HCS#2 HBs 567, 546, 758 & 958 -- PAID SICK LEAVE FOR CERTAIN EMPLOYEES (Gallick)

COMMITTEE OF ORIGIN: Standing Committee on Commerce

This bill modifies the schedule of minimum wage increases or decreases by terminating such schedule as of December 31, 2024. Currently, the minimum wage is set to be increased or decreased on January 1, 2027, and on January 1 of successive years, based on increases or decreases of the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers. This bill repeals that scheduled adjustment.

Currently, these provisions do not apply to public employers, as that term is defined in the bill. This bill changes that applicability for public employers beginning on the effective date of this bill.

The bill repeals provisions as they relate to paid sick leave requirements, including, but not limited to, under what conditions paid sick leave must be provided by employers, prohibited actions for employers and violations thereof, recordkeeping requirements, complaint and investigative procedures, a right to a cause of action for retaliation, and confidentiality of information.

This bill has an emergency clause for the provisions that are being repealed relating to paid sick leave.

HCS HB 711 -- ADMISSION OF NONRESIDENT PUPILS (Pollitt)

COMMITTEE OF ORIGIN: Standing Committee on Elementary and Secondary Education

DEFINITIONS

The bill adds Sections 167.1200 to 167.1230, RSMo, establishing the "Public School Open Enrollment Act". For the purposes of the Act, the bill defines "nonresident district", "resident district", and "transferring student", among other definitions.

TRANSFER POLICY AND PARTICIPATION (Section 167.1205)

The bill establishes an opt-in public school open enrollment program with the intent to improve quality instruction and increase parental involvement, provide access to programs and classes, and offer opportunity to align parental curriculum options to personal beliefs.

The bill specifies that any student beginning kindergarten or already enrolled in a public school, a school other than a public school, an FPE school, or who has just moved to the State and has not yet enrolled in a school, may attend a public school in a nonresident district participating in the program. Districts must declare participation in the open enrollment program by November 1st for the following school year. Participating districts are not required to add teachers, staff, or classrooms to accommodate transfer applicants.

Districts can restrict the number of outgoing transfer students to 3% of the previous school year's enrollment. The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) must develop and maintain an online resource to facilitate applications and provide a searchable public database for allowable transfers.

DESE or an entity skilled in policy development must develop a model open enrollment transfer policy as outlined in the bill. All public schools must adopt the model policy, regardless of participation in the program, but each school board can modify the model policy based on the district's needs.

Students who wish to attend nonresident schools that have an academic or competitive entrance process must furnish proof that they meet the admission requirements.

Nonresident districts are able to deny transfers to students who, during the most recent school year, have been suspended two or more times or have either been suspended for an act of violence or expelled. The bill establishes a provisional transfer procedure upon approval of the nonresident district's superintendent and provides that a student who has been denied such a transfer has the right to meet in-person with the nonresident district superintendent.

Students that participate in open enrollment in high school can not participate in varsity sports during the first 365 days of enrollment in a nonresident district, with exceptions that are outlined in the bill.

APPLYING FOR TRANSFER (Section 167.1210)

Any student who applies for a transfer can only accept one transfer per school year, although the student can return to his or her resident district and, if so, complete a full semester before applying for another transfer. Students can complete all remaining school years in their nonresident district and any sibling can enroll if the district has the capacity as provided by the bill. For the purposes of determining federal and state aid the student must be counted as a resident pupil of the nonresident district, except for federal calculations of military impact aid. Parents will be responsible for transportation to the nonresident school or to an existing bus stop location in the nonresident district. Students who qualify for free and reduced meals can have transportation expenses reimbursed quarterly as outlined in the bill. However, a transferring student who transfers to a nonresident district sharing a border with the student's resident district and who either qualifies for free and reduced price meals or who has transportation as a related service on his or her IEP must be offered transportation services by the nonresident district or may choose to get reimbursed for costs associated with the student's transportation. The bill establishes the calculation for the transportation costs eligible for reimbursement.

PARENT PUBLIC SCHOOL CHOICE FUND (Sections 167.1211 and 167.1212)

The bill creates the "Parent Public School Choice Fund" which is created to be used to reimburse for special needs education as outlined in Section 167.1211.

NUMBER OF TRANSFER STUDENTS (Section 167.1215)

The bill specifies that annually, before November 1st, each school district must set and publish the number of transfer students the district is willing to receive for the following school year. Districts will also develop a policy for waitlists and the Department must include such waitlists online and notify an applicant if they have been waitlisted. APPLICATION PROCESS (Section 167.1220)

The processes for a transfer application and the details for notifications of acceptance or rejection are specified within the bill. The Department must create an online resource to receive applications, which must be submitted before January 1st. The Department will conduct a lottery of applications by January 15th and facilitate and provide notice to all applicants regarding the acceptance or rejection of each application. The nonresident district's superintendent or a designee thereof must review each application, determine if the application is rejected or accepted, and inform the Department of his or her decision.

