The Second Regular Session of the 96th General Assembly is scheduled to commence at noon on Wednesday, Jan. 4. In preparation for the 2012 legislative session, Missouri senators prefiled more than 150 measures, which received bill numbers on Dec. 1. Customarily, each member of the Senate — beginning with the lawmaker who has the most seniority — picks his or her top three priority bills, which are then each assigned a number.

Legislation submitted to the Secretary of the Senate during the prefiling timeframe will be introduced on the opening day of session.

Several measures prefiled for the upcoming session were addressed by lawmakers this year.  

Protecting the Rights of Missouri Employees  

Senate Bill 438, sponsored by Senate Leader Robert N. Mayer, R-Dexter, would, upon voter approval, prohibit employers from requiring employees to become (or refrain from becoming) a member of a labor organization or pay dues (or other charges) required by labor organizations as a condition of employment. Employers who violate provisions of this act, also known as “Right to Work” legislation, would be charged with a Class C misdemeanor.

Ensuring Honesty at Missouri Polls

To prevent voter fraud in Missouri, Sen. Bill Stouffer, R-Napton, is sponsoring SB 442, which would establish photo identification requirements for voting.

Under Sen. Stouffer’s bill, Missourians would be required to produce the following in order to vote:

• A non-expired Missouri driver's license;
• A non-expired or non-expiring Missouri non-driver's license;
• Any identification containing a photograph issued by the Missouri National Guard, the U.S. Armed Forces, or the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs;
• Or a document issued by the United States (or the state of Missouri) containing the name of the voter, the most recent signature in the individual’s voter registration records, a photograph, and an expiration date — the document is still valid if it is dated after the most recent general election.

Addressing Public Safety

Encouraging Missourians to put safety first, Sen. Joe Keaveny, D-St. Louis, prefiled SB 463, which would increase fines for seat belt violations from $10 to $50. Certain motorists would be excluded from this act, including those who drive motorcycles and U.S. Postal Service employees who perform duties that require them to exit their vehicle frequently.

Supporting Missourians in Long-Term Care Establishments

Senator Maria Chappelle-Nadal, D-University City, is sponsoring SB 536, which would require long-term care facilities within the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services to recommend policies encouraging family involvement in the well-being and support of their residents, such as family conferences and meetings with residents.

School Transportation Safety

In instances of transportation hardship, SB 452, sponsored by Sen. Jane Cunningham, R-Chesterfield, would allow a student to enroll in an adjoining school district if his or her residence is located closer to a school in the adjoining district. The objective of the bill is to ensure students’ safety and ease the stress of parents and guardians who need to transport their children to school.

Highlighting the Importance of Education

Also sponsored by Sen. Cunningham, SB 451 would establish the “Sharing of Services and Increasing Efficiencies Act.” This initiative would allow two or more school districts, charter schools, and other qualified educational facilities and groups to cooperate and share resources. Among other provisions, the measure would reduce and minimize duplicate education services throughout the state.

Senate Bill 460, sponsored by Sen. Wright-Jones, D-St. Louis, would require kindergarten attendance at the start of the school year for children who turn age 5 at any time during the calendar year. The parent or guardian of any child who will reach the age of 5 in the subsequent calendar year may request that the child's school district conduct an assessment program to determine his or her readiness for kindergarten. If the school district determines that the child is ready, he or she may begin kindergarten.

Click here to listen to “This Week in the Missouri Senate” from Dec. 15. Lawmakers featured in this report include Sen. David Pearce, R-Warrensburg; and Sen. Wright-Jones. These senators address the significance of education in Missouri.

Safety in Child Care Centers

“Sam Pratt’s Law” and “Nathan’s Law,” listed under SB 448 and sponsored by Sen. Scott T. Rupp, R-Wentzville, would modify provisions relating to child care providers.

Under Sam Pratt’s Law, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) would be authorized to investigate child care providers who are exempt from licensure if a member of the department learns (or is notified) that a particular provider has pending criminal charges. If a child care provider continues to look after children after they are notified by DHSS to stop their services, that provider would be guilty of a Class B misdemeanor for the first violation and a Class A misdemeanor for any subsequent violation.

Nathan’s Law addresses the number of children a provider can legally care for, among other protections. Currently, a child care provider may be exempt from licensure if that person is caring for less than five children. Children who are related to the provider are not considered in the total number of children under the provider’s responsibility. Nathan’s Law would alter this regulation, counting the provider’s related children in the caregiver-to-child ratio, except in certain circumstances outlined by the act. If a child care provider is persistently breaking the law, he or she would face a fine of up to $10,000. In addition, DHSS would be allowed to instantaneously shut down any unlicensed child care facility.

Senators may introduce bills in the Missouri Senate up until March 1. (Please click here to view a list of important dates pertaining to the 2012 legislative session.)

To view a complete list of 2012 Senate bills, please visit the Missouri Senate website at www.senate.mo.gov and click on “List of 2012 Pre-filed Senate Bills” under the Legislation tab.

New Legislative Boundaries Announced

Earlier this month, the Missouri Appellate Apportionment Commission reissued its redistricting plan and map for Missouri Senate districts. The revision addressed a constitutional provision regarding multi-district counties. The redrawn boundaries will coincide with any newly elected or re-elected individuals sworn into office in January 2013.

