hough was referencing four times over the past 12 months where Senate leadership has shut off debate and forced votes on bills, a motion known as the previous question, or PQ.

The motion is regularly invoked to end debate in the House, but its sparing use in the Senate has earned its nickname as the “nuclear option.”

The PQ had not been used since 2020 prior to last spring, when Republicans twice invoked it to pass a repeal of voter-approved paid sick leave and an anti-abortion ballot resolution.

A similar scenario played out in a September 2025 special session, as two PQ motions were made to pass a redistricted congressional map and attempt limitations on the initiative petition process.

President Pro Tem Cindy O’Laughlin, R-Shelbina, has expressed a clear willingness to use the PQ, but she hasn’t had to this spring.

Negotiations have been far more productive this session than in years past, a fact both Nurrenbern and Hough said is in part because the PQ threat looms large.

“I do think there has continued to be that fear that debate would be cut off at the end of session,” Nurrenbern said. “And so I think there’s more of a willingness to get into rooms to work around a conference table and start to negotiate differences.”

Hough put it simply:

“I think the other side is doing everything they can to not get put back in that situation,” he said.

Senate leadership generally agreed, too, saying that this session was marked by more intentional collaboration across party lines.

“We had a bunch of candid, honest conversations with Democratic colleagues,” said Senate Majority Leader Tony Luetkemeyer, R-Parkville, the chamber’s second-in-command. “We worked with them collaboratively on a few pieces of legislation that were important to them, and we were agreeable, too, as well, to get those across the finish line and come to our harmonious end.”

In an end-of-session media conference, Luetkemeyer credited Sen. Stephen Webber, D-Columbia, for spearheading negotiations and ensuring that relationships stayed functional between the Republican and Democratic caucuses

However, for some Republicans, the Senate’s departures from previous norms have not gone far enough. Missouri voters have overwhelmingly elected Republicans to the legislature, which several conservative voices argue gives them license to ignore Democratic demands entirely.

Following the PQ motions of 2025, Democrats vowed to bring future Senate debate to a halt until they felt their voices were adequately considered.

They followed through with that promise, beginning this session by blocking debate on the approval of gubernatorial appointments, stopping up the chamber and preventing a basic order of business from proceeding.

Democrats relented in early February after brokering a deal with Republicans to increase the threshold of consenting members needed to invoke the PQ from 10 to 18.

But that initial obstruction of proceedings was not forgotten by some Republicans.

Sen. Rick Brattin, R-Harrisonville, a longtime vocal archconservative voice in the chamber, was affronted to see in March that a bill sponsored by Nurrenbern had been granted a spot on a fast-track calendar.

The bill’s non-controversial subject matter — naming a Platte County highway after a fallen firefighter — did not, in Brattin’s opinion, justify rewarding a senator who had continually obstructed Republican legislation.

“We all have important legislation we would love to get done,” Brattin told Nurrenbern. “I find it ironic that you think that you get the golden pass on your legislation, regardless of the subject matter.”

While Brattin withdrew his objection soon after, his argument that Democrats wield an influence exceeding the size of their 10-member caucus is a sentiment shared by many on the Senate’s hard right.

Conservative legislation routinely passes the chamber, though typically following compromise with Democrats.

One instance of this was a bill from Sen. Brad Hudson, R-Cape Fair, that would explicitly protect infants born during a failed abortion procedure. It also vastly opened up civil liability in cases of an unsuccessful abortion and subjected medical staff to potential criminal penalties for failing to report an illegal abortion.

Democrats took issue with the bill, filibustering for an entire afternoon before Hudson announced a new version — the civil liability and mandatory reporter language was taken out, replaced with clauses dealing with criminal offenses for stalking, harassment and domestic violence that were lifted directly from bills sponsored by Democrats.

This was decried by Sen. Joe Nicola, R-Grain Valley, who criticized his party for letting Democratic amendments water down a Republican legislative priority.

“The party on the other side of the aisle, I like to watch them work,” Nicola said at the end of bill’s debate, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “You do magical work. Now we have a piece of legislation … (where) now, there’s no way I could support this.”

Nicola has been an outspoken critic against what he sees as collusion from Senate Republicans to prevent his legislation from passing. His top legislative priorities — property tax reform and AI regulation — failed to gain traction with the body.

Nicola frequently has a sounding board for his gripes in Sen. Mike Moon, R-Ash Grove, who is also strong in his individualist perspectives.

On the second-to-last day of the legislative session, Moon stalled Senate proceedings for about three hours by filibustering the reading of the journal, normally a routine start to the legislative day.

Moon spoke on a variety of topics throughout his hours-long oration, ending with a scathing critique of what he termed as authoritarianism from Senate leaders.

“The speaker of the House can be a tyrant, and I saw tyrant activity in every single speaker,” Moon said of his time as a state representative. “And I’ve seen them in the president pro tem’s office, too.”

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WEEKEND

Republicans achieve major legislative priorities as session comes to an end

By Erin Hynes, Anika Austvold, Hailey Sanford and Nolan Haberstroh, Missouri News Network

JEFFERSON CITY — The 2026 legislative session that ended Friday was marked by a Republican push to eliminate income tax and Democratic complaints that public schools got short shrift.

