Jefferson City — With only two weeks left in the legislative session, lawmakers advanced several measures through to the House this week. A handful of bills were also passed by the entire General Assembly and now move to the governor’s desk for signing into law.
Among the bills receiving final approval from the Legislature this week was Senate Bill 748, sponsored by Sen. Luann Ridgeway (R-Smithville). Last year, the General Assembly passed a law that stopped tax breaks for non-residents who work in Missouri. Until then, non-residents were able to deduct the property taxes they pay on their out-of-state homes when they itemized their Missouri income taxes. Senate Bill 748 narrows last year’s law by allowing property tax deductions for non-residents, with one exception — the state of the non-resident must reciprocate for Missouri residents.
Also receiving final passage from lawmakers was Senate Bill 806, sponsored by Sen. Kevin Engler (R-Farmington). The bill requires the U.S. and Missouri state flags to be flown at half-staff for one full day whenever a Missouri resident is killed in the line of duty during military service.
The Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority (MOHELA) will now be allowed to expand its student loan offerings and originate federal Stafford loans under SB 967, sponsored by Sen. Rob Mayer (R-Dexter). Currently, MOHELA is one of the only state-based student loan lending institutions in the country that does not originate, or serve as the original funding source for federally guaranteed Stafford loans.
Senate Bill 1105, sponsored by Sen. Maida Coleman (D-St. Louis), was another Senate bill cleared by the General Assembly. The bill creates a check-off on the Missouri individual and corporate income tax forms for contributions to the breast cancer awareness trust fund.
House Bill 1970 received final approval from the House and Senate this week. The bill prohibits certain lawsuits against wholesalers who supply vehicles to dealerships. A consumer could only sue the dealership from which the vehicle was directly purchased.
Legislation penalizing mortgage fraud was also given final approval by both chambers. House Bill 2188 creates civil and criminal penalties for people who commit mortgage fraud, as well as imposes sanctions on certain licensed and unlicensed individuals found guilty of the crime.
The Senate passed House Bill 2393, the companion bill to SB 1234, sponsored by Sen. Charlie Shields (R-St. Joseph) this week. The measure creates a “mega-project’ component under the Enhanced Enterprise Zone program, which would provide tax credit incentives for companies to locate to Missouri. Bombardier, a Montreal-based company, is considering building a $375 million airplane assembly plant at Kansas City International Airport, which would employ approximately 2,100 workers paying an average annual wage of $55,000. Companies that qualify as a mega-project, such as Bombardier, would be allowed an income tax credit equal to a percentage of its new annual payroll for employees. To qualify, the company’s investment must be projected to exceed $300 million dollars and create at least 1,000 new jobs over a period of eight years. The measure now moves back to the House for the approval of any changes made by the Senate.
Several Senate bills moved to the House this week for similar consideration. Receiving a final vote was the Senate’s omnibus health care bill, Senate Bill 1283, sponsored by Sen. Tom Dempsey (R-St. Charles). The bill creates the Missouri Health Transformation Act, which focuses on preventative health care and provides better access to affordable health care for Missouri’s low-income families by allowing the state to subsidize health insurance for those who qualify.
Also receiving final approval this week was Senate Bill 1181, sponsored by Sen. Kevin Engler (R-Farmington). This wide-ranging energy efficiency and conservation bill requires the state to adopt a stricter minimum energy efficiency standard and imposes deadlines for the state regarding renewable energy. Beginning in 2016, at least 10 percent of the electricity used by state government must come from renewable energy sources, and beginning in 2026, at least 20 percent must come from renewable energy sources.
Senate Bill 738, sponsored by Sen. Gary Nodler (R-Joplin), also received a second vote. The bill places tougher penalties on recycling companies that convert animal parts into petroleum for repeat violations of Missouri’s air or water pollution laws. Any recycling company that violates any state pollution standard six or more times in a 12-month period or 12 times in a 36-month period would forfeit any air or water-related permits issued by the Department of Natural Resources.
