The 2023 Regular Session of the General Assembly ended on May 12. The turmoil that afflicted the Missouri Senate much of the session lingered into this week as the chamber stayed embattled as various Senators attempted to leverage to move policy priorities.
The Missouri House spent Friday taking final actions on Bills in Conference, House Bills with Senate Amendments, and begrudgingly approving Senate Bills without House changes. The frustration was evident when they adjourned on Friday afternoon. Out of the 1,478 House Bills filed this year, 7 were Truly Agreed to and Finally Passed. To the contrary, 33 Senate Bills were sent to the Governor.
All in all, 59 bills were Truly Agreed to And Finally Passed this session. Looking at sessions over the last 10 years, the most bills passed in a session was in 2014 where they passed 190 bills. The least amount of bills passed was in 2020 – the session which was cut short by COVID – and they still managed to pass 51 bills. These numbers include budget bills.
In the end, the legislature was able to make significant changes to healthcare reforms, such as allowing Physical Therapists to treat patients without physician referrals, extending postpartum care for low-income pregnant women, and providing healthcare loan repayment programs.
Both the House and Senate will reconvene for Technical Sessions where the Speaker of the House and the President Pro Tem will sign all bills passed in the last two weeks and will officially send them to the Governor for his final approval. Governor Mike Parson has until July 14th to sign or veto Bills.
BY THE NUMBERS:
Total number of bills, concurrent resolutions, and joint resolutions proposed: 2,281
- Senate: 789
- House: 1,492
Total number of bills passed: 59
- Senate: 33
- House: 26 (19 of these bills are Appropriation Bills)
MAJOR ISSUES THAT PASSED THIS SESSION
- A bill banning gender re-assignment surgeries and the use of hormone blockers for individuals under the age of 18;
- Transgender athletes: Prevents transgender women from participating in women’s athletics in elementary, secondary and higher schools;
- A bill reestablishing the film tax credit program and creating the entertainment industry jobs act; Legislation extending Mo HealthNet Services for pregnant and postpartum women for up to a year;
- Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) legislation – will allow in-state high school recruits to start earning endorsement money as soon as they sign with in-state colleges (contained within HB 417);
- SB 190 – allows counties to freeze tax rates for senior citizens;
- Legislation that prohibits texting while driving for all motorists. Currently, only those under 18 have a texting while driving ban;
- A bill extending various fees relating to the operation of the Department of Natural Resources;
- SB 24 –Missouri First Responder Mental Health Initiative Act;
- Over $250 million earmarked for the broadband grant program;
- SB 189 – a major crime package which includes expedited expungement procedures and created a conviction review unit;
- Funding to rebuild I-70 – $1.4 billion in funding and $1.4 billion in bonding authority and provide funding for preliminary work on I-44, and funding for rural routes;
- Legislation allowing a physical therapist to treat a patient for 10 visits or 30 days without a doctor’s consultation;
- SB 25 – exempts 100% of any federal grant moneys received for the purpose of expanding access to broadband Internet
MAJOR ISSUES THAT FAILED TO PASS THIS SESSION
- Legalizing sports wagering in Missouri;
- Legislation that would ban illegal slot machines in retail stores in Missouri;
- Legislation titles “Parents Bill of Rights” – Allows parents greater control over public education; requires certain school transparency measures regarding curriculum, speakers and other information;
- Cut to individual and corporate income tax;
- Legislation banning all lobbyist gifts for any locally elected official and their staff;
- A bill excluding video service providers from franchise fees for use of the rightof-way;
- Critical race theory: Limits how schools are allowed teach about race;
- Tort Reform issues dealing with statute of limitations, product liability, and asbestos transparency;
- Childcare Tax Credit;
- Elimination of foreign ownership of agricultural land;
- Open enrollment education reform;
- Elimination of the state and local sales tax on food;
- A bill returning control of the St. Louis Police Board to the State of Missouri;
- Initiative Petition Reform – would raise the number of signatures and the number of districts with signatures collected required to put an initiative on the ballot;
- Legislation preempting local governments from regulating tobacco sales;
- Legislation seeking to re-instate the Presidential Preference Primary;
- Changes to how gas and water companies pipelines are assessed;
- A bill seeking to phase out the personal property tax;
- Property Tax Rate Reductions;
I appreciate the support of our members who participated in the legislative advocacy throughout the session during this challenging time. Please let me know if you have any questions at kynaiman@earthlink.net
Kyna Iman