STATE AUDITOR - 21.760 to 29.340, 50.1030 to 169.020

This act modifies the duties and authority of the State Auditor.

The act specifies that the types of audits that may be conducted by the State Auditor shall include financial and performance audits. The standards established by the comptroller general of the United States for audits of government entities, organizations, programs, activities, and functions as published in Government Auditing Standards shall determine the type of audit to be conducted and a mixture of audit type and objective may be used. The objectives of financial and performance audits are enumerated.

The Auditor may conduct audits at his or her discretion, as deemed necessary, without advanced notice instead of on a scheduled basis. The treasury shall be audited at least annually.

The Auditor may contract with federal audit agencies or government agencies on a cost reimbursement basis to audit federal grant programs.

The Auditor may examine records of financial institutions relating to transactions with the State Treasurer, a state agency, or any political subdivision.

The Auditor may review bookkeeping and accounting systems used in state agencies and determine the propriety of the data presented in the state comprehensive annual financial report.

Any instances of statutory violations and malfeasance, misfeasance or nonfeasance by officers or employees shall be provided in a report to the Governor and Attorney General.

Draft reports of audits shall be delivered to and discussed with the auditee's official and any written response shall be provided within 30 of receipt of the draft.

The General Assembly, Governor, and director of each agency audited shall be notified of the publication of an audit report.

Audit report records shall be retained in accordance with the state record's retention schedule. Related material shall be retained pursuant to an agreement between the Auditor and the state archives.

The Auditor may audit any public employee retirement or health care system.

A method by which the Auditor shall receive reports of allegations of improper governmental activities is established. The Auditor may investigate such reports and refer matters outside of the scope of the Auditor's authority to the proper authorities.

The Auditor shall have access to all documents and files of any agency or institution it is authorized to audit. Review of tax returns shall be limited to matters of official business and remain confidential except that the Auditor may disclose information related to overdue tax debts.

The Auditor shall have access to all documents, files, property and facilities of any organization that pertain to money received or handled from the federal government, the state or any political subdivision.

This act stipulates that the Auditor's subpoena power only extends insofar as necessary to conduct a statutorily authorized audit.

Banks and financial institutions are not required to produce records until they are reimbursed for reasonable document production costs.

The Auditor shall comply with state and federal financial privacy requirements prior to accessing financial records.

Grants and contracts entered into by state agencies and political subdivisions shall include a clause describing the Auditor's access to records.

The Auditor may contract for professional services to carry out audits.

Willfully making false, misleading or unfounded reports for the purpose of interfering with an audit, review or investigation or obstructing the Auditor constitutes a class A misdemeanor.

Currently, the Auditor conducts biennial audits of the Missouri county employees' retirement system. Under the act, the system's board is charged with conducting the audits through a certified public accountant or a firm of certified public accountants.

Currently, at least once every three years, the Auditor examines audits of the prosecuting and circuit attorneys' retirement system, the Missouri local government employees' retirement system, the Missouri consolidated healthcare plan, the Missouri department of transportation and highway patrol employees' retirement system, the Missouri state employees' retirement system, and the public school retirement system. These provision are repealed and the Auditor may audit these systems at any time.

A provision prohibiting examiners from receiving or riding on free transportation while on official business is repealed.

These provisions are similar to HCS/HB 543 (2013), SB 65 (2013), and HB 2106 (2012).

ACCOUNTABILITY PORTAL - 33.087, 33.300, & 37.850

This act requires state departments and divisions that accept federal grants of at least one million dollars to post information relating to the grant on the Missouri accountability portal, including the amount, origin, and purpose of the grant; any amount being transferred to another department or division; the purpose for such transfer; and how the secondary recipient used the funds and the impact of that use.

This act requires bonds and obligations issued or incurred by political subdivisions, debt incurred by public charter schools, and the Governor's release and withholding of public funds to be placed on the accountability portal.

The Auditor is removed from the Board of Fund Commissioners.

When a school district issues bonds, the bond filing must contain the following information: the amount of debt held by the school district, including bonded indebtedness; the district's current tax levy; the district's current bond credit rating; and the annual cost of maintaining any vacant or unused buildings owned by the district. The ballot on which voters will vote to issue bonds must also contain this information.

These provisions are substantially similar to SB 18 (2013) and are similar to SS/SCS/SB 467 (2012), and SB 169 (2013).

