HB0519 Crump, Wayne F

C O M M I T T E E

HB 519 -- SHERIFFS' DEPARTMENT MILEAGE REIMBURSEMENT

SPONSOR: Crump

COMMITTEE ACTION: Voted "do pass" by the Committee on Local Government and Related Matters by a vote of 16 to 0.

This bill changes the mileage allowance for sheriffs and their personnel from 25 cents per mile to the rate prescribed by the Internal Revenue Service. This applies to officers serving any criminal process and to the authorized performance of official duties by an officer using his or her personal vehicle.

FISCAL NOTE: General Revenue Fund - Oversight assumes that the potential would exist for reimbursement to counties as provided for in Article X, Section 21 of the Missouri Constitution.

PROPONENTS: Supporters say that currently, the sheriffs of 32 counties, and the deputies of 35 counties, use their own vehicles for law enforcement. Placing a cap on how much these officers can be reimbursed for duty-related travel expenses takes money from the pockets of the officers and results in inferior law enforcement. Abuses of a new reimbursement system will be prevented because sheriffs require personnel to account for every mile driven. Sheriffs have the best grasp of what restrictions should apply.

Testifying for the bill were Representative Crump; Missouri Sheriffs Association; Missouri Deputy Sheriffs Association; and a deputy of Livingston County.

OPPONENTS: There was no opposition voiced to the committee.

Brian Cook, Research Analyst