Also sponsored by Sen. Nodler and moving to the House is Senate Bill 1245, which bars convicted felons from running for or holding public office.
Several Senate bills were passed by their respective House committees this week. Each of these measures is now eligible for debate by the full House. They include:
- SB 720, sponsored by Sen. Maida Coleman (D-St. Louis), was passed by the House Special Committee on Utilities. The bill creates a hot-weather rule and prohibits electric or natural gas companies from shutting off service to past-due customers on days when the temperature is forecasted to rise above 95 degrees or the heat index above 105 degrees.
- SB 732, sponsored by Sen. Norma Champion (R-Springfield), was passed by the House Crime Prevention and Public Safety Committee this week. Under current law, pharmacies are required to maintain a paper log and document any transactions where the customer purchases products that contain pseudoephedrine, a key ingredient used in the production of methamphetamine. Senate Bill 732 requires pharmacies to upgrade to an electronic, rather than written log. The act also specifies that the photo ID provided by the buyer of pseudoephedrine products be issued by a state or the federal government and shown prior to the purchase. House Bill 1619, the companion bill to SB 732, was passed by the Senate this week, with amendments.
- SB 754, sponsored by Sen. Mayer (R-Dexter), was passed by the House Crime Prevention and Public Safety Committee. The bill expands the state’s DNA profiling system by requiring juveniles found guilty of certain sex crimes and other felonies to provide a sample to the state’s DNA depository.
- SB 765, sponsored by Sen. Jack Goodman (R-Mt. Vernon), was passed by the House Local Government Committee. The bill revokes a law passed last year that makes it substantially easier to incorporate a village and circumvent voter-approved planning and zoning laws at the county level. It also puts in place stricter regulations for sexually oriented businesses.
- SB 768, sponsored by Sen. Scott T. Rupp (R-Wentzville), was passed by the House Health Care Policy Committee. The bill creates the Missouri Commission on Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and expands the services and resources available for those with ASD and their families.
- SB 778, sponsored by Sen. Jolie Justus (D-Kansas City), was passed by the House Health Care Policy Committee. The bill gives female students enrolling in sixth grade the opportunity to receive, at the option of a parent or guardian, the human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine.
- SB 1081, sponsored by Sen. Nodler, was passed by the House Health Care Policy Committee. The bill standardizes regulations for facilities and programs assisting the developmentally disabled.
- SB 1159, sponsored by Senate leader Mike Gibbons (R-Kirkwood), was passed by the House Crime Prevention and Public Safety Committee. The bill provides increased protections for rape victims and changes how forensic examinations are conducted.
- SB 1261, sponsored by Sen. Joan Bray (D-St. Louis), was passed by the House Special Committee on Energy and Environment. The bill requires representatives from different departments to meet, at least twice a year, to discuss ways to secure grants established under the federal Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. Such grants would fund “green” jobs, the production of renewable fuels, increasing energy efficiency of products, buildings and vehicles, and increasing research and development for manufacturing of renewable energy technologies.
- SJR 34, sponsored by Sen. Jason Crowell (R-Cape Girardeau), was passed by the House Crime Prevention and Public Safety Committee. The bill proposes a constitutional amendment that, upon voter approval, creates an exception to the prohibition against retrospective laws by allowing sexual offender registry laws; any law restricting sex offenders from residing within a certain distance of a school or child-care facility; and any laws requiring felons to have a biological sample collected for purposes of DNA analysis, to be applied retrospectively.
The budget conference committee comprised of Senate and House members continued meeting this week to work on crafting the state budget. The constitutional deadline for the General Assembly to pass the budget this year is May 9.
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 Senate district, or listen to streaming audio of legislative debate as it happens.
The Missouri Senate will reconvene at 2 p.m. Monday, May 5. The Second Regular Session of the 94th Missouri General Assembly runs through Friday, May 16.
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