Legislative Update - Feb. 11, 2022

GENERAL ASSEMBLY COMPLETES FIFTH FULL WEEK OF SESSION

In a tale of two chambers, the House conducted its regularly scheduled business this week, while a thirty-one-hour filibuster on congressional redistricting stalled floor activity in the Senate.  As a result, the Senate also cancelled all committee hearings on Tuesday.  In addition, the annual State of the Judiciary address, which had been set for 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, was postponed and will be rescheduled for a later date.  On Thursday (2/10), the House third read and passed two additional legislative measures, bringing the total number of bills it has approved to five.  The Senate adjourned on Thursday and will reconvene on Friday (2/11) at 10:00 a.m.               

On Tuesday, the House debated and amended HJR 79, relating to constitutional amendments, finalizing the joint resolution on Thursday and sending it to the Senate for consideration.  If approved by voters, the proposed constitutional amendment would require future initiative petitions to be signed by ten percent of legal voters in each of the congressional districts.  (The constitution currently requires eight percent of legal voters in two-thirds of the congressional districts.)  A two-thirds vote would be required for amendments submitted to the voters by the General Assembly or by initiative to become effective.  (Currently, a majority vote is required.) 

The House also took up its first appropriations bill on the floor.  Each year, prior to consideration of the state budget for the upcoming fiscal year, the General Assembly typically considers one or more supplemental appropriations bills for the current fiscal year.  By a vote of 114 to 11 (with 25 voting “present”), the House third read and passed a $4.8 billion supplemental bill (HB 3014), including funds for education, state employee raises, and MO HealthNet.  Meanwhile, the House Budget Committee and the Senate Appropriations Committee continue to move through department presentations for the Fiscal Year 2023 budget. 

New bills continue to be filed each legislative day, with a final deadline of March 1, 2022, for bill introduction.  To review bills of interest and check their legislative progress, visit The Missouri Bar’s Legislative Engagement Center.  The bill feeds are organized by subject or practice area and automatically update as legislative actions occur, so bookmark the page and check back regularly.  If you have any questions or comments about specific legislation, please contact Government Relations Counsel at 573-659-2280 or govrel@mobar.org for more information.   
 

COMMITTEE HEARINGS OF INTEREST

SENATE

This week’s meeting of the Senate Judiciary and Civil and Criminal Jurisprudence Committee was cancelled.

The Senate Seniors, Families, Veterans & Military Affairs Committee was scheduled to meet and consider bills carried forward from January 26 and February 2, 2022, but its meeting was cancelled.

The Senate Transportation, Infrastructure and Public Safety Committee met on February 10, 2022, and held public hearings on the following bills:

• SB 786 (Bean), establishing a reimbursement program for peace officer training
  In Support: Mark Bruns (Missouri Fraternal Order of Police); Scott Swain (Missouri Police Chiefs Association); Jim Durham (City of Lee’s Summit)
  Witnesses
   
• SB 796 (Mosely), repealing an annual mileage limitation applicable to historic motor vehicles
  Witnesses

The committee took action on the following bills in executive session:

• SB 761 (Brown), creating provisions relating to fees paid to the Missouri State Highway Patrol        
  Do Pass by a vote of 5 to 1 
• SB 762 (Brown), modifying provisions relating to motor vehicle registration
  Do Pass by a vote of 6 to 0 
• SB 666 (Burleson), modifying provisions on self-defense                 
  Failed by a vote of 3 in favor and 4 against

HOUSE

The House Crime Prevention Committee met on February 7, 2022, and held a public hearing on the following bill:

• HB 2108 (Roberts), establishing the offense of organized retail theft, and provisions relating to disclosures by online marketplaces
  In Support: Angela Hoover & Jeremy Sutherberg (Walgrees); Michael Lindsay (Walmart); David Overfelt (Missouri Retailers Association)
  In Opposition: Tom Dempsey (Amazon) and Jon Dalton (eBay)
  Electronic Witness Forms   

The committee took action on the following bills in executive session:

• HB 2307 (Coleman, Jeff), assessing an additional $5,000 fine for human trafficking offenses and establishing the “Human Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation Fund” 
  Do Pass by a vote of 6 to 1
• HJR 114 (Coleman, Jeff), proposing a constitutional amendment to exclude proceeds from penalties and fines collected for human trafficking offenses from required distribution to the schools of the several counties according to law 
  Do Pass by a vote of 6 to 1
• HB 2439 (Hovis), modifying provisions relating to peace officers 
  Do Pass by a vote of 7 to 0

Archived Video of Committee Hearing

The House General Laws Committee met on February 7, 2022, and took action on the following bills in executive session:

