Missouri Press Association
Serving Missouri Newspapers Since 1867
The following is a legislative update from Clarkston Nelson, LLC concerning the Missouri General Assembly’s spring legislative session. Use the information within to develop local coverage of issues important to your readers.
Despite another winter storm, which brought snow, difficult travel conditions, and negative temperatures, the General Assembly met each day this week and pushed forward with committee hearings and floor activity. The Senate debated and perfected approximately ten bills this week, at one point clearing most of the legislation off its formal perfected calendar. This included an omnibus utility bill, which, after meeting resistance during floor debate a couple weeks back and on Wednesday night, was perfected Thursday morning. The Senate third read and sent to the House bills on topics as varied as fireworks regulation, anti-hazing, financial institutions, and taxation. The House increased its floor activity this week, third reading bills relating to public safety, statute of limitations reform, pesticides labeling, and diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Catalytic Convertor Sales and Self-Storage Auction Notices
The House Committee on Crime Prevention met Wednesday afternoon to discuss HB 42, sponsored by Representative Hardy Billington (R-Poplar Bluff). This bill specifies that a record for the sale of a catalytic converter must include the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) of the vehicle from which the catalytic converter was removed. The Recycled Materials Association, and Advantage Metals Recycling testified in support. No opposing testimony was presented
The committee then turned its attention towards HB 757, sponsored by Representative Don Mayhew (R-Crocker). The bill requires the Department of Revenue to issue licenses for those who buy or sell catalytic converters. It also requires scrap metal dealers to require proof the catalytic converter came from a licensed repair shop or was obtained legally and contains penalty provisions for those who are found knowingly purchasing, obtaining, or possessing stolen catalytic converters. Additionally, the bill modifies the requirements for notice of sale by operators of self-service storage facilities for the sale of personal property of an occupant in default. The bill allows for the operator to advertise the sale in any other commercially reasonable manner in addition to advertising in the classified section of newspapers. The Missouri Self Storage Owners Association testified in support of the bill. Advantage Metals Recycling, and Recycled Materials Association opposed the bill.
Anti-SLAPP Included in Civil Proceedings Legislation
On Wednesday afternoon, the House Judiciary Committee met to hear HB 83, sponsored by Rep. Rudy Veit (R-Wardsville), a comprehensive civil proceedings bill that includes establishing the “Uniform Public Expression Protection Act,” known as anti-SLAPP. Rep. Veit said practically all parts of the bill passed the House last year and nearly passed the Senate. Other portions of the bill modify birth, death, and marriage records; changes of attorneys in workers’ compensation cases; complaints, discipline, and removal of administrative law judges; court dissolution of a limited liability company; establishes the “Uniform Unregulated Child Custody Transfer Act;” establishes the Missouri Electronic Wills and Electronic Estate Planning Documents Act; allows confidentiality of certain cases (deceased person convicted of a misdemeanor offense) in court case management system (Casenet); and other provisions. The "Uniform Public Expression Protection Act" relates to causes of action filed against persons who exercise certain Constitutional rights. The bill specifies that when a person, defined in the bill as "an individual, estate, trust, partnership, business or nonprofit entity, governmental unit, or other legal entity,” has a cause of action filed against them based upon their communication in a governmental proceeding, such as a city council meeting, or on an issue under consideration in a governmental proceeding, or when they exercise their right of freedom of speech or of the press, the right to assemble, or the right of association, that person may file a special motion to dismiss the cause of action. This bill establishes procedures for such special motions to dismiss. The bill specifies under which circumstances a court may award costs, reasonable attorneys' fees, and reasonable litigation expenses. Testimony in support of the bill was offered by Chad Stebbins of the Missouri Press Association, saying the bill would protect journalists and others against frivolous lawsuits that would interfere with their First Amendment rights. Stebbins noted that Missouri’s current anti-SLAPP statute was rated a D-minus by the Institute for Free Speech in 2022. Other testimony in support was presented by James Harris of the Institute for Free Speech, saying 31 states have such laws. Other testimony in support of the bill was provided by the Department of Labor, the Missouri Supreme Court, Missouri Judicial Conference, Legal Service Organizations of Missouri, the Cole County Prosecuting Attorney, Associated Industries of Missouri, Missouri Network Against Child Abuse, and the Missouri Bar Association. There was no testimony in opposition. The committee took no action on the bill.
