Senator Karla May's May Report for the Week of March 3, 2025

Tuesday, March 11, 2025

 

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The Week of March 3, 2025

On the Floor

This week, the Senate began discussion on two bills:

  • Senate Bill 87 would reduce the assessment percentage for residential real property for a person’s primary residence.
  • House Bill 495 would allow the state takeover of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department (SLMPD). As with Senate Bill 52, I stood with my colleagues in fierce opposition to this legislation. Because the proponents of this bill insist its provisions are necessary to ensure public safety, I offered an amendment to add the public safety measures I have filed this session:
  1. Senate Bill 192 to require any candidate for the office of sheriff of St. Louis City to hold a valid peace officer license within two years of being elected sheriff.
  2. Senate Bill 694 requires the elder abuse and neglect hotline operated by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services to be operated continuously 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
  3. Senate Bill 612 creates the Ebony Alert System for abducted or missing Black youth.
  4. Senate Bill 18 would allow the circuit court of St. Louis City to collect a civil case filing fee of an amount not to exceed $20, rather than $15, for certain uses, including the maintenance of a law library.
  5. Senate Bill 691 would redact certain pieces of a victim’s personal information on court records.
  6. Senate Bill 692 would not allow courts to consider a person’s payment of restitution when determining their eligibility for expungement.

I stood in opposition to this legislation and fought for the city of St. Louis to keep control over their police department. We deserve the opportunity to hold local leaders accountable for the actions they take regarding the SLMPD, not a state board. I was hopeful my colleagues would understand how we feel, stand for Missourians who made their voice heard on this issue and vote against this bill, but unfortunately, that was not the case.

 

After hours of discussion and debate, a compromise was reached. My SB 192 was added to HB 495. We were also able to ensure that pension and retirement costs are excluded from the minimum appropriations to support the police force, meaning those important funds can stay intact, separate from the funds used to run the department.

 

Additionally, the Senate third read and passed the following bills:

  •  Senate Bill 466 would repeal the sunset for several agricultural tax credits.
  • Senate Bill 82 would prohibit any person for export water resources outside the state unless they hold a water exportation permit issued by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.
  • Senate Bill 221 would modify the standard of review for agency interpretation of statutes, rules, regulations and sub regulatory documents.
  • Senate Bill 160 would prohibit public institutions of higher learning from denying a belief-based student association, such as a political, ideological or religious association, any benefits that are available to other student groups, including access to campus facilities and communication channels. During the initial discussion, I was concerned it could be interpreted to allow student organizations on campus that want to incite or promote violence against a certain group of people, all under the guise of protecting that organization’s First Amendment right to free speech. Through negotiations, SB 160 was modified to specify that the protections outlined in this bill would not apply to any belief-based student association if there is substantial evidence that such association's viewpoint or expression of the viewpoint would materially and substantially disrupt the educational environment or interfere with the rights of others.
  • Senate Bill 66 raises the age of marriage to 18 years old.
  • Senate Bill 38 creates the Missouri Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair (Missouri CROWN) Act to prohibit discriminatory practices in educational institutions regarding hairstyles.
  • Senate Bill 218 would add a mental health treatment court to the current specialized treatment court divisions of the circuit courts. These specialized courts currently include an adult treatment court, DWI court, family treatment court, juvenile treatment court and veteran treatment court.
  • Senate Bill 43 would modify several provisions relating to protections for children.


Bills and Committees

Senator May’s Legislation:

This week, I presented Senate Bill 192 to the Senate Transportation, Infrastructure and Public Safety Committee. This legislation would require any candidate for the office of sheriff of St. Louis City to hold a valid peace officer license within two years of being elected sheriff. Additionally, it sets the minimum yearly compensation for the deputy sheriffs of the City of St. Louis to fifty thousand dollars, and the sheriff has the authority to set the compensation for deputy assistants.

 

Additionally, I presented Senate Bill 17 to the Senate Families, Seniors and Health Committee on Wednesday, March 5. This legislation requires practitioners, before an initial opioid prescription and the third in a course of treatment, to consult with the patient as to the risks of taking opioids and alternatives to opioids.

 

Judiciary Committee:

The committee heard several bills this week:

  • Senate Bill 397 repeals the requirement that certain business records must be notarized to be entered into evidence in court and states such records will be not be deemed invalid because it used an electronic signature or that it does not include a notarization. This bill also adds to the offense of unlawful posting of certain information if a person knowingly posts the Social Security number of a person to intimidate or harass such person or obtain financial gain from such person. Currently, this offense only applies if a person knowingly posts certain information to cause great bodily harm or death, or threatening to cause harm.
  • Senate Bill 411 establishes the Taylor Swift Act, which establishes a cause of action by an individual who is the subject of an intimate digital depiction against a person who discloses such depiction and who knows or recklessly disregards the fact that the individual has not consented to such disclosure.
  • Senate Bill 447 raises the mileage rate for jurors to sixty-five and a half cents, the current mileage rate of state employees.
  • Senate Bill 506 would amend Supreme Court Rules 15.05 regarding continuing legal education requirement for lawyers by repealing the requirement of one ethics credit hour devoted exclusively to bias, diversity, inclusion or cultural competency, and instead states that a total of two hours of the total 15 credit hours must be devoted to ethics.
  • Senate Bill 531 would modify the offense of murder in the first degree by adding if the person knowingly delivers or distributes fentanyl or carfentanil and death results from the use of such substances.
  • Senate Bill 558 would add a third circuit judge in the 32rd Judicial Circuit, which consists of Perry, Bollinger and Cape Girardeau counties. 

