Legislative Update: Senate takes action on proposed state budget
Both chambers of the General Assembly convened on Monday, April 24, 2023. That evening, Governor Parson hosted the members and their families for a picnic event at the Governor’s Mansion. On Tuesday, the Senate took up its Appropriations Committee recommendations on the House budget bills. The committee had approved substitutes for all appropriations bills except House Bill 1, which addressed payment on the state’s voter-approved debt. The Senate adopted the exact language proposed by the House for HB 1, declaring it Truly Agreed To and Finally Passed. In an overnight session, the Senate Third Read and Passed the following appropriations bills:
- SS SCS HCS HB 2 (Smith), appropriating state funds for the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
- SCS HCS HB 3 (Smith), appropriating state funds for the Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development
- SCS HCS HB 4 (Smith), appropriating state funds for the Department of Revenue & the Department of Transportation
- SS SCS HCS HB 5 (Smith), appropriating state funds for the Office of Administration
- SCS HCS HB 6 (Smith), appropriating state funds for the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Natural Resources, and the Department of Conservation
- SCS HCS HB 7 (Smith), appropriating state funds for the Department of Economic Development, the Department of Commerce and Insurance, and the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations
- SS SCS HCS HB 8 (Smith), appropriating state funds for the Department of Public Safety and the Department of the National Guard
- SCS HCS HB 9 (Smith), appropriating state funds for the Department of Corrections
- SCS HCS HB 10 (Smith), appropriating state funds for the Department of Mental Health and the Department of Health and Senior Services
- SCS HCS HB 11 (Smith), appropriating state funds for the Department of Social Services
- SS SCS HCS HB 12 (Smith), appropriating state funds for Elected Officials, the Office of Public Defender, the Judiciary, and the General Assembly
- SCS HCS HB 13 (Smith), appropriating state funds for statewide leasing
- SCS HCS HB 15 (Smith), appropriating supplemental funds
Senate Committee Substitutes on House Appropriations Bills
List of House Bills with Senate Amendments
The deadline for legislative approval of the Fiscal Year 2024 budget is Friday, May 5, 2023. Two weeks remain for consideration of regular (non-appropriations) bills, which must be approved by both legislative chambers by Friday, May 12, 2023.
House FY 2024 Capital Improvement and ARPA Tracking
House FY 2024 Operating Tracking - Perfected
FY2024 Budget Information
FY2024 Judiciary Budget Request with Governor’s Recommendations
FY2024 State Public Defender Budget Request with Governor’s Recommendations
CROSSOVER LEGISLATION AND FLOOR ACTION
View a complete list of legislation approved by the Senate and delivered to the House for consideration.
View a complete list of legislation approved by the House and delivered to the Senate for consideration.
View the Senate Calendar to see potential bills for floor debate and final approval (Formal and Informal Calendars – Third Reading of Senate Bills, Senate Bills for Perfection, and House Bills on Third Reading).
View the House Calendar to see potential bills for floor debate and approval (House Bills for Perfection, House Bills for Perfection – Informal, House Bills for Third Reading, House Bills for Third Reading – Informal, and House Bills for Third Reading - Consent).
2023 MISSOURI BAR-INITIATED LEGISLATIVE PROPOSALS
On the website of The Missouri Bar, members can access a list of the 2023 Bar-initiated legislative proposals, as well as links to the corresponding legislation introduced in the General Assembly. These proposals were drafted by committees or divisions of The Missouri Bar and approved by the Board of Governors. Members can also access a tracking report to see the current status of the legislation containing Bar-initiated proposals and follow their legislative progress.
Missouri Bar-Initiated Legislative Proposals
2023 MISSOURI BAR-REVIEWED LEGISLATION
The Missouri Bar limits its review of legislation in the General Assembly to matters concerning the administration of justice, the integrity of the judiciary, improvement of the law, or the dignity of the profession of law. Each session, Government Relations staff identify and monitor bills of particular interest that impact Missouri courts or the legal profession. These bills are referred to the Government Relations Committee and the Legislative Review Committee, which review them and make recommendations to the Board of Governors or its Executive Committee for potential action. Members are encouraged to submit comments on any bills referred for review or any bills eligible for consideration by the Board or Executive Committee.