• HCS HB 1462 (Schnelting), allowing concealed carrying of firearms on public transportation systems, and transporting nonfunctional or unloaded firearms on public buses
  Do Pass by a vote of 12 to 3
• HB 1660 (Hicks), allowing concealed carrying of firearms on public transportation systems, and transporting nonfunctional or unloaded firearms on public buses 
  Do Pass by a vote of 13 to 2
• HB 1856 (Baker), establishing the Extended Learning Opportunities Act 
  Do Pass by a vote of 15 to 0

Archived Video of Committee Hearing

The House Public Safety Committee met on February 8, 2022, and held a public hearing on the following bill:

• HB 1880 (Rusty Black), prohibiting the inhalation of certain substances
  Electronic Witness Forms 

The committee took action on the following bill in executive session:

• HB 1687 (Hardwick), designating the “Chief of Police Ferman R Raines Memorial highway” portion of State Highway 17 in Pulaski County
  Do Pass by a vote of 6 to 0

Archived Video of Committee Hearing

The House Special Committee on Criminal Justice met on February 8, 2022, and held public hearings on the following bills:

• HB 1739 (Dogan), designating September 22 as Hazel Erby Day in Missouri
  In Support: Aliah Erby (granddaughter of Hazel Erby); Sharon Jones (NAACP)
  Electronic Witness Forms 
   
• HB 2248 (Hicks), Changing the law regarding private probation supervision services by prohibiting drug and alcohol screen tests unrelated to the offense, and requiring the use of earned compliance credits
  In Support: Rocky Kingree (former prosecutor); Eapen Thampy (The Help Kansas City and CanaMo Solutions LLC); Alex Eaton (Justice Action Network); Sharon Jones (NAACP); Mallory Rush (Empower Missouri); Rita Linhardt (Missouri Catholic Conference); Jeff Stack (Mid- Missouri Fellowship of Reconciliation)
  Electronic Witness Forms 
   
• HB 2299 (Davis), creating provisions regarding the use of telephones in correctional facilities
  In Support: Mallory Rush (Empower Missouri); Sharon Jones (NAACP);  Liza Weiss (Missouri Appleseed); Jeff Smith (Chair of the St. Louis County Jail Advisory Board); Eapen Thampy (The Help Kansas City); Rocky Kingree (former prosecutor); Jeff Stack (Mid-Missouri Fellowship of Reconciliation)
  Electronic Witness Forms

Archived Video of Committee Hearing

The House Judiciary Committee met on February 9, 2022, and held public hearings on the following bills:

• HB 1699 (Roberts), modifying and establishing provisions relating to domestic violence
  In Support: Jennifer Carter Dochler (Missouri Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence)
  Electronic Witness Forms 
   
• HB 1547 (Veit), modifying the offense of tampering with electronic monitoring equipment
  Electronic Witness Forms 
   
• HB 1548 (Veit), creating the Change of Venue for Capital Cases Fund to reimburse a county that receives a capital case from another county for costs associated with the sequestering of jurors
  In Support: Brian Bernkoetter (Cole County)
  In Opposition: Elyse Max (Missourians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty); Donita Brown (NAACP)
  Electronic Witness Forms 
   
• HB 2246 (Copeland), establishing provisions relating to the release of a defendant
  In Support: Shawn Rhoads (Missouri Sheriffs United); James Harris (American Bail Coalition); Brent Hemphill (Coalition of Surety Agents of Missouri)
  In Opposition: Peggy Placier (Race Matters Friends – Community Bail Fund)
  Electronic Witness Forms

The Committee took action on the following bills in executive session:

• HB 1861 (Eggleston), creating provision relating to COVID-19 vaccination status with respect to organ transplant procedures           
  Do Pass by a vote of 8 to 1
• HCS HB 1641 (Jeff Coleman), creating provisions relating to employer responsibilities associated with vaccine mandates
  Do Pass by a vote of 9 to 2
• HCS HB 2093 (Wiemann), prohibiting workplace vaccination programs     
  Do Pass by a vote of 7 to 4
• HB 1475 (Schroer), prohibiting educational institutions from mandating COVID-19 vaccines or gene therapy treatments
  Do Pass by a vote of 8 to 3
• HB 1624 (Schroer), creating provisions relating to COVID-19 tests and vaccinations           
  Do Pass by a vote of 7 to 4
• HCS HB 1876 (Haffner), modifying provisions for eminent domain for utility purposes      
  Do Pass by a vote of 5 to 4

Archived Video of Committee Hearing

The House Financial Institutions Committee met on February 9, 2022, and held a public hearing on the following bill:

• HB 2370 (Evans), modifying provision relating to funding for the Office of State Public Defender
  In Support: Mary Fox (MSPD Director); Randy Scherr (Missouri Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers)
  Electronic Witness Forms

Archived Video of Committee Hearing