AUDITS OF CERTAIN COUNTIES - 50.055 & 50.057

Under current law, the accounts of any second class county may audited every odd-numbered year within 6 months after the county commission determines an audit is desirable or necessary. This act provides that the accounts of any second class county and the accounts of any county office may audited at any time the commission determines an audit to be desirable or necessary.

Current law provides that the audit must review the receipts, disbursements, and property inventory of every county office that receives or disburses money on the county's behalf or holds county property. This act specifies that, unless the audit is requested for a particular office, the audit may review such records and inventory.

This act repeals a provision requiring the auditor to provide, along with the audit report, a statement showing the receipts and disbursements of the county during the period of the audit.

If the state auditor performs an audit for a second or first class county, this act requires the county to reimburse the state auditor for all expenses incurred, including staff salaries. The payment is to be deposited in the "Petition Audit Revolving Trust Fund".

COUNTY BUDGET DECREASES - 50.622

This act allows and establishes procedures for counties to decrease their annual budgets no more than twice each fiscal year when faced with an unanticipated decline in funding of two percent or greater.

The budget reduction may not affect any one independently elected officeholder unless all officeholders who receive funds from the same budget category have negotiated ways to cover the shortfall. Also, the reductions may not impact any dedicated fund created by law.

These provisions expire on July 1, 2016.

Charter counties may follow procedures in their charters for amending their budgets rather than the provisions of this act.

This provision is identical to SB 137 (2013), a provision of HCS/SCS/SB 692 (2012), SS/SCS/HCS/HB 1623 (2012) and HCS/SCS/SB 729 (2012), and is similar to a provision of HCS/HB 1373 (2012), HB 1573 (2012), HB 1307 (2012), HCS/SS/SCS/SB 580 (2010) and HB 1793 (2010).

ST. LOUIS POLICE RETIREMENT SYSTEM - 86.200, 86.257, & 86.263

Currently, a member of the Police Retirement System of St. Louis who becomes disabled from causes occurring within the performance of duties shall be retired upon certification by the medical director of the police retirement system and approved by the board of trustees of the system. This act replaces this certification process by requiring that one or more physicians of the medical board certify that the member is unable to perform the full and unrestricted duties of a police officer. The act defines both medical board and full and unrestricted duties of a police officer.

Under current law, a member who is disabled in an incident unrelated to the performance of official duties and who has ten or more years of service shall be retired by the board of trustees of the police retirement system. The act provides that a member with a non-duty disability may retire after five years of creditable service provided that the system's actuarial valuation is at least eighty percent. The act also provides that the retirement application shall be certified by a medical board, rather than the medical director.

These provisions are identical to SCS/HB 722 (2013), provisions of the truly agreed to and finally passed CCS/SS/HB 336 (2013), the truly agreed to and finally passed CCS/SCS/SB 224 (2013), and are similar to provisions in HB 897 (2013).

POLICE RETIREMENT SYSTEM OF KANSAS CITY - 86.900 to 86.1630

This act modifies provisions of the police retirement system of Kansas City and the civilian employees' retirement system of the police department of Kansas City. The act creates a two tier retirement system where Tier I consists of those who became members prior to August 28, 2013, and Tier II consists of members who joined on or after August 28, 2013.

For members of Tier I the average compensation shall be calculated by averaging the highest two years of service, but only compensation obtain during the time in which a member made contributions will be included in the computation.

For Tier II members final compensation shall be computed by averaging the highest three years of annual compensation, and only compensation earned during periods of contributions will be included in the computation.

The act provides that the city's contribution shall be what is necessary to meet actuarial required contributions plus two hundred dollars per month for members entitled to receive supplemental benefits.

The act states that a member who is accruing creditable service shall have a percentage of compensation deducted to contribute to the member's pension fund. The act removes a provision that requires the compensation deduction to be less than six percent.

The act provides that no creditable service shall be awarded for times when the member was not making contributions, except in situations where a member is on leave for military service.

Members who are in active service on or after August 28, 2013, may accrue up to thirty-two years of credible service.

Members who are on leave of absence for military service may not accumulate creditable service for unpaid military leave exceeding five years, except in limited situations authorized by federal law.

Currently, members may retire after twenty-five years of creditable service and must retire after thirty years of creditable service. This act repeals the mandatory retirement after thirty years provision.