Board of Governors or Executive Committee Actions Taken on 2023 Bills
FLOOR DEBATE
The House took up and amended five Senate bills for third reading. Numerous House bills were added as amendments to the Senate bills in an effort to ensure the language be adopted by both chambers. Those bills included:
- SS SCS SB 127, as amended (Thompson Rehder and Carter), relating to state designations marked by the Department of Transportation.
- HCS SB 186, as amended (Brown - 16), relating to public safety, with penalty provisions and an emergency clause for a certain section.
- HCS SCS SB 187, as amended (Brown - 16), relating to financial affairs, with penalty provisions.
- HCS SB 222, as amended (Trent), relating to political subdivisions.
As previously stated, HB 1 was Truly Agreed To and Finally Passed. The remainder of the appropriations bills listed above will be reviewed by conference committees, since the House refused to concur with the Senate recommendations and asked the Senate to recede from its position. Likewise, the Senate refused to do so and granted a conference on each bill. In the Senate, work on legislation ground to a halt on Wednesday evening due to a filibuster of a second floor substitute for HJR 43, which would modify the initiative petition process for proposing constitutional amendments. However, on Thursday, SS#3 for HJR 43 was third read and passed. It now returns to the House for its consideration.
The Senate perfected only one bill, which it adopted and third read later in the week.
- SB 88 (Brown - 26), relating to professional licensing.
In addition to the appropriations bills, the Senate approved the following two bills:
- SB 127 (Thompson Rehder), relating to state designations marked by the department of transportation.
- SS HB 402, with amendments (Henderson), relating to health care.
The Senate took up an additional four bills for perfection, which were placed on the informal calendar due to controversy surrounding either their original subject matter or amendments proposed on the Senate floor. Those bills included the following:
- SCS HCS HB 184 (Murphy), relating to electric vehicle charging station requirements.
- SS HB 402, with amendments (Henderson), relating to health care.
- SCS HCS HBs 802, 807 & 886, with amendments (Dinkins), authorizing the conveyance of certain state property.
- HB 730, with amendments (Brown - 16), relating to property rights.
COMMITTEE HEARINGS OF INTEREST
Senate
N.B.: The “Witnesses” links for Senate committees will lead to the “Committee Minutes” page of the relevant committee. On the “Committee Minutes” page, scroll to the appropriate bill number in the middle column of the page and click the “View” button.
The Senate Judiciary and Civil and Criminal Jurisprudence Committee met on April 24, 2023, and held public hearings on the following legislation:
- HCS HBs 119, 372, 382, 420, 550 & 693 (Shields/Perkins), relating to offenders in custody, with penalty provisions – Witnesses
- HB 196 (Henderson), relating to the department of corrections – Witnesses
- HS HCS HBs 1108 & 1181 (Hicks), relating to public safety, with penalty provisions – Witnesses
- HCS HB 1133 (Perkins), relating to judicial proceedings – Witnesses
The committee took action on the following legislation in executive session:
- SB 432 (Gannon), relating to civil actions based on public expression – Do Pass by a vote of 4 to 0.
- SB 480 (Thompson Rehder), relating to fentanyl testing – Do Pass by a vote of 4 to 0.
- SB 660 (McCreery), relating to a cyber crimes task force – Do Pass by a vote of 4 to 0.
- SCS HCS 994, 52 & 984 (Parker), relating to judicial proceedings, with penalty provisions – Do Pass by a vote of 5 to 0.
The Senate Judiciary and Civil and Criminal Jurisprudence Committee met in executive session on April 26, 2023, and took action on the following legislation:
- SCS HB 196 and HCS HBs 119, 372, 382, 420, 550 & 693, relating to offenders in custody - Do Pass by a vote of 4 to 3.
House
N.B.: For House committee hearings, witnesses testifying in person may not be reflected in the file available through the Electronic Witness Form link, but these individuals will be noted on the Committee Bill Summary on the webpage of the relevant bill.
The House Rules Committee – Administrative Oversight - met in Executive Session on April 24, 2023, and considered legislation that included the following:
- HB 104 (Barnes), relating to jury duty – Voted Do Pass.
- HB 344 (McGirl), relating to posting statutorily-required notices – Voted Do Pass.
- HB 549 (Roberts), relating to offender registries – Voted Do Pass.
