Voting Rights Bills

HB 31 (Prevents courts from editing ballot language.)

• 5 for Democracy: Submit testimony IN OPPOSITION to the House's Elections and Elected Officials Committee by Tuesday, March 21st at 12pm.

Gun Bills

HB 485 (Allows for concealed carry in churches.)

• 5 for Democracy: Submit testimony IN OPPOSITION to the House Emerging Issues Committee by Wednesday, March 22nd at 4:30pm.

HB 701 + HB 712 (Anti-Red Flag Laws.)

• 5 for Democracy: Submit testimony IN OPPOSITION to the House Emerging Issues Committee by Wednesday, March 22nd at 4:30pm.
• Further Reading: NPR Poll

Other Bills

SB 424 (Creates new provisions to prevent discrimination on the basis of hair texture and protective hairstyles.)

• 30 Minute Matters: Call or email IN SUPPORT to members of the Senate Progress and Development Committee by Wednesday, March 22nd at 12pm.

We also apologize for the poor audio quality – Anne is on the road this week!

Questions or comments? Email us at [email protected]!

Citizen Initiative Petition Bills

HJR 43 (Modifies the threshold for passage of constitutional amendments from a simple majority to 60%. Defines "eligible voters" as only US citizens and residents of Missouri.)

• 5 for Democracy: Email or call your state senator and urge them to vote NO on HCS HJR 43. Legislator Lookup
• Links to further reading: Missouri Independent

Voting Rights Bills

SJB 44 (Makes removing registered voters from the voter roles easier.)

• 5 for Democracy: Contact your senator and urge them to vote NO on SB 44. Legislator Lookup

Gun Violence Bills

HB 282 (Changes the law regarding firearm concealed carry permits allowing those with permits to legally carry on public transportation including buses.)

• 5 for Democracy: Submit testimony to the House Emerging Issues Committee here.

Next week – Spring Break!!

Citizen Initiative Petition Bills

HJR 43 (Modifies the threshold for passage of constitutional amendments from a simple majority to 60%. Defines "eligible voters" as only US citizens and residents of Missouri.)

• 5 for Democracy: Email or call your state senator and urge them to vote NO on HCS HJR 43. Legislator Lookup
• Links to further reading: Missouri Independent

Voting Rights Bills

SJB 44 (Makes removing registered voters from the voter roles easier)

• 5 for Democracy: Contact your senator and urge them to vote NO on SB 44. Legislator Lookup

Health Care Bills

SB 45 + 90 (Expands MO HealthNet coverage for low-income pregnant women to include full Medicaid benefits for the duration of the pregnancy and for one year following the end of the pregnancy.)

• The "perfected" (aka finalized) version of this bill prohibits women who undergo abortions from receiving the expanded coverage, which doesn't match the federal guidelines for the agency that funds this!
• Links to further reading: Missouri Independent article

Citizen Initiative Petition Bills

HJR 43 (Modifies the threshold for passage of constitutional amendments from a simple majority to 60%. Defines "eligible voters" as only US citizens and residents of Missouri.)

• 5 for Democracy: Email or call your state senator and urge them to vote NO on HCS HJR 43. Legislator Lookup
• Links to further reading: Watch this video from Sunday's episode of Heart of the Matter on KMBC, channel 9. KMBC video

Health Care Bills

SB 45 (Expands MO HealthNet coverage for low-income pregnant women to include full Medicaid benefits for the duration of the pregnancy and for one year following the end of the pregnancy.)

• 5 for Democracy: Contact your senator and urge them to vote YES on SB 44.

Social Justice Bills

SB 82 (Ensures access to assistance like SNAP, TANF, and child care to persons working to establish self-sufficiency and "get off welfare" without putting them at risk of net losses due to assistance withdrawal)

• 5 for Democracy: Call or email your senator to urge them to support SB 82. Legislator Lookup

Citizen Initiative Petition Bills

HJR 43 (Changes Missouri’s Initiative Petition law to establish an insurmountable threshold for any future Initiative Petition)

• 30 Minute Matters: Email your opposition to this bill to your State Senator and members of the Senate Local Government and Elections Committee. Committee members can be found HERE. Deadline: Committee meets February 13th at 1:00pm, but send your emails even after this deadline.