The Department must be notified of all accepted students and will request an anonymous survey related to the reasons for participating in the Open Enrollment Program. The Department will publish an annual report based on the survey results.

PROCEDURE FOR CERTAIN STUDENTS HAVING BEEN ACCEPTED (Section 167.1224)

The bill includes a procedure for districts when a transferring student has special education needs. Schools can also establish standards for transfer applications and post the information on the school website and in the student handbook. School districts that are served by special school districts must reach an agreement with such special school district regarding finance, staffing, and other items prior to participating in the program.

ALLOWED EXEMPTIONS (Section 167.1225)

This bill specifies that a school district can annually declare an exemption for the upcoming school year from the requirements set forth in this bill, provided that the school district is subject to a desegregation order or mandate of a federal court or agency remedying the effects of past racial segregation or subject to a settlement agreement remedying the effects of past racial segregation.

The bill requires that any student who transfers from a K-eight district enroll before the start of the student's sixth grade year, or the K-eight district must pay tuition as specified under Section 167.131. Additional exemptions are specified for students who qualify for transfers under other listed sections.

APPEAL PROCEDURE (Section 167.1227) The bill determines when a student may be denied a transfer based on his or her discipline record and includes an appeal procedure.

ANNUAL REPORTING (Section 167.1229)

The Department must collect and report data annually from school districts on the number of applications and study the effects of the public school choice program transfers. The report must be submitted annually by December 1st to the Joint Committee on Education, the House Committee on Elementary and Secondary Education, and the Senate Committee on Education, or any successor committees thereof.

ALTERNATIVE FUNDING (Section 167.1230)

The bill requires that enrollment of students under the program not occur before July 1, 2026. The bill outlines what steps must be taken if the Parent Public School Choice Fund does not have sufficient funding necessary to provide for eligible reimbursements for transportation and special education expenses. Transportation costs must be considered eligible expenses under 163.161, and special education students will be provided additional weight in the formula calculation for the nonresident district.

This bill is similar to HCS HB 1989 (2024) and HCS HB 253 (2023).

TAX ASSESSMENT OF STATIONARY PROPERTY (Section 137.122)

Beginning January 1, 2026, provisions relating to depreciable tangible personal property shall apply to all real property that is stationary and used for transportation or storage of liquid and gaseous products, including water, sewage, and certain natural gas.

To estimate the value of the real property under the act, each assessor shall value such property by applying a 20-year recovery period to the original cost of the property according to the 20-year depreciation schedule. The presumption as to the proper method of determining the assessed value of such property shall apply regardless of when such property was placed in service.

Each taxpayer owning property under the act shall provide to an assessor, on or before May 1st of the applicable tax year, the original cost and year placed in service of such property, as described in the act.

These provisions are identical to a provision in SB 896 (2024) and HB 2110 (2024).

COMPENSATION OF TRUSTEES OF COMMON SEWER DISTRICTS (Sections 204.300 and 204.610)

Trustees appointed by the governing body of certain counties may be paid reasonable compensation by the common sewer district for their services outside their duties as trustees. Monetary compensation of such trustees is described in the act. The act repeals certain provisions relating to the compensation schedule and expenses incurred by the trustees.

The trustees of a district with an eleven-member board and located in two counties shall receive no compensation for their services but may be reimbursed for expenses. Reimbursement of trustees of a ten-member board are described in the act.

Each trustee appointed or elected in the circuit court decree or amended decree of incorporation for a reorganized common sewer district may receive certain monetary compensation for their services as trustees as described in the act. The act repeals the provisions stating that such trustees shall receive no compensation for their services but may be compensated for reasonable expenses normally incurred in the performance of their duties.

These provisions are identical to provisions in SB 896 (2024), HB 2476 (2024), HCS/SB 155 (2023), and similar to provisions in SCS/HCS/HB 1746 (2024).

TEST YEAR FOR RATE PROCEEDINGS FOR CERTAIN UTILITIES (Section 393.150)

Under the act, beginning July 1, 2026, the test year for rate proceedings, if requested by certain utilities, shall be a future year consisting of the first 12 full calendar months after the operation of law date for schedules stating new base rates filed by the utilities, unless the Public Service Commission makes a determination that using a future test year is detrimental to the public interest. The projected total rate base at the end of the future test year shall be used to establish new base rates. New base rates shall not go into effect before the 1st day of the future test year.