The redistricting process occurs every 10 years when census results pinpoint population shifts in the state. The 2010 census results indicated that Missouri’s population increased by 7 percent, requiring state lawmakers to determine new congressional boundaries and two bipartisan commissions (appointed by the governor) to redraw Missouri Senate and House districts. In August, the two commissions gave their notice to disband, after members were unable to attain an agreement regarding the maps. Six Missouri Appellate Apportionment Commission members, who were appointed by the Missouri Supreme Court, were then given the task of legislative redistricting.

To view the new legislative maps, please click here, or visit the Missouri Office of Administration’s redistricting website at oa.mo.gov/bp/redistricting.

To listen to “This Week in the Missouri Senate” from Dec. 8, which highlights the redistricting process, please click here. Lawmakers featured in this report include Sen. Rupp; Senate Minority Floor Leader Victor Callahan, D-Independence; Sen. Brian Munzlinger, R-Williamstown; and Sen. Keaveny.

Missouri Working Group on Sentencing and Corrections Issues Final Report

The Missouri Working Group on Sentencing and Corrections, responsible for analyzing Missouri’s prison population, ensuring the responsible distribution of taxpayer dollars, and auditing the state’s sentencing and corrections policies, among other responsibilities, released its final report of recommendations for reforming Missouri’s sentencing and corrections guidelines.

According to the group’s report, which can be viewed online, Missouri’s prison population has doubled, and spending on corrections has tripled throughout the past 20 years. To help fix these issues, legislators drafted a plan that is estimated to reduce Missouri’s projected prison population by 245 to 677 inmates at the end of FY2017, saving between $7.7 - $16.6 million.

Recommendations include:

• Target high-risk offenders, who will benefit most from intensive supervision and programming.
• Frontload supervision resources by focusing on the first days, weeks, and months after offenders are placed on probation or parole — the period when they are most likely to commit a new crime.
• Respond to violations with swift, certain, and proportional sanctions by utilizing a continuum of responses — from low-intensity, community-based options to incarceration — and applying the sanctions according to the seriousness of the violations.
• Incorporate incentives for offenders to comply with the conditions of supervision.
• Balance surveillance with treatment by combining risk-reduction programming with standard monitoring by supervision officers.

Senators on the panel include Sen. Jack Goodman (co-chair), R-Mt. Vernon; Sen. Jolie Justus, D-Kansas City; and Sen. Mike Parson, R-Bolivar.

Legislative Panels Prepare for January Hearings

Groups scheduled to assemble for hearings in January thus far include the Missouri Senate Appropriations Committee, chaired by Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, and the Joint Committee on Transportation Oversight.

Members of the Appropriations Committee are responsible for considering legislation regarding general appropriations and public funding. Committee members plan to assemble on Tuesday, Jan. 10, as well as Wednesday, Jan. 18, to hear testimony from state officials and various members of state departments.

Lawmakers on the committee include Sen. Schaefer; Sen. Rupp; Sen. Dan Brown, R-Rolla; Sen. Will Kraus, R-Lee’s Summit; Sen. Jim Lembke, R-St. Louis; Sen. Pearce; Sen. Rob Schaaf, R-St. Joseph; Sen. S. Kiki Curls, D-Kansas City; and Sen. Timothy Green, D-Spanish Lake.

In order to discuss the future of I-70, the Joint Committee on Transportation is scheduled to meet on Tuesday, Jan. 17, and Wednesday, Jan. 18.

Senators serving on the panel include Sen. Stouffer; Sen. Mike Kehoe, R-Jefferson City; Sen. John Lamping, R-Ladue; Sen. Jay Wasson, R-Nixa; Sen. Ryan McKenna, D-Crystal City; and Sen. Wright-Jones.

The Missouri Senate’s hearing schedule can be viewed online at www.senate.mo.gov.

To follow these and other issues facing the Missouri Senate, visit www.senate.mo.gov. Visitors can track legislation as it passes through the General Assembly, learn more about their district, or, when the Legislature is in session, listen to streaming audio of legislative debate as it happens. For more legislative news, please visit the Senate Newsroom. There you will find various audio and video programs and other services, such as:  

• Missouri Legislative Update (MLU) – A video program produced periodically throughout the year that provides an overview of the news in the Missouri Senate and House of Representatives. The program features news interviews with lawmakers and stories on issues concerning Missourians.
• Capital Dialogue – Missourinet's Bob Priddy hosts this monthly half-hour roundtable program bringing legislators together from the Missouri Senate and House of Representatives from different political parties to discuss their positions on specific issues and legislation.
• This Week in the Missouri Senate – A weekly five-minute audio program that wraps up the week’s news in the Missouri Senate. Programs are posted online every Friday in .mp3 format.
• Senate Minute – A condensed, one-minute audio report of current Senate news. Programs are posted in .mp3 format and are available through podcast.
• Daily Audio / Video Clips – Throughout the year, the Senate Newsroom posts broadcast-quality audio and video highlights from Senate committee hearings, floor debate, press conferences and other legislative events.  Please note: Clips linked to this Capitol Briefing are only available for the legislative week referenced in the publication.
• Daily News Clips – The Senate Newsroom compiles daily news clips from various print and online publications that cover issues relating to the Legislature and state government. An archive of past clips is maintained online and is offered as a subscription service.

Subscribe / Unsubscribe