Media Literacy, Critical Thinking & Appropriate Online Behavior
The House Committee on Elementary & Secondary Education convened Wednesday afternoon to consider passage of HB 116, sponsored by Representative Jim Murphy (R-St. Louis). The bill requires DESE to develop a two-year "media literacy and critical thinking" pilot program in five to seven school districts across the state beginning in the 2026-25 school year with the purpose of promoting student's ability to access, analyze, evaluate, and participate in all forms of media with an emphasis on appropriate online behavior. During committee discussion, members of the committee questioned whether the bill was necessary and how the content would be generated for teachers to utilize in the course, which the sponsor said the purpose of the bill was not to teach students what to think or indoctrinate them to one ideology or another but to develop a framework for assisting students in identifying fact-based information. After considerable discussion, the committee passed the bill by a 17-1 vote.
Active or Retired Officers’ Information Closed
On Thursday morning, the House Legislative Review Committee met in executive session and voted “do pass” on HB 138, sponsored by Rep. Doyle Justus (R-Troy). The vote count was 6-0. The bill clarifies that the Department of Revenue cannot release the home address or any other information that identifies a vehicle owned or leased by any person who is an active or a retired county, state, or federal parole officer, federal pretrial officer, a peace officer, a person vested under the Missouri Constitution with judicial power, a member of the federal judiciary, or a member of such person's immediate family contained in the department's motor vehicle or driver registration records.
Notice of County Planning Board Hearings
On Tuesday afternoon, the House Rules – Administrative Committee met in executive session and voted 8-0 to “do pass” HB 233, sponsored by Rep. Sherri Gallick (R-Belton). The bill requires that notices of county planning board hearings be posted on the county’s website, and it repeals the requirement that such notices be posted at least 15 days in advance of the hearing in at least two places in each of the county’s townships. Notices of the hearings shall continue to be published in at least one newspaper in the county, 15 days prior to the hearings.
County Officials
The House Local Government Committee met Thursday morning to discuss HB 249, sponsored by Representative Rodger Reedy (R-Windsor). The bill modifies provisions relating to salaries and commissions regarding county officials. MO County Collectors Association, MO Association of County Auditors, MO Association of Public Administrators, and MO Association of Counties testified in support of the bill. No testimony was presented in opposition.
Condensed County Financial Statement
On Tuesday afternoon, the House Rules - Administrative Committee voted “do pass” on HB 352, sponsored by Rep. Peggy McGaugh (R-Carrollton). The committee vote was 7-0. HB 352 requires a condensed county financial statement to be published on or before June 30th each year in local newspapers in all counties of the first, second, third, or fourth classification. The bill language includes publication of the name and current gross annual salary of each elected or appointed county official. Another portion of HB 352 deals with political subdivisions that fail to submit their required annual financial statements and that fail to pay fines. The bill allows for the reduction or elimination of fines under certain circumstances. The legislation, supported by the Missouri Press Association, was passed in HB 1606 in 2022 but was tossed out by the Missouri Supreme Court in 2023 because of other problems with that bill.
Intimate Digital Deceptions
The House Committee on Crime Prevention met Wednesday afternoon to discuss HB 362, sponsored by Representative Cecilie Williams (R-Dittmer). The bill seeks to address the issue of the unauthorized disclosure of intimate digital images. Individuals impacted may bring a civil action against the person who disclosed the image without their consent. Violators can be charged with a class E felony on the 1st offense and a class C felony on a subsequent conviction. The sponsor highlights past instances when high school students all over the country were bullied and humiliated after their peers shared AI-generated explicit photos of them. The Missouri Coalition against Sexual and Domestic Violence testified in support of the bill. No opposing testimony was presented.