Certain public utilities that elect to utilize a future test year within 45 days of the end of the future test year shall update their base rates as described in the act. The total ending rate base and expense items in the update shall not be greater than the total ending rate base and expense items approved by the Commission in its report and order establishing base rates. The Commission and parties to the case shall have 60 days to review the accuracy of the updated information provided by the utility. The Commission shall order the utility to file new tariff sheets reflecting the update, as described in the act.

Certain utilities that request a test year shall not recover the costs of any plant investments made during the test year period under certain mechanisms described in current law.

For utilities that elected to use a future test year, a reconciliation of the rate base at the end of the future test year shall be provided to the Commission within 45 days of the end of the future test year. If the actual rate base is less than the rate base used to set base rates in the prior general rate proceeding, the portion of the annual revenue requirement reflecting the rate base difference shall be returned to customers. The revenue requirement calculations are described in the act. The difference in revenue requirement shall be placed into a regulatory liability to be returned to customers in the next general rate proceeding with such regulatory liability to accrue carrying costs at the utility's weighted average cost of capital.

The Commission may consider any change in business risk to the utility resulting from implementation of the adjustment mechanism in setting the utility's allowed return in any rate proceeding, in addition to any other changes in business risk experienced by the utility.

For a utility that elected to use a future test year, a reconciliation of payroll expense, certain employee benefits, and rate case expense at the end of the future test year shall be provided to the Commission within 45 days of the end of the future test year. If the actual amounts are less than the amounts used to calculate the revenue requirement in the prior general rate proceeding, the difference shall be returned to customers. The difference in revenue requirement shall be placed into a regulatory liability to be returned to customers in the next general rate case with such regulatory liability to accrue carrying costs at the utility's weighted average cost of capital.

The act creates definitions for "base rates" and "revenue requirement".

These provisions are similar to SCS/SB 1280 (2024), a provision in SCS/HCS/HB 1746 (2024), and a provision in HB 2167 (2024).

A LARGE WATER PUBLIC UTILITY ACQUIRING A SMALL WATER UTILITY (Sections 393.320 and 393.1506)

This act provides that for any acquisition of a small water utility by a large public water utility with an appraised value of $5,000,000 or less, the Public Service Commission shall issue a decision of such acquisition within six months from the submission of the application for such acquisition by the large public water utility. Prior to the expiration of the six-months period, the Commission staff or the office of the Public Counsel may request, upon a showing of good cause, from the Commission an extension for approval of the application for an additional 30 days.

This act further modifies the definition of "large water public utility".

These provisions are identical to SCS/SB 741 (2024), provisions in SCS/SB 740 (2024), SB 896 (2024), similar to provisions in SCS/HCS/HB 1746 (2024), SCS/SB 567 (2023), and similar to provisions in HB 1152 (2023) and HCS/SB 275 (2023).

JULIA SHEVELEVA

• 20 weeks if the Missouri unemployment rate is higher than nine percent;

• 19 weeks if the Missouri unemployment rate is higher than 8.5% but no higher than 9%;

• 18 weeks if the Missouri unemployment rate is higher than 8% but no higher than 8.5%;

• 17 weeks if the Missouri unemployment rate is higher than 7.5% but no higher than 8%;

• 16 weeks if the Missouri unemployment rate is higher than 7% but no higher than 7.5%;

• 15 weeks if the Missouri unemployment rate is higher than 6.5% but no higher than 7%;

• 14 weeks if the Missouri unemployment rate is higher than 6% but no higher than 6.5%;

• 13 weeks if the Missouri unemployment rate is higher than 5.5% but no higher than 6%;

• 12 weeks if the Missouri unemployment rate is higher than 5% but no higher than 5.5%;

• 11 weeks if the Missouri unemployment rate is higher than 4.5% but no higher than 5%;

• 10 weeks if the Missouri unemployment rate is higher than 4% but no higher than 4.5%;

• 9 weeks if the Missouri unemployment rate is higher than 3.5% but no higher than 4%; and

• 8 weeks if the Missouri unemployment rate is at or below 3.5%.

These provisions take effect beginning January 1, 2026.

This act is identical to SB 745 (2024), a provision in SCS/SB 21 (2023), HB 765 (2023), SS/SB 665 (2022), SCS/HB 1860 (2022), HB 1909 (2022), and SCS/HCS/HB 649 (2021) and substantially similar to a provision in SCS/SB 539 (2021), SCS/SB 622 (2021), a provision in HB 215 (2021), SB 690 (2020), HB 1921 (2020), HB 2039 (2020), HB 217 (2019), provisions in SB 869 (2018), SCS/SB 189 (2017), HB 288 (2017), HB 150 (2015), which was vetoed by the Governor, and SB 220 (2015).