 

Rules, Joint Rules, Resolutions and Ethics Committee:

The committee heard Senate Bill 437, which creates procedures for the appointment of commissioners to a convention called under Article V of the U.S. Constitution. A joint legislative committee will submit names to the General Assemble to be considered for appointment. 

 

Appropriations Committee:

The following departments and offices shared their funding requests for the Fiscal Year 2026 state operating budget in this week’s hearing:

  • State Tax Credits
  • Department of Agriculture
  • Department of Commerce and Insurance
  • Department of Health and Senior Services
  • Department of Natural Resources
  • Department of Revenue
  • Department of Social Services
  • Treasurer's Office
  • Department of Economic Development
  • Auditor
  • Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
  • Department of Commerce and Insurance
  • Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development
  • General Assembly

 

Other News

High court lets ruling stand on road fund spending authority

Without comment, the Missouri Supreme Court on March 4 declined to hear an appeal of a lower court’s decision affirming the State Highways and Transportation Commission’s constitutional authority to independently spend money from the State Road Fund without legislative approval.

 

While the Missouri Constitution says money in the road fund shall “stand appropriated without legislative action to be used and expended by the highways and transportation commission,” the General Assembly traditionally has appropriated the funds anyway. In 2021, however, the commission, which oversees the Missouri Department of Transportation, sought to invoke its power to provide employee raises in excess of what lawmakers had authorized in the appropriations process.

 

Office of Administration Commissioner Ken Zellers, whose agency oversees the state’s payroll system, blocked the highways commission from providing the raises, citing the lack of a legislative appropriation for that purpose. The commission then sued to enforce its authority.

 

Cole County Judge Cotton Walker ruled in the highway commission’s favor in 2023, and the Missouri Court of Appeals Western District upheld his decision in November 2024, stating that the Missouri Constitution “unambiguously dictates that the entire State Road Fund stands appropriated without legislative action.”

 

As a result, the appellate court said the Office of Administration is required to process any payment requests the highways commission makes from the fund, regardless of whether the legislature approved them. The case is Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission v. Kenneth Zellers.

 

House approves $2 billion income tax cut with little debate

The Missouri House of Representatives on March 4 granted first-round approval to tax-slashing legislation that would cost state government an estimated $1.3 billion a year in lost revenue, with House leaders shutting down debate before lawmakers could discuss the bill’s major provisions.

 

An amendment added to House Bill 798 would lower the state’s income tax rate from the current 4.7% to 3.7%. Since income tax revenue provides about two-thirds of the state’s general revenue budget, a full one-percentage-point drop would have a significant impact on state finances. The state has already significantly reduced the top income tax rate in recent years from 6% to 4.7%, with further reductions to 4.5% already set in law provided that certain revenue collection thresholds are met.

 

Despite the wide-ranging consequences of another huge income tax cut, House leaders forced a voice-vote on HB 798 after just minimal debate on some relatively minor provisions of the bill. A second, recorded House vote is required to advance the measure to the Senate.

 

Because Missouri’s tax brackets have never been adjusted for inflation, Missouri has long had a de facto flat tax, with all taxpayers earning more than $9,000 a year paying the highest rate. The original provisions of HB 798 call for creating an actual flat tax by doing away with the lower tax rates paid by those earning less than $9,000, thus applying the top rate to everyone. The bill also would completely eliminate the Missouri Working Family Tax Credit, which provides tax relief to roughly 180,000 low-income Missouri families.

 

House advances $2 billion supplemental spending bill

The Missouri House of Representatives voted on March 5 in favor of a supplemental appropriations bill that would add nearly $2 billion in additional spending authority to the more than $50.6 billion state budget for the 2025 fiscal year, which ends June 30.

 

The massive size of the supplemental budget measure, House Bill 14, was expected given that the Legislature significantly unfunded the state’s Medicaid program and numerous other spending items well below anticipated costs when it passed the original FY 2025 budget bills last May. House Bill 14 also includes $157.4 million in additional funding for basic state aid to local school districts. 

 

The bill’s funding includes $391.58 million in general revenue, with federal money accounting for most of the remaining spending authority. The bill now advances to the Senate, which must also approve the measure before it can go to the governor to be signed into law.

 

House proposes cap on assessed residential property values

A proposed constitutional amendment to impose a 2% cap on growth in assessed residential property values cleared the Missouri House of Representatives on March 6 by a vote of 113-22, with 21 lawmakers voting “present.” The measure now advances to the Senate for further consideration.

 

Supporters of House Joint Resolution 4 say it would provide greater tax certainty to homeowners, particularly those with low incomes who cannot afford spikes in property taxes as assessed values increase. Critics of the measure contend it would keep assessed values, which are supposed to be based on a property’s market value, inappropriately low and deprive local governments that rely on property taxes of much-needed funding.

 

If approved by both legislative chambers, HJR 4 automatically would go on the November 2026 statewide ballot for voter ratification.

 

Governor picks former congressman for UM Board of Curators

The governor on March 3 nominated recently retired congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer of St. Elizabeth for the University of Missouri Board of Curators, the independent governing authority of the four-campus UM System. Luetkemeyer’s appointment must be confirmed by the state Senate before he can begin serving.

 

Luetkemeyer served eight terms in Congress representing parts of northern and central Missouri in Congress. He was first elected in 2008; his final term just ended in January. Previously, Luetkemeyer served three terms in the Missouri House of Representatives, from 1999 through 2004, and later worked as director of the Missouri Division of Tourism under former Gov. Matt Blunt.

 

CONTACT INFORMATION

Thank you for your interest in the legislative process. I look forward to hearing from you on the issues that are important to you this legislative session. If there is anything my office can do for you, please do not hesitate to contact my office at 573-751-3599.