The act also provides that the pension of Tier I members retiring on or after August 28, 2013, shall not exceed eighty-percent of the member's final compensation.

Tier II members may retire after twenty-seven years of creditable service, and the base pension shall be two and one-half percent of a member's final compensation multiplied by the number of years of total creditable service. As with Tier I members, Tier II members' pensions shall not exceed eighty-percent of the member's final compensation. Tier II members may also elect a seventy-five or one hundred percent optional benefit which allows a member's spouse to receive the pension after the member's death.

If a Tier II member is terminated prior to death or retirement and has at least fifteen years of creditable service, then the member may elect to receive a base pension beginning on the first day of the month following the turning of age sixty.

The act states that any member convicted of a felony prior to separation from active service shall not receive retirement benefits, except for the contributions made by the member.

A member who must retire due to a job related illness or injury on or after August 28, 2013, shall receive eighty percent of the final compensation as a base pension. The base pension may be reduced under workers' compensation law.

Under the act, Tier II members can be eligible for a partial lump sum option plan. For those who choose the partial lump sum option, the normal pension will be reduced as defined in the act.

The act specifies that Tier II members are eligible for a cost-of- living adjustment the year following retirement when the retired member has at least thirty-two years of service, or the year following the year in which the member would have had thirty-two years of service if the member had remained in active service.

Tier II members who retire due to disability caused by performance of duty will receive a cost of living adjustment the year following retirement. Cost of living adjustments for those who retired due to disability not caused by duty performance will be made the year following the fifth year of retirement or the year following the year when the member would have attained thirty-two years of service had the member remained in active service, whichever is earlier.

The act also modifies certain provisions relating to cost-of-living adjustments for surviving spouses of Tier II members.

The act provides that eligible Tier II members may receive a supplemental retirement benefit of two hundred dollars per month.

The surviving spouse of Tier II members who have not elected an optional annuity shall be entitled to a base pension payable for life, which will be equal to fifty percent of the member's base pension.

A Tier II member's benefit shall be completely vested upon the earlier of completion of twenty seven years of service or age sixty with the completion of fifteen years of creditable service.

The act creates a two tier retirement system for civilian employees. Tier I consists of those who became members prior to August 28, 2013, and Tier II consists of members who joined on or after August 28, 2013.

Members who are on leave of absence for military service may not accumulate creditable service for unpaid military leave exceeding five years, except in limited situations authorized by federal law.

The act provides that the age of normal retirement for Tier II members is sixty-seven or upon the twentieth anniversary of employment.

Tier II members may elect early retirement beginning at age sixty-two if they have five years of creditable service, but benefits will be reduced. Tier II members may also retire early after twenty years of creditable service at age sixty-two with no computation reduction of benefits or if the total of years of service and age equals or exceeds eighty-five.

A Tier II member's benefit shall be completely vested upon completion of twenty years of service or age sixty seven, whichever is later. A Tier II member can also be vested when the sum of age and years of creditable service equals eighty-five.

These provisions are identical to the truly agreed to and finally passed HCS/HB 418 (2013) and SB 215 (2013).

MISSOURI SENIOR SERVICES PROTECTION FUND - 208.1050

This act creates the Missouri Senior Services Protection Fund in the state treasury.

The State Treasurer is required under the act to make four scheduled deposits from July 15, 2013 to March 15, 2014 that total $55,100,000 into the fund. Moneys in the fund must be allocated for services for low-income seniors and people with disabilities.

This provision contains an emergency clause and is identical to the truly agreed to and finally passed SCS/HCS/HB 986 (2013).

AUDITS OF TRANSPORTATION DEVELOPMENT DISTRICTS - 238.272

Under current law, the Auditor must audit each Transportation Development District at least once every three years and may audit more often as the Auditor deems appropriate. The district must pay the costs of the audit.

Under this act, the Auditor may audit each district not more than once every three years. The provision allowing the Auditor to audit more frequently is repealed. This act provides that the costs of the audit shall not exceed the greater of three percent of the gross revenues received by the district.

This provision is identical to a provision in the truly agreed to and finally passed CCS#2/SCS/HCS/HB 1035 (2013), SCS/HCS/HB 161 (2013) and is similar to HB 909 (2013).

CHRIS HOGERTY AND MEGHAN LUECKE