SCOTT SVAGERA

CLEAN SLATE ELIGIBLE OFFENSES (Section 610.141)

This act provides that beginning August 28, 2028, all records and files maintained by any court pertaining to clean slate eligible offenses, which shall be offenses currently eligible for expungement by law, shall become closed records without the filing of a petition, subject to certain requirements as provided in this act. Additionally, this act provides certain time limitations for when records shall be closed and limitations on the amount of offenses which may be expunged, as provided in this act.

This act also provides that beginning August 28, 2028, the Office of State Courts Administrator (OSCA) shall identify and transfer on a monthly basis all clean slate eligible offenses records to the Central Repository and every prosecuting agency in the state within 30 days of the offenses becoming eligible for expungement. All records currently eligible for automated expungement shall be expunged by August 28, 2030. The provisions of this act shall not expunge any delinquent court costs, fines, fees, or other sums order by the court. A prosecuting agency may file an objection to the automated expungement within 60 days from notification of expungement by OSCA.

Additionally, OSCA shall provide notification of records to be expunged to the presiding judges of every circuit court and the courts shall order the expungement of all records eligible for expungement, as provided in the act. The Missouri State Highway Patrol shall keep nonpublic records of expungement available to certain entities.

Finally, this act provides that, for purposes of the law, the petitioner shall be considered not to have been previous convicted, except for purposes of the requirement to pay restitution to the victim and other purposes as provided in the act.

This provision is identical to SB 763 (2024) and SB 1161 (2024) and substantially similar to SB 1194 (2024).

REPORTS BY OSCA TO THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY (Section 610.142)

Beginning August 28, 2028, OSCA shall report on a yearly basis to both the Senate and House of Representatives judiciary committees, or equivalent committees, the number of records expunged pursuant to this act and the number of records transmitted back to OSCA from the Missouri State Highway Patrol, any prosecuting agency, or any circuit court with objections that the record is not eligible for expungement.

This provision is identical to SB 763 (2024) and SB 1161 (2024) and substantially similar to SB 1194 (2024).

CREDIT BUREAU REPORTS (Section 610.143)

This act provides that a credit bureau may report records of arrests, indictments pending trial, and convictions of crimes for no longer than 7 years from final disposition. However, any records which have been expunged or any records of a person who has been granted a pardon shall not be reported. Any credit bureau which willfully or negligently violates this act shall be subject to civil penalties.

This provision is identical to SB 763 (2024) and SB 1161 (2024) and substantially similar to SB 1194 (2024).

MISSOURI EXPUNGEMENT FUND (Section 610.144)

This act creates the "Missouri Expungement Fund" which shall be used by the Department of Public Safety, the Office of Administration, and the Office of State Courts Administrator to provide system upgrades, staffing needs, and implement the provisions of this act.

This provision is identical to SB 763 (2024), SB 1161 (2024), and substantially similar to SB 1194 (2024).

KATIE O'BRIEN

For all tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2026, this act authorizes a taxpayer to claim a tax credit equal to 25% of qualified conversion expenditures, as defined in the act, or 30% of qualified conversion expenditures with respect to upper floor housing, as described in the act, incurred for converting nonresidential real property from office use to predominantly residential use, which may include retail or other commercial use. Tax credits authorized by the act shall not be refundable, but may be carried back three years or carried forward ten years. Tax credits may also be transferred, sold, or assigned, as described in the act.

The total amount of tax credits authorized pursuant to this act shall not exceed $50 million in any fiscal year. Fifty percent of such maximum amount shall be reserved for qualified converted buildings of more than 750,000 square feet and shall be allocated to the annual limit over a period of ten years, provided that such project meets criteria described in the act.

Twenty-five percent of the maximum amount of tax credits available to be authorized shall be authorized solely for projects located in a qualified Missouri main street district, as defined in the act. If the total amount of such reserved tax credits have been authorized, projects located in a qualified Missouri main street district may receive tax credits from the remaining unreserved amount of tax credits. If the maximum amount of allowable tax credits is authorized in any given fiscal year, such maximum allowable amount shall be increased by the percentage increase in inflation.

A taxpayer shall apply to the Department of Economic Development to receive tax credits pursuant to this act. Such application shall include proof of ownership or site control, floor plans of the existing structure, architectural plans, and, where applicable, plans of the proposed conversion of the structure, as well as proposed additions, estimated cost of conversion, the anticipated total costs of the project, the actual basis of the property, as shown by proof of actual acquisition costs, the anticipated total labor costs, the estimated project start date, and the estimated project completion date, proof that the property is an eligible property, a copy of all land use and building approvals reasonably necessary for the commencement of the project, and any other information which the Department may reasonably require to review the project for approval.

All taxpayers with applications receiving approval shall submit within 120 days following the award of credits evidence of the capacity of the applicant to finance the costs and expenses for the conversion of the eligible property. All taxpayers with applications receiving approval, excluding projects of more than 750,000 square feet, shall commence conversion within twelve months of the date of issuance of the letter from the Department granting the approval for tax credits.