SB 102, SB 113, SJR 2, SJR 5, SJR 10, SJR 12, SJR 17, SJR 28 (All make changes to Missouri's Initiative Petition process)

• 30 Minute Matters: Email your opposition to this bill to your State Senator and members of the Senate Local Government and Elections Committee. Committee members can be found HERE. Deadline: Committee meets February 13th at 1:00pm, but send your emails even after this deadline.

HJR 28, HJR 29 (Make changes to Missouri's Initiative Petition process)

• 5 for Democracy: **SUBMIT WRITTEN TESTIMONY HERE**  Click on the 2 Initiative Petition bills, affirm, and submit. You should receive an email to confirm your submitted testimony. Make sure to click the link in the email you receive to confirm your testimony is submitted!

Voting Rights Bills

SJB 44 (Makes removing registered voters from the voter roles easier)

• 5 for Democracy: Contact your senator and urge them to vote NO on SB 44.

Education Bills

SS#2 SCS SBs 4, 42 & 89 (Hands over curriculum control to the state legislature)

• 30 Minute Matters: Send an email to each member of the Fiscal Oversight Committee and urge them to oppose this bill. Committee members can be found HERE. Contact your senator and urge him to vote against the bill on the senate floor. Legislator Lookup
• Links to further reading:  Missouri Independent Article

Social Justice Bills

SB 82 (Ensures access to assistance like SNAP, TANF, and child care to persons working to establish self-sufficiency and "get off welfare" without putting them at risk of net losses due to assistance withdrawal)

• 5 for Democracy: Call or email your senator to urge them to support SB 82. Legislator Lookup
• 30 Minute Matters: Ask your friends to take action with you!

Citizen Initiative Petition Bills

SJR 2, SJR 5, + SJR 28 (Changes Missouri’s Initiative Petition law to establish an insurmountable threshold for any future Initiative Petition)

• 30 Minute Matters: Email your opposition to this bill to your State Senator and members of the Senate Local Government and Elections Committee. Committee members can be found HERE. Deadline: Committee meets February 6th at 1:00pm, but send your emails even after this deadline.

Citizen Initiative Petition + Voting Rights Bills

SJR 17 (Changes the threshold for passage of Initiative Petitions AND prohibits Missouri from joining the National Popular Vote Compact)

• 30 Minute Matters: Email your opposition to this bill to your State Senator and members of the Senate Local Government and Elections Committee. Committee members can be found HERE. Deadline: Committee meets February 6th at 1:00pm, but send your emails even after this deadline.

LGBTQ+ Rights Bills

SB 14 (Prohibits anyone of any age from changing the sex listed on their birth certificate, thus blocking trans people from acquiring accurate government IDs among other things)

• 5 for Democracy: Call your state senator and express your opposition to this bill.
• 30 Minute Matters: Email your opposition to this bill to your State Senator and members of the General Laws Committee. Committee members can be found HERE. Deadline: Committee meets February 7th at 10:00am

Get typing!

Citizen Initiative Petition Bills

HJR 19 (Changes Missouri’s Initiative Petition law to require winning not just a majority of votes cast but also a majority of votes in more than half of the state senate districts.)

• Five for Democracy: Submit testimony in opposition to to HJR 19 before the hearing HERE. Deadline: Committee meets January 31st at 12:30pm

HJR 30, + HJR 43 (Both of these bills proposes changes to the Missouri citizen Initiative Petition law as enshrined in the Missouri Constitution)

• 30 Minute Matters: Read the Missouri Independent’s article by a conservative, “Missouri voters won’t fall for the ballot initiative power grab”
• Anne's Bonus Task: Talk to your friends and family about Missouri's Citizen Initiative Petition process!

LGBTQ+ Rights Bills

HB 337, HB 183, HB 170 (Together, these bills create the Save Women’s Sports Act or define what “sex” is so only biological females would be allowed to participate in women’s sports)

• 30 Minute Matters: Email your opposition to this bill to your State Senator and members of the General Laws Committee. Committee members can be found HERE.

Let's go!

Citizen Initiative Petition Bills

HJR 18, HJR 24, HJR 25, HJR 30, + HJR 43 (Each of these bills proposes changes to the Missouri citizen Initiative Petition law as enshrined in the Missouri Constitution)

• Five for Democracy: Submit testimony in opposition to any or all 5 bills before the hearing HERE. Deadline: Committee meets January 24th at 12pm

Voting Rights Bills

SB 