Local Government

SCS HCS HB 38 – Work-off rate for certain county criminal defendants and notification of jail escapes Increases the work-off rate for county criminal defendants who fail to pay a fine assessed against them from $10 per day to a portion of the judgment that is equal to the greater of the actual daily incarceration cost or the amount that the municipality is reimbursed by the state for the incarceration.

The chief law enforcement official responsible for a municipal detention facility or a county or regional jail or the chief administrator of a private jail must make notification to the Missouri Uniform Law Enforcement System (MULES) as soon as reasonably possible, but no later than five hours, after an escape of a prisoner who has been convicted of murder in the first degree or a dangerous felony or who is being held on suspicion of having committed murder in the first degree or a dangerous felony.  Information to be included in the notice is specified. (Signed 6/17/11)

HB 68 – Misuse of emergency telephone service Prohibits a political subdivision from imposing a fine or penalty on the owner of a pay telephone or on the owner of any property upon which a pay telephone is located for a call made to an emergency telephone service from the pay telephone. (Signed 7/1/11)

HCS HB 70 – County highway commissions Changes the compensation and mileage allowance for members of a county highway commission who are not also members of the county’s governing body. A member of the commission who is also a member of the county’s governing body will not receive any compensation or mileage allowance for his or her service to the commission. (Signed 6/30/11)

SS#2 SCS HCS HB 89 – Natural resources (See Environmental & Energy Law)

SS#2 SCS HCS HB 111 – Judicial procedures (See Judicial Administration)

CCS SCS HB 142 – Political subdivisions Changes the laws regarding political subdivisions.  In its main provisions, the bill:

(1) Increases from $250 to $1,000 the minimum original value of county property that must be inventoried annually by the auditor in a charter county (Section 55.030, RSMo);

(2) Authorizes any city, town, village, sewer district, or water supply district to impose, upon voter approval, a fee of up to $1 per month or $12 annually for each line providing water service to certain residential property. (Section 67.319);

(3) Authorizes any city in which voters have approved fees to recover costs associated with the enforcement of certain housing, property maintenance, or nuisance ordinances to issue a special tax bill against the property to recover the costs, which is to be collected in the same manner as the collection of real estate taxes (Section 67.451);

(4) Authorizes a community improvement district special assessment to be added to and collected with the annual real estate tax bill for the property (Section 67.1521);

(5) Authorizes the board of commissioners of Tower Grove Park to adjust the size of its membership upon the approval of a majority of its members (Section 90.101);

(6) Allows a public administrator to request the transfer of any case to the jurisdiction of another county by filing a petition for transfer and requires the court to transfer the case if the requirements for venue are met and the administrator of the receiving county consents to the transfer.  The receiving county court must appoint, without the necessity of a hearing, its public administrator as successor guardian and/or successor conservator and issue the appropriate letters.  In the case of a conservatorship, the final settlement of the public administrator’s conservatorship must be filed in the original county within 30 days of the transfer and forwarded to the receiving county upon audit and approval (Section 475.115); and

(7) Adds the City of St. Joseph to the list of cities authorized to establish an administrative adjudication system for certain municipal code violations.
(Signed 7/8/11)

SS SCS HCS HB 161 – Certain taxes imposed by political subdivisions Changes the laws regarding certain taxes imposed by political subdivisions. Among its provisions:
Adds the construction and operation of job training and educational facilities to the list of allowed projects that can be funded with the revenue generated by a local retail sales tax for economic development purposes under Section 67.1303 (Section 67.1303);

Authorizes certain public library districts to impose, upon voter approval, a retail sales tax of up to one-half of one cent for the operation and maintenance of public libraries within the district. 

State appropriations to public library districts will not be affected by a voluntary reduction in property tax levies resulting from the enactment of a library district sales tax if the sales tax revenue equals or exceeds the reduction in property tax revenue (Sections 181.060 and 182.802). (Signed 7/7/11)

HB 183 – Kansas City police and civilian employees' retirements systems Changes the laws regarding the Police Retirement System of Kansas City and the Civilian Employees’ Retirement System of the Police Department of Kansas City.  (Signed 7/8/11)

SS SCS HB 184 – Political subdivisions Authorizes commissioners of road districts organized under Sections 233.170 - 233.315, RSMo, upon majority vote, to provide compensation for their services of up to $100 per month plus all expenses incurred in transacting business of the district including reasonable attorney fees.  Currently, only the payment of expenses is authorized.

Also specifies that risk coverages procured by an association formed by three or more political subdivisions to provide liability and other insurance will not be deemed to constitute a contract, purchase, or expenditure of public funds and does not require the solicitation of competitive bids.  The association is authorized to close meetings, records, and votes under the Open Meetings and Records Law, to the extent that the meetings, records, and votes pertain to actuarial analysis, loss history, claims, data, reports, and similar information relating to the determination of member rates and contributions. (Vetoed 7/8/11)

SCS HB 186 – County officers Changes the laws regarding county officers.  In its main provisions, the bill:

Prohibits a person from being elected or appointed the clerk of a county commission unless he or she has resided within the county for one year prior to his or her election instead of the current six-month residency requirement; and

Requires a candidate for county recorder where the offices of the court clerk and recorder of deeds are separate, except in the City of St. Louis or a charter county, to be at least 21 years of age, a registered voter, and a resident of the state and county in which he or she is a candidate for at least one year prior to the general election.  If elected, the recorder must continue to be a resident of the county during his or her term of office.  In the event of a vacancy in the office due to a resignation or death, the county commission must appoint a deputy recorder or a qualified person to serve as an interim recorder of deeds until the Governor appoints someone to fill the vacancy. (Signed 7/7/11)

HB 217 – Electronic voter identification verification systems Allows an election authority to use an electronic voter identification system or electronic signature pad to verify a voter’s address, registration status, and signature information at any polling place.  The system or pad must be able to read identifying information from an individual’s driver’s or nondriver’s license and must allow the election authority to manually enter information into the system from a valid form of personal identification containing the voter’s signature. (Signed 7/8/11)

HB 229 – Public school retirement system of Kansas City

Changes the laws regarding the Public School Retirement System of Kansas City. (Signed 6/16/11)

SS SCS HB 282 – Public employee retirement (See Labor & Employment Law)

SS#2 SCS HCS HB 294, 123, 125, 113, 271 & 215 – Firearms (See Licensing Law)

HB 340 – County facilities (See Judicial Administration)

HB 358 – Police retirement system of St. Louis (See Labor & Employment Law)

CCS SS SCS HCS HB 430 – Transportation (See Transportation Law)