To claim a tax credit authorized by this act, a taxpayer with approval shall apply for final approval and issuance of tax credits from the Department, which shall determine the final amount of qualified conversion expenditures and whether the completed rehabilitation meets the requirements of the act. The final application shall demonstrate that the taxpayer has substantially converted a qualified converted building; satisfactory evidence of any qualified conversion expenditures for the structure, as determined by the Department; and any other information reasonably requested by the Department.

The Department shall determine, on an annual basis, the overall economic impact to the state from the rehabilitation of eligible property pursuant to this act. No taxpayer shall be issued tax credits for qualified conversion expenditures on a qualified converted building within 27 years of a previous issuance of tax credits pursuant to this act on such qualified converted building.

This act shall sunset on December 31, 2033, unless reauthorized by the General Assembly.

This act is substantially similar to SB 792 (2024) and to a provision in HCS/HB 1935 (2024).

JOSH NORBERG

FOOD SALES TAX EXEMPTION

Current law taxes retail sales of food, as defined in current law, at a rate of one percent. This act provides that retail sales of food shall be exempt from state sales taxes.

This provision is identical to SCS/SB 161 (2023) and to a provision in SCS/HCS/HB 154 (2023), and is substantially similar to HB 1418 (2024), HB 1464 (2024), HB 2174 (2024), HB 260 (2023), HB 452 (2023), HB 591 (2023), HB 896 (2023), HCS#2/HB 1992 (2022), HB 1817 (2022), and HB 2530 (2022), and to a provision in HB 2815 (2024), HB 2887 (2024), HB 377 (2023), HCS/HBs 876, 771, 676 & 551 (2023), HB 1136 (2023), HB 1779 (2022), and HB 2249 (2022).

This act also provides that, beginning on January 1, 2026, local sales taxes imposed on food shall annually be reduced in four equal increments over a period of four years. Beginning January 1, 2030, there shall be no local sales taxes imposed on food. (Section 144.014)

This provision is identical to SB 1062 (2024), HB 2055 (2024), and HB 2273 (2024), and is substantially similar to a provision in HB 2401 (2024).

DIAPERS SALES TAX EXEMPTION

This act authorizes a sales tax exemption for the purchase of diapers, as defined in the act. (Section 144.030)

This provision is identical to SB 1231 (2024), HB 290 (2023), SB 1124 (2022), and HB 2384 (2022), and to a provision in SB 858 (2024), SB 1119 (2024), HB 1762 (2024), HB 1920 (2024), HB 2112 (2024), SS/SCS/SBs 73 & 162 (2023), SCS/HCS/HB 154 (2023), HCS/SS/SB 143 (2023), and SS#2/SCS/SB 649 (2022), and is substantially similar to HB 351 (2023), HB 744 (2023), and HCS/HBs 1679, 2859, & 2272 (2022), and to a provision in HB 2187 (2024), SCS/SB 184 (2023), HCS/HBs 876, 771, 676 & 551 (2023), and HB 1136 (2023).

JOSH NORBERG

MAGNET SCHOOLS (Section 163.161)

Under this act, any school district that operates magnet schools as part of a master desegregation settlement agreement shall not be considered inefficient for purposes of state aid for transportation of pupils attending such magnet schools and shall not receive a financial penalty for the magnet school transportation portion of the overall transportation budget.

This provision is identical to HB 672 (2023) and provisions in SB 1051 (2024), HCS/HB 1989 (2024), HCS/SS#2/SCS/SBs 4, 42, & 89 (2023), SB 5 (2023), HCS/HB 253 (2023), and SB 1010 (2022).

TRANSFER POLICY AND PARTICIPATION (Section 167.1205)

On or before October 1st of each year, each school district and charter school shall indicate whether it will participate in the open enrollment program during the subsequent school year. Participating districts and schools may accept transferring nonresident students from any other school district. For the 2026-27 and 2027-28 school years, a district may restrict the number of students who may transfer away from the school district to a maximum of 5% of the district's enrollment for the prior year. The act shall not be construed to require any school to add teachers, staff, or classrooms.

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education shall develop a model policy to assist school districts and charter schools in determining the number of transfers available and establishing specific standards for acceptance and rejection of transfer applications. The model policy shall be adopted by all school districts and charter schools, whether or not they participate in the program, and may be modified to meet each school district's or charter school's particular needs. The model policy shall require each school district or charter school to define "insufficient classroom space" and may provide additional standards for evaluating transfer applications.

Nonresident districts shall accept credits toward graduation from other school districts and shall award a diploma to any transferring student who meets the nonresident district's graduation requirements.