- HB 1367 (Hardwick), relating to certification of a juvenile for trial as an adult – Voted Do Pass.
- HB 1229 (Owen), relating to private trust companies – Voted Do Pass.
- SB 63 (Roberts), relating to financial institutions – Voted Do Pass.
- SB 116 (Brown), relating to disposition of the dead – Voted Do Pass.
The House Rules Committee – Legislative Oversight met in executive session on April 24 and 25, 2023, and considered legislation that included the following:
- HCS SCS SB 187 (Brown - 16), relating to financial affairs, with penalty provisions – Voted Do Pass.
- HSC SB 186 (Brown - 16), relating to public safety, with penalty provisions and an emergency clause for a certain section – Voted Do Pass.
- HCS SB 222 (Trent), relating to political subdivisions (the title has been changed from Landlord- tenant proceedings) – Voted Do Pass.
The House Rules Committee – Regulatory Oversight met in executive session on April 24 and 26, 2023, and considered legislation that included the following:
- HB 273 (Riley), relating to the collateral source rule – Voted Do Pass.
- HB 652 (Sassmann), relating to the death registration process – Voted Do Pass.
- HB 721 (Riley), relating to transportation network companies (vicarious liability) – Voted Do Pass.
- HB 1009 (Hardwick), relating to settlement demands (time-limited) – Voted Do Pass.
- HCS HB 367 (Seitz), relating to civil actions for childhood sexual abuse – Voted Do Pass.
- HCS SB 22 (Bernskoetter), relating to judicial proceedings, with penalty provisions and an emergency clause for certain sections – Voted Do Pass.
- HCS SB 72 (Trent), relating to judicial proceedings, with penalty provisions – Voted Do Pass.
- HCS SB 103 (Crawford), relating to judicial proceedings, with penalty provisions – Voted Do Pass.
- HCS SB 245 (Arthur), relating to the Office of the Public Defender – Voted Do Pass.
The House Children and Families Committee met on April 25, 2023, and held a public hearing on the following legislation:
- SB 128 (Thompson Rehder), relating to costs and fees in divorce proceedings – Electronic Witness Forms
Archived Video of Committee Hearing
The House Local Government Committee met in executive session on April 25, 2023, and took action on legislation that included the following:
- HB 1013 (Reedy), relating to guardianships- Do Pass by a vote of 12 to 0.
Archived Video of Committee Hearing (Nothing occurs until 9:33 a.m.)
The House Fiscal Review Committee met on April 26, 2023, and in executive session took action on legislation that included the following:
- HCS SCS SB 187 (Brown - 16), relating to financial affairs, with penalty provisions – Reported Do Pass.
The House Judiciary Committee met on April 26, 2023, and held public hearings on the following legislation:
- SB 35 (May), relating to judicial proceedings involving the parent-child relationship – Electronic Witness Forms
- SS SCS SB 129 (Brattin), relating to judicial proceedings involving the parent-child relationship – Electronic Witness Forms
- SS SCS SBs 189, 36 &37 (Luetkemeyer), relating to criminal laws, with penalty provisions and an emergency clause for certain sections – Electronic Witness Forms
Archived Video of Committee Hearing
The House Crime Prevention and Public Safety Committee met on April 27, 2023, and held public hearings on the following legislation:
- HB 1135 (Taylor -84), relating to unlawful possession of firearms, with penalty provisions and an emergency clause – Electronic Witness Forms
- HB 1227 (Cook), relating to proceedings based on court-imposed sentences – Electronic Witness Forms
The committee took action on the following legislation in executive session:
- HB 655 (Smith 155), relating to volunteer fire protection associations – Do Pass by a vote of 14 to 0.
- HB 924 (Hovis), relating to emergency medical dispatchers – Do Pass by a vote of 15 to 0.
- HB 1158 (Sparks), relating to the offense of resisting or interfering with arrest, detention, or stop, with penalty provisions – Do Pass by a vote of 15 to 0.
Archived Video of Committee Hearing
The House General Laws Committee met in executive session on April 27, 2023, and took action on legislation that included the following:
- HCS SS SBs 119 & 120 (Luetkemeyer), relating to first responders – Do Pass by a vote of 8 to 1, and 4 voting Present.