Elections
The House Elections Committee met Tuesday morning to discuss HB 507, sponsored by Representative Peggy McGaugh (R-Carrollton). The bill modifies several provisions relating to elections including election authorities to be able to transmit notices by email; change the date of the candidate filing from the 17th Tuesday to the 16th Tuesday prior to the election; military and interstate voters must go the election authority rather than polling place to cast vote; allow interstate former residents to be able to have absentee ballots at the election authority rather than the polling place; all lists of absentee ballot applications for people with permanent disabilities be kept confidential; allows the use of provisional ballots for all public elections; modifies the write-in votes procedure to only count write in votes for those who have filed a declaration of intent; and establishes the offense of tampering with an election official. The Director of Elections for St. Charles County, Secured Democracy USA, Missouri Voter Protection Coalition, Secure Elections Project and a private citizen testified in support of the bill. No testimony in opposition was presented.
The committee then turned their attention to hear HB 126, sponsored by Representative Rudy Veit (R-Wardsville) and HB 367, sponsored by Representative Brad Banderman (R-St. Clair). The bills reinstate the presidential preference primary election. HB 367 also includes moving the election to the first Tuesday in March as well as extending the no-excuse in-person absentee voting period from two weeks to six weeks prior to the election. Representative Viet stated they are planning to offer a committee substitute that rolls the two bills together. Testifying in support of the bill were Russ Carnahan, Missouri Democratic Party Chairman; Jamie Murphy, former Secretary of the Republican Party; Health Forward Foundation of Kansas City; Secure Democracy USA; and a private citizen. No testimony was presented in opposition. Director of Elections for St. Charles County testified for informational purposes stating they are neutral on these bills.
Changes to the Initiative Petition Process
On Thursday morning, the House Rules-Administrative Committee voted do pass on House Committee Substitute for HB 551 & 575, sponsored by Rep. John Martin (R-Columbia), and by Rep. Brad Banderman (R-St. Clair), affecting the initiative and referendum petition process used to amend the Missouri Constitution by voters, making numerous statutory changes to the process of collecting signatures and enabling topics to reach the statewide ballot. The bill requires signature pages to be printed on a form as specified by the Secretary of State (SOS). Signature collectors must be citizens of the United States and residents of Missouri or must be physically present in Missouri for at least 30 consecutive days prior to the collection of signatures. Signatures must be recorded using black or dark ink. Only Missouri registered voters can challenge the official ballot title or fiscal note for a Constitutional amendment, initiative petition, or referendum measure. The bill requires final adjudication relating to a challenge of the official ballot title or fiscal note to occur at least eight weeks before the date of the election. Petition sample sheets must be submitted to the SOS six months prior to the next general election. The House Committee Substitute deletes three portions of the original bill, including: no petition shall claim to nullify Federal law; signatures are not open records under the Sunshine Law; and signatures already gathered after a court orders change to the content of the official ballot title are invalidated.
Banning Pension Funds used for Political Purposes
The House Pensions Committee convened on Thursday morning to discuss HB 735 and HB 686, sponsored by Representatives Dirk Deaton (R-Seneca) and Mike Steinmeyer (R-Sugar Creek), respectively. The bills prohibit any public employee retirement system from contributing or expending system funds to advocate, support, or oppose the passage or defeat of a ballot measure or candidate for public office or to pay any debt or obligation for a committee supporting or opposing a ballot measure or candidate. The bill also establishes a methodology for MOSERS to recover overpayments made to a plan beneficiary and reinstates a period for retirees to elect a lump sum of a deferred annuity in lieu of retirement plan annuities. During committee discussion, a committee substitute was adopted to combine both bills into one legislative vehicle. Once modified, the committee passed the bill by a 14-1 vote.