Superintendents shall cause information regarding the open enrollment program to be posted on the school district's or charter school's website and in the school district's or charter school's student handbook.

A student seeking to transfer to a magnet school, an academically selective school, or a school with a competitive entrance process shall submit proof that the student meets all admission requirements.

A student may be denied transfer if, in the most recent school year, he or she has been suspended from school two or more times, was suspended for an act of school violence, or was expelled for acts that school administrators are required to report to law enforcement under current law. Such a student may alternatively be permitted to transfer on a provisional, probationary basis subject to no further disruptive behavior based on standards that shall be developed by the nonresident district. Students denied transfer shall have the right to an in-person meeting with the nonresident district's superintendent.

A 9th to 12th grade transfer student shall be ineligible to participate in varsity sports during the first 365 days of such student's enrollment in a nonresident district, unless the student meets certain conditions as provided in the act. A statewide activities association may provide additional penalties if the student was unduly influenced to transfer for reasons related to participation in sports.

APPLYING FOR TRANSFER (Section 167.1210)

Students may transfer into only one nonresident district per school year. Transferring students shall commit to attending and taking all courses through the nonresident district for at least one school year, and at least one such course shall be in-seat. Students who transfer back to their resident districts shall reapply in order to transfer back into a nonresident district and shall first remain in the resident district for at least one full semester.

A sibling of a transferring student may also enroll in the same nonresident district to which his or her sibling transfers, subject to limitations based on school capacity and the student's disciplinary record.

Except for students who qualify for reimbursement of transportation costs as described in the act and for agreements allowing such students to be picked up at an existing bus stop, transferring students or their parents shall be responsible for transportation to and from nonresident districts. By agreement with a nonresident district, parents of transferring students may waive requirements for such a district to provide transportation required under the student's individualized education program.

Any student who qualifies for free and reduced price lunch and transfers to an a nonresident district sharing a border with the student's resident district shall be reimbursed quarterly by the Parent Public School Choice Fund established in this act, based on calculations described in the act.

PARENT PUBLIC SCHOOL CHOICE FUNDS (Sections 167.1211 and 167.1212)

Nonresident districts shall receive reimbursement for the costs of certain special educational services for transferring students. Such reimbursement shall not exceed three times the district's current expenditure per average daily attendance. The reimbursement shall come from the Parent Public School Choice Fund established in the act. The Fund shall consist of an appropriation of $60 million and any subsequent appropriations. The Department shall annually evaluate the availability and use of moneys from the fund. If additional moneys are needed to fulfill the purposes of the act, the Department shall request such moneys by a specific line item appropriation.

NUMBER OF TRANSFER STUDENTS (Section 167.1215)

Before October 1st annually, each school district and charter school shall set the number of transferring students such district or charter school is willing to accept for the following school year. The district or charter school may set criteria, including limits on the number of students to be accepted to particular buildings, grades, classrooms, or programs. Districts and charter schools shall publish and notify the Department of such information.

Each school district and charter school shall develop a procedure for creating a waiting list for all transfer applications when applications exceed the district's or charter school's maximum. In accepting students from the waiting list, nonresident districts shall give additional priority to students in the following order: siblings of transfer students, children of active duty military personnel, children of school district or charter school employees, students who previously attended school in the school district or charter school as resident students, and students whose parents' employment circumstances would cause transfer to be in the student's best interest. Nonresident districts may also include other priority factors. Parents of applicants shall be informed of how the waiting list shall operate and may be required to reapply to remain on the waiting list.

APPLICATION PROCESS (Section 167.1220)

A student's transfer application shall be submitted to the nonresident and resident districts on a form approved by the Department before December 1st in the year prior to the school year in which the student seeks to transfer. Nonresident districts shall mark the date and time of receipt on each such application received. Applications shall be reviewed and decided upon by the superintendent of the nonresident district. Reasons for any rejection shall be submitted to the school board or charter school governing body for review. Rejection decisions may be finalized only by a majority vote of the school board or governing body.

School boards and governing bodies of charter schools may adopt a policy granting the superintendent authority to approve transfer applications submitted after the December 1st deadline if conditions described in the act are met, including a finding of good cause. The act provides additional procedures related to the timing of late applications. Resident districts may appeal the decisions of nonresident districts for suspected violations of provisions of the act relating to late applications. The Commissioner of Education or a three member panel selected by the Missouri Charter Public School Commission shall mediate such disputes and shall conduct a hearing if the mediation is unsuccessful. A decision shall be issued within 10 days of such hearing and may be appealed within 5 days.

The superintendents of nonresident districts shall notify the parents of transfer applicants before February 1st whether the application has been accepted or rejected. Such notice shall include, if the application is rejected, the reason for a rejection, or, if the application is accepted, an enrollment deadline and instructions for renewing the transfer enrollment.

