By Mike Henderson, Mo State Senator
JEFFERSON CITY – The 103rd General Assembly’s First Regular Session drew to a close on May 14, two days before the constitutional deadline. The early adjournment was called after the Senate failed to come to an agreement and a rare procedural maneuver was used to force a vote on House Joint Resolution 73 and House Bill 567.
House Joint Resolution 73 will put a question on a statewide ballot, in either November 2026 or a special election if the governor calls one, asking Missouri voters to repeal and replace the state’s current abortion rights amendment. If approved, this would overturn Amendment 3, which was passed by Missouri voters last November and restored abortion rights in the state.
Now awaiting the governor’s signature, House Bill 567 will remove the paid sick leave requirement passed as Proposition A, which went into effect on May 1. House Bill 567 would not affect the January 1 minimum wage increase, but would keep future minimum wage changes from being tied to inflation.
During the last week of session, which is always a frenzy of activity, the Senate also debated a last minute amendment and the governor’s push to incentivize the Kansas City Chiefs and Kansas City Royals to stay in Missouri. The Missouri House amended Senate Bill 80, a bill pertaining to student athletes, to include the Show-Me Sports Investment Act, which supports the renovation or replacement of Arrowhead Stadium and the construction of a new Royals Stadium. Senate Bill 80 passed in the House, stalled in the Senate, and ultimately failed to go any further. The governor says he will call a special session to revisit this incentive.
Despite some end of session frustrations, the Senate body and both chambers worked together amicably through most of the session and accomplished quite a bit. In the end, there were several wins and a few losses, but overall, I am pleased with the work we were able to complete.
While these are the big headline items you will likely hear about, many other great pieces of legislation were passed as part of a productive session and have either been signed into law by the governor or await his signature. We passed one of the strongest public safety packages in years, helped our state’s working families and seniors keep more of their hard-earned money, expanded opportunities in our schools, worked to defend life and protected our constitution’s integrity.
One of the most exciting and personal achievements of this legislative session was the passage of Senate Bill 68, my school safety bill. I have said it before, but our children are our most precious resource, and we must ensure their safety and provide them with a positive and distraction-free learning environment. This bill, which bans the use of cell phones and other personal electric communications devices during school hours, was taken up by the House on May 13 and Truly Agreed To and Finally Passed by a vote of 132-20. There are common-sense exceptions in this bill for instructional purposes and emergencies. Senate Bill 68, which evolved into an omnibus education package, contains my school safety language, as well as language from several of my other bills: Senate Bill 556, Senate Bill 581, Senate Bill 639, Senate Bill 640 and Senate Bill 737. Senate Bill 68 also requires a local education agency to report school safety incidents and credible school threats to the Missouri Department of Education.
Senate Bill 288, my legislation increasing the number of associate circuit judges in St. Francois County, was Truly Agreed To and Finally Passed in House Bill 12.
I was disappointed that House Bill 87 failed to make it across the finish line this session. This bill contains language from my sponsored legislation, Senate Bill 235, known as Bentley’s Law. I have filed this bill every session since 2022. Bentley’s Law was initiated by Missouri resident, Cecilia Williams, and named for her grandson, Bentley. Bentley’s parents, Lacey Newton and Cordell Shawn Michael Williams, and their 4-month-old son, Cordell Shawn Michael Williams II, were killed in a car accident on April 13, 2021. This legislation would require drunk drivers who are convicted of killing a parent to pay child support to surviving minor children. Through Cecilia Williams’ tireless advocacy efforts, versions of Bentley’s Law have been passed in seven states: Tennessee, Kentucky, Texas, Maine, South Dakota, Utah and Montana.
I was proud to serve on the Senate Appropriations Committee this year. After many hours of hard work, the Missouri General Assembly drafted and passed a balanced state operating budget for the upcoming fiscal year. This is our only constitutional obligation as Missouri legislators. We will reconvene for a veto session in September to revisit any of the governor’s vetoes.
On Friday, May 9, the Missouri House unexpectedly refused to vote on House Bill 19, a spending bill including more than $500 million for health care, education, law enforcement and other construction projects across the state. This effectively killed the measure since constitutionally, spending bills cannot be considered during the last week of session. This understandably caused some tension between the House and the Senate. It is possible we could return for a special session to address this dropped construction funding as well.
Other bills Truly Agreed To and Finally Passed during the final week include:
- Senate Bill 3makes several changes to the Missouri Department of Revenue regarding contract license offices throughout the state.
- Senate Bill 79benefits Missouri’s farmers and ranchers by expanding access to health care benefits through qualified membership organizations, like the Missouri Farm Bureau. This bill also expands access to telehealth and telemedicine services, covers prenatal tests for pregnant women, and requires MO HealthNet to cover hearing devices for children, pregnant women and the blind.
- Senate Bill 82requires those who want to export water from Missouri to get a permit from the Department of Natural Resources.
- Senate Bill 145removes the requirement for business licenses for youth entrepreneurs under the age of 18.
- Senate Bill 152closes the loopholes in current statute that have allowed foreign nationals to influence Missouri’s initiative petition process.
- Senate Bill 133mandates that all new and active underground facilities be equipped with detectable location devices to enhance safety and accuracy in excavation activities.
Of the 833 bills introduced by the Senate and 1606 bills filed in the House this session, 29 Senate bills and 41 House bills were passed by the Legislature and sent to the governor. You can see a complete list of bills that are Truly Agreed To and Finally Passed by the Legislature here. Most bills passed during this legislative session will go into effect on August 28th. After a bill is sent to the governor for consideration, he has 15 days during session and 45 days if session adjourns to sign or veto bills or else they go into effect.
Bills signed into law by the governor include:
- Senate Bill 1supports fair compensation and access for county officials, including public administrators, auditors and coroners.
- Senate Bill 4modernizes outdated utility regulations, preventing power outages, strengthens Missouri’s energy infrastructure and supports long-term economic development in our state.
- Senate Bill 22reworks how ballot issue summaries are written and prevents judges from rewriting ballot summaries sent to voters.
- Senate Bill 47promotes fairness in Missouri’s legal system.
- House Bill 495ensures law enforcement agencies across the state have the support and resources they need to keep our communities safe and puts the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department back under the control of a citizen-led board.
- House Bill 594 & 508eliminate the capital gains tax in Missouri.
With the legislative session now over, I am already looking forward to 2026. Throughout the interim, please continue to contact my office with your concerns, questions and comments. I am here to serve you. If I can be of any assistance with a state issue, please call my office at 573-751-4008 or email mike.henderson@senate.mo.gov.