The 2026 session was more productive in terms of bills filed, and tensions between members of the two parties seemed more subdued after explosive sessions last year on abortion and redrawing congressional seats.

Here are some of the highlights of the session:

Eliminating income tax

An April 21 House vote gave final approval to a top GOP priority — asking voters to repeal the state income tax. House Joint Resolutions 173 and 174 ask voters to decide in November whether the state should phase out the tax. If voters agree, Missouri would be the first state since Alaska in 1980 to eliminate personal income tax.

Voters are being asked to approve phasing out individual income tax, based on revenue growth and other related questions, by 2032. To make up for what has accounted for over half of the state’s general revenue in most years, the legislature would be allowed to raise sales and other taxes that are currently capped.

Republican proponents say eliminating income tax provides Missourians a choice in how they pay their taxes. They argue that the change would keep Missouri fiscally competitive with the other states that don’t tax income as well as spurring economic growth.

Democrats argue that the change will place Missouri under a regressive tax structure that raises taxes on working-class taxpayers.

State spending

The House and Senate approved a $50.7 billion state budget, their only constitutionally required action, after weeks of negotiations over education funding, workforce development and public safety spending.

House Budget Committee Chair Dirk Deaton, R-Seneca, said lawmakers prioritized education and workforce development while balancing long-term fiscal concerns.

The budget bills allocate $48.7 billion for state operations and $2 billion for construction and building maintenance.

“It’s a budget that starts to take a critical look at making sure that the Missouri state government (is) living within its means, just like Missouri citizens have to do around a kitchen table,” Deaton said.

The hottest debate and closest votes on funding bills came during consideration of Missouri’s public school foundation formula.

Democrats argued the budget relied on uncertain projected revenues, including money tied to future lottery and sports betting proceeds, rather than fully funding the formula through general revenue.

Republican leaders said the overall amount allocated to K-12 education remained consistent and said the budget reflected realistic revenue expectations. But many House Republicans voted against the funding proposal, which passed with only two votes to spare.

Sen. Maggie Nurrenbern, D-Kansas City, said it was the first time in nine years the foundation formula had not been fully funded by the legislature.

“Disappointed is the word that comes to mind right now on how this all went down,” Nurrenbern said. “I know we can do better, and I hope, moving forward, there will be a different person at the helm of the House budget, and I hope that person will lead with more integrity.”

Gov. Mike Kehoe’s staff is reviewing the 16 spending bills — the only ones for which Kehoe is allowed to veto specific items.

Criminal and juvenile justice

A public safety package focused on juvenile crime and sentencing reforms became one of the legislature’s most debated measures before passing and being signed into law on April 7.

Senate Bill 888 expands access to juvenile records, creates a statewide juvenile criminal history database and broadens the circumstances under which juveniles can be certified as adults.

The legislation also changes parole eligibility calculations and includes sentencing reforms lawmakers said were intended to create more consistency in Missouri’s criminal justice system.

However, after Kehoe signed the original bill, it was returned to correct multiple errors tied to implementation timelines amid concerns that they could create gaps in criminal sentencing.

Democrats criticized the legislature for moving too quickly on such a large package, arguing the need for later corrections highlighted concerns about rushed legislation.

“I hope that we can recognize not just how important it is to do our jobs efficiently, we need to do our jobs effectively,” Nurrenbern said during debate on the fixes.

Banning antisemitism in schools

A law that will ban discriminatory and antisemitic speech in schools takes effect Aug. 28. HB 2061, introduced by Rep. George Hruza, R-St. Louis, originally focused on antisemitism in schools following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel.

The law defines antisemitism according to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition and adds that antisemitism should be addressed “in an identical manner to discrimination motivated by race.” The law requires schools to create site-specific antisemitism policies

Many Democrats expressed concern that this legislation would only prioritize protecting one group of students from hate speech. They also said it makes it difficult for educators to have open discussions about current events without being accused of being antisemitic.

During floor debate, several senators also said they felt the bill only protected one group of students. Sen. Mike Moon, R-Ash Grove, offered an amendment that expanded the bill text to acknowledge all discrimination, and the House agreed to that change.

Hemp faces new regulation

Legislation limiting the sale of intoxicating hemp-based products passed and was signed into law after being blocked for several years.

HB 2641, sponsored by Rep. Dave Hinman, R-O’Fallon, makes hemp-derived products classified and regulated the same as marijuana, in line with federal regulations scheduled to take effect in November. Opponents suggested the federal regulations might be changed and the state had no need to step in now.

Under the law, any product containing .3% or more tetrahydrocannabinol, also known as THC, by weight is considered to have intoxicating potential, and is classified as marijuana.

Opponents warned the law will ban the sale of countless hemp-based products that are widely available in the state, prevalent in gas stations and convenience stores.

Supporters of hemp product manufacturers complained that they will have to submit to the strict oversight and regulation that comes with sale in licensed dispensaries, handing a competitive advantage to those already licensed to sell marijuana.

Bills concerning children

Kehoe signed HB 2273 into law on May 5. Sponsored by Rep. Ed Lewis, R-Moberly, the law increases penalties for child sex trafficking.

The bill allows people to file for damages caused by child sex trafficking within 20 years of the plaintiff turning 21, or within three years of finding out injuries were caused by child sex trafficking.

The bill also includes a clause about grooming, where people more than four years older than a minor knowingly act in such a way that “is intended to prepare, condition or manipulate such minor to engage in sexual conduct, a sexual performance or a commercial sex act.”

“By signing this legislation into law, we’re sending a clear message: if you harm a child, you will face the consequences,” Kehoe said on April 7.

For the fourth year in a row, Rep. Brenda Shields, R-St. Joseph, was disappointed in efforts to create child care tax credits.

HB 2409 would have allowed people to receive 75% of donations to child care providers back on their tax returns. The goal of the bill is to expand the amount of money flowing into child care locations.

According to Child Care Aware of Missouri, as of September 2025, 73 of Missouri’s 114 counties are child care deserts, where there is only one opening for every three children.

The bill, which has had bipartisan support in the House, failed again to gain Senate approval. This is Shields last term and was her final chance to enact the credits.

Sex offender registry

Senate Bill 982, sponsored by Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman, R-Arnold, was signed into law on May 6.

The bill restores the tier system for Missouri’s sex offender registry.

Tier I covers less severe sex offenses, including sexual misconduct, sexual abuse of someone 18 or older, sex with an animal, sexual conduct with a vulnerable person, promoting pornography for minors, possession of child pornography among others.

Tier II includes enticement of a child, grooming, patronizing prostitution, sexual exploitation of a minor, the threat of or actual dissemination of nonconsensual sexual images and others.

Tier III holds the most severe crimes, including rape, sodomy, child molestation, sex trafficking of a minor, first or second-degree kidnapping of a minor and incest involving minors.

The bill also allows a path for removal from the registry. Tier I offenders would be able to petition for removal after 10 years on the registry, Tier II offenders after 25 years and Tier III offenders would never be eligible for removal.

This bill addressed a 2023 Missouri Supreme Court decision that resulted in narrow or nonexistent paths to removal for certain offenders. The decision said that if an offense was at the federal level, sex offenders could not be removed from the Missouri registry.

“I just have this sneaky concern that people are still not going to be able to get off,” said Rep. David Tyson Smith, D-Columbia, during floor debate.

Rep. Jeff Myers, R-Warrenton, explained that this legislation complies with the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, which is the federal standard for sex offender registries.

MSHSAA athletics appeals changes

With legislators proposing a dramatic change in administration of high school sports and other activities, a compromise was worked out to handle appeals of decisions involving sports.

SB 863, sponsored by Sen. Jason Bean, R-Holcomb, creates a board of directors appointed by the governor and approved by the Senate to hear appeals made by “statewide activities associations.”

That Interscholastic Athletic Oversight Commission will hear appeals of Missouri State High School Activities Association decisions on athlete eligibility after transferring, contest results and contest procedures.

“This bill makes the process more transparent. Let’s focus on the kids,” said Bean, whose original bill envisioned complete state supervision of high school activities. The change was negotiated with MSHSAA officials who supported the final version.

Divorce if pregnant

Kehoe signed House Bill 1908 into law on April 7. Sponsored by Rep. Cecelie Williams, R-Dittmer, this law means that judges are no longer allowed to prevent a divorce or legal separation if one party is pregnant.

“If we are serious about protecting life, we must also be serious about protecting vulnerable women and mothers,” Kehoe said. Dittmer’s emotional testimony over two years about her inability to divorce from an abusive relationship because of her pregnancy earned the legislation widespread support.

Bills that died

While over 60 bills were truly agreed to and passed, many died in committees or on the chamber floor.

Efforts to put legal guardrails on use of artificial intelligence failed in the waning days of the session.

SB 1012, sponsored by Sen. Joe Nicola, R-Grain Valley, combined sections of numerous bills concerning AI and made it through the Senate on a 20-10 vote before being killed in a House committee.

This bill focused on establishing that AI systems are not sentient, and any harm caused by AI falls under the responsibility of the user.

“AI is still a tool, it is not a person, it is not a licensed professional, it is not someone we can blame when something goes wrong,” Nicola said to the House’s Emerging Issues Committee.

Other provisions included requirements that any owner or operator using an AI system provide notice to the users, that chatbots provide references to suicide hotlines and that use in election campaigns be transparent include a disclaimer.

The Senate Select Committee on Gaming unanimously vetoed HB 2989 on May 6, ending efforts to provide “no chance” slot machines a legal operation avenue. The bill attempted to create a statewide regulation system for the type of lottery terminals often seen in gas stations and bars.

Property tax legislation made significant progress but ultimately failed to pass. SB 1066, sponsored by Ben Brown, R-Washington, intended among other things to implement tax siloing measures for property tax rollbacks, separating rollback calculations by property type.

Peter Pynadath and Hannah McDonough contributed to this report.