AUTHORIZED EXEMPTIONS (Section 167.1225)

The provisions of the Public School Open Enrollment Act shall not supercede any provision of an enforceable desegregation court order or a court-approved desegregation plan. A school district may declare an exemption from the Act if the district is subject to such an order or desegregation plan, or if the district is subject to a settlement agreement to remedy past segregation. Such exemption is irrevocable for one year from the date the district gives notice to the Department. Notice of a district's exemption or intent to resume participation in open enrollment for the next school year shall be issued to the Department by April 1st. Before June 1st of each year, the Department shall report to each school district the maximum number of transfers under the Public School Open Enrollment Act for the next school year.

When students are unable to transfer due to an exemption declared by a school district due to a court order, desegregation plan, or segregation-related settlement agreement, such students shall be given priority for any transfers in the subsequent school year by the resident district in the order application notices were received from such students.

A school district with an approved or voluntary diversity plan may deny a Public School Open Enrollment Act transfer if the district determines that the transfer conflicts with such plan.

Students transferring to nonresident districts pursuant to provisions of current law allowing transfer if the resident district does not offer high school instruction, under the Elementary and Secondary School District Enrollment Option Act, or through the Metropolitan Schools Achieving Value in Transfer Corporation, shall not be subject to the requirements of the Public School Open Enrollment Act. School districts participating in such programs shall also not be subject to such requirements. Students transferring pursuant to the Public School Open Enrollment Act shall not be considered transfer students for purposes of other provisions of current law allowing transfers.

APPEAL PROCEDURE (Section 167.1230)

Students whose transfer applications are rejected may file an appeal with the Department or a three member panel selected by the Missouri Charter Public School Commission. The appeal shall be sent in writing within 10 days after the student or the student's parent receives notice of rejection. A copy of the appeal shall also be sent to the superintendent of the nonresident district where the applicant seeks to transfer. The appeal shall state the basis for appeal, shall include a copy of the notice of rejection, and may include documentation to show that the transfer would be in the student's best interest. The nonresident district may submit additional documentation or arguments supporting the rejection decision to the Department or the three member panel, and shall submit copies of any such response to the student or student's parent, no later than 10 days after receiving a copy of the appeal. The Department or the three member panel shall notify the parent, nonresident district, and resident district of the basis for the Department's or panel's decision if it overturns the rejection.

The Department shall collect data from school districts and each charter school sponsor shall collect data from each sponsored charter school on the number of applications made under the act to study its effects. The Department shall consider the maximum number of transfers and exemptions for up to two years to determine whether a significant racially segregative impact has occurred in any school district. Before October 1st of each year, the Department and each charter school sponsor shall report its findings to the Joint Committee on Education, the House Committee on Elementary and Secondary Education, the Senate Committee on Education, and any other education committee designated by the Speaker of the House of Representatives or the President Pro Tempore of the Senate.

This act is substantially similar to SB 1051 (2024) and is similar to HCS/HB 1989 (2024), SCS/SB 5 (2023), HCS/HB 253 (2023), SB 1010 (2022), HB 1814 (2022), and HS/HCS/HB 543 (2021).

OLIVIA SHANNON

This act is identical to SB 14 (2023).

SARAH HASKINS

The maximum allowable credit under current law is limited to $750 in rent constituting property taxes actually paid or $1,100 in actual property tax paid. This act increases such amounts to $1,055 and $1,550, respectively, and annually adjusts such maximum amounts for inflation. (Section 135.025)

Additionally, current law limits the tax credit to qualifying taxpayers with an income of $27,500 or less, or $30,000 in the case of a homestead owned and occupied by a claimant for the entire year. This act increases such maximum income to $38,200 for claimants with a filing status of single, $42,200 for claimants with a filing status of single and who owned and occupied a homestead for the entire year, $41,000 for claimants with a filing status of married filing combined, and $48,000 for claimants with a filing status of married filing combined and who owned and occupied a homestead for the entire year, and annually adjusts such amounts for inflation. (Section 135.030)

This act is identical to SB 822 (2024) and is substantially similar to SB 930 (2024), HCS/HB 1428 (2024), HB 1670 (2024), HB 1939 (2024), HB 2050 (2024), HB 666 (2023), and HCS/HB 1134 (2023), and to provisions in HB 1636 (2024), SS/SCS/SB 15 (2023), HCS/SS/SB 143 (2023), HCS/SB 247 (2023), and HB 1351 (2023).

JOSH NORBERG

This act is identical to SB 1010 (2024) and to a provision in SCS/HCS/HB 1483 (2024).

JOSH NORBERG

This act further modifies the definition of "practice of advanced practice nursing" by providing that in addition to the practice of professional nursing and within the advanced practice registered nurse role and population focus, the term shall include certain actions and measures.