Municipal Code Recordkeeping
The House Local Government Committee met Thursday morning to discuss HB 802, sponsored by Representative Don Mayhew (R-Crocker). Currently, municipal clerks are required to keep at least three copies of the published book of the general ordinances of the municipality on file in the office of the clerk and available for inspection by the public. This bill lowers it to one copy with the ordinances available online for inspection. Missouri Municipal League testified in support of the bill. No testimony was presented in opposition.
Closing Some Vital Records Now Available
On Thursday morning, the House Legislative Review Committee heard HB 838, sponsored by Rep. Jim Schulte (R-New Bloomfield). Currently, it is unlawful for any person to permit the inspection of, or to disclose information that is contained in, vital records, except in certain circumstances - one of which is that a list of persons who were born or who died on a particular date may be disclosed to a person upon his or her request, but no information from the record except for the name and the relevant date will be disclosed. HB 838 repeals that authorization. Rep. Schulte said some requests of such names have led to criminal activity and identity theft. Testimony in support of the bill was provided by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services which oversees vital records in the state. The witness said Missouri is the only state to have such a statute. When asked, the witness said he was unsure if such records could be opened to update voter records, deleting voters who have passed away. The committee took no action on the bill.
Records Closed of Endangered Plant, Animal Location
On Thursday morning, the House Legislative Review Committee voted “do pass” in executive session on House Committee Substitute for HB 1063, sponsored by Rep. Bruce Sassmann (R-Bland). The committee vote was 6-0. HCS HB 1063 adds to the list of sunshine law exemptions by closing records to protect the specific location of a plant or animal species considered endangered, threatened, critically imperiled, imperiled, or vulnerable when the known location may cause the species to be at an increased risk of peril.
Protecting Elections from Non-U.S. Citizens
On Monday afternoon, the Senate Local Government, Elections, and Pensions Committee met in executive session and voted do pass on Senate Committee Substitute for SB 62, sponsored by Sen. Ben Brown (R-Washington), a bill modifying provisions relating to elections. The committee vote was 5-1. The bill requires documentary proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote. The SCS added that “nothing in this chapter shall require a person who appears on the list of registered voters or who seeks to transfer voter registration within this state from being required to provide an election authority documentary proof of U.S. citizenship, unless the person is stricken from the list of registered voters and the person thereafter seeks to register to vote. SCS SB 62 requires the Secretary of State and election authorities to perform system maintenance on a quarterly basis. Also, the clerk of each circuit court in Missouri is required to prepare and transmit monthly to the Secretary of State a complete list of all persons who identify themselves as not being U.S. citizens when called to jury duty. If an election authority determines that a person, who is not eligible to vote, did register to vote or did vote in an election, the election authority shall execute and deliver to the Attorney General, Secretary of State, and the relevant prosecuting or circuit attorney an affidavit stating the relevant facts. If the Secretary of State finds that reasonable grounds appear that the alleged election offense was committed, the Secretary of State may issue a probable cause statement and refer the offense to the Attorney General (currently to the appropriate prosecuting attorney).
Large Water Users
The Senate Agriculture, Food Production, and Outdoor Resources Committee convened Tuesday morning to discuss SB 157, sponsored by Senator Mike Henderson (R-Bonne Terre). According to the bill, all information obtained by the Missouri Geological Survey shall remain confidential and shall not be released to the public in response to any request, except certain information relating to water usage. The provisions of the bill apply only to information obtained from major water users relating to water used on agricultural land in this state. After no discussion, the committee passed the bill by a 3-2 vote.
Standards of Review for Agency Interpretations
The Senate Committee on Government Efficiency met in executive session Monday afternoon to consider SB 221, sponsored by Senator Nick Schroer (R-O’Fallon). The bill seeks to modify the standards for review for a state agency's interpretation of statutes, rules, regulations, and other subregulatory documents. Specifically, a court or administrative hearing officer shall interpret the meaning and effect of such statutes, rules, regulations, and documents de novo, rather than de novo upon motion by a party if the action only involves the agency's application of the law to the facts and does not involve administrative discretion. Further, after applying customary tools of interpretation, the court or officer shall exercise any remaining doubt in favor of a reasonable interpretation that limits agency power and maximizes individual liberty. After no discussion, the committee passed the bill by a 4-1 vote.
Omnibus Sunset Removal
The Senate dedicated floor time Monday afternoon to debate SB 10, sponsored by Senator Lincoln Hough (R-Springfield). The bill as filed, repeals the sunset date of September 1, 2026, for political subdivision authority to utilize the design-build method for construction and repeal the expiration date allowing political subdivisions to continue to use the construction manager-at-risk method. The intent is to provide political subdivisions flexibility to use contracting options to ensure efficiency and cost effectiveness. During debate, the sponsor offered a substitute to expand the bill to create an omnibus sunset bill. Specifically, the substitute removes the sunset on the wood energy producers tax credit; champion for children; diaper banks; meat processing facilities; motion media production project (Show Me Act); entertainment industry jobs act; higher ethanol fuel; biodiesel retail sales; biodiesel production; urban farms; financial incentives for relocated jobs; rolling stock; participation in athletic competitions designated for opposite sex; retirement benefits for substitute teachers; MO Save Adolescents from Experimentation Act; Medicaid Managed Care Organization Reimbursement; MO Emergency Response Commission; Pharmacy FRA; Specialty Agricultural Crops; Electronic monitoring of persons found guilty of violating protection orders; basic civil legal services fund; alternative incentives under MO Works Program; intermediate care facility for the intellectually disabled FRA; ground ambulance FRA; nursing facility FRA; Hospital FRA; and agricultural production. Due to the inclusion of the SAFE Act, Senate Democrats held the floor and offered several amendments from removing the 1% tax on groceries, to amendments relating to same sex marriage by removing references of marriage between a man and woman. After nearly six hours of debate, the amendments failed, and the Senate provided its first of two necessary approval votes.
The House Committee on Economic Development met Tuesday morning to consider passage of HB 413, HB 513, and HB 536, sponsored by Representatives David Casteel (R-High Ridge), John Voss (R-Cape Girardeau), and Dane Diehl (R-Butler). The bills are the House companions to SB 10 as filed, highlighted above. During committee discussion, a committee substitute was adopted to combine all three bills into one legislative vehicle. Once modified, the committee passed the bill consent, by an 11-0 vote.
House-Rules-Administrative
2/24/25 2:15 PM
Committee Hearing, HR 4
Executive Session:
HB236 Gallick - Establishes provisions relating to civil liability for publishing or distributing material harmful to minors on the internet
House-Rules-Legislative
2/24/25 4:15 PM or upon adjournment
Committee Hearing, HR 4
Executive Session:
HB145 Falkner - Modifies provisions of the sunshine law
House-Agriculture
2/25/25 8:00 AM
Committee Hearing, HR 7
HB1295 Parker - Creates provisions relating to water exportation outside the state
House-Elections
2/25/25 8:00 AM
Committee Hearing, HR 5
Executive Session:
HB126 Veit - Reinstates the presidential preference primary
HB367 Banderman - Reinstates the presidential preference primary and modifies provisions for absentee voting
Senate-Appropriations
2/26/25 8:30 AM
Committee Hearing, SCR 2
Secretary of State
House-Judiciary
2/26/25 12:00 PM or upon adjournment (whichever is later)
Committee Hearing, HR 5
Executive Session:
HB83 Veit - Modifies provisions relating to civil proceedings
Senate-Appropriations
2/27/25 8:30 AM
Committee Hearing, SCR 2
Treasurer