This act also provides that an APRN's prescriptive authority shall include authority to prescribe, dispense, and administer controlled substances as provided in current law. Furthermore, the provision on prescriptive authority shall also apply to good-standing APRNs who have been in collaborative practice arrangements for a cumulative 2000 documented hours with collaborating physicians and who are no longer required to hold collaborative practice arrangements.

This act is identical to SB 809 (2024) and contains provisions identical to provisions in HB 1875 (2024).

KATIE O'BRIEN

This act also removes the definition of "eligible costs" and bases the amount of the tax credit on either the number of admission tickets sold or the number of registered participants.

The act requires an applicant to submit a ticket sales or box office statement, or a list of registered participants, rather than documentation of eligible costs.

The amount of the tax credit shall be equal to either $6 for every admission ticket sold, rather than $5, or $12 for every registered participant, rather than $10. The Department of Revenue shall issue a refund of the tax credit within ninety days of the applicant's submission of a valid tax credit certificate, even prior to the close of the tax year for which the tax credits are issued.

This act extends the sunset on the tax credit from August 28, 2025, to August 28, 2032. (Section 67.3000)

Current law also authorizes a tax credit in the amount of fifty percent of an eligible donation made to a certified sponsor or local organizing committee, with the total annual amount of such tax credits limited to $10 million. This act reduces such allowable annual amount of tax credits to $500,000. This act also extends the sunset on such tax credit from August 28, 2025, to August 28, 2032. (Section 67.3005)

Certain provisions of this act shall become effective on July 1, 2026.

This act is substantially similar to SCS/SB 1036 (2024) and to provisions in SCS/HCS/HB 1483 (2024) and HCS/HB 1935 (2024).

JOSH NORBERG

The school board of each school district shall determine the district's capacity to accept student transfers in each grade level and in each school in the district. Each school board shall provide this information to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) beginning on July 15, 2026, and by the first day of each month thereafter. DESE shall publish and update the capacity of each district's grade levels and schools on its website. (Section 167.895)

Parents of students who wish to transfer shall notify DESE by August 1, 2026, and by the first day of each month thereafter, and DESE shall assign students to a receiving district or charter school as provided in the act. A receiving district shall accept all students who apply and are assigned to the district, so long as there is capacity for each student. School board policies shall not discriminate against any transfer student on the basis of his or her residential address, academic performance, athletic ability, disability, race, ethnicity, sex, or free and reduced price lunch status. (Sections 167.895 and 167.898)

The act repeals provisions that require sending districts to make tuition payments to receiving districts. Instead, for purposes of calculating state and federal aid, each transfer student shall be counted as a resident of the receiving district in which the student is enrolled. Tuition shall not be charged to any student or to his or her parent or legal guardian. (Sections 160.415, 162.081, 167.132, 167.151, and 167.895)

DESE shall designate at least one receiving district or charter school to which each sending district shall provide transportation. A sending district shall be required to provide transportation only to the school district or charter school designated by DESE. (Section 167.241)

If the costs associated with providing special education services to students with disabilities exceed the tuition amount established in the act, the sending district shall remain responsible for paying the excess cost to the receiving district. If the receiving district is part of a special school district, the sending district shall contract with the special school district for the entirety of the costs to provide special education and related services, excluding transportation. The special school district may contract with a sending district for transportation, or the sending district may provide transportation on its own. (Section 167.895)

The act outlines school districts' responsibilities for the provision of special education and related services to students with disabilities. A special school district shall continue to provide special education and related services, excluding transportation, to students with disabilities who transfer to another school within the special school district. If the sending district is a metropolitan school district, it shall remain responsible for providing special education and related services, including transportation, to students with disabilities who transfer to a receiving district. A special school district in an adjoining county to a metropolitan school district may contract with the metropolitan school district for the reimbursement of special education and related services provided by the special school district for transfer students. A receiving district that is not part of a special school district shall not be responsible for providing transportation to transfer students, regardless of whether transportation is identified as a related service within a student's individualized education program. A sending district may contract with a receiving district that is not part of a special school district for transportation of students with disabilities. A seven-director or urban school district may contract with a receiving district that is not part of a special school district in the same or an adjoining county for the reimbursement of special education and related services provided by the receiving district. (Section 167.895)

OLIVIA SHANNON

JULIA SHEVELEVA

This act is identical to SB 1056 (2024) and substantially similar to HB 2278 (2024) and a provision in SCS/HCS/HB 1569 (2024).

OLIVIA SHANNON

This amendment is identical to SJR 55 (2024) and SJR 13 (2023) and substantially similar to HCS/HJR 68 (2024), SJR 46 (2022), SJR 10 (2021), SJR 47 (2020), and SJR 17 (2017).

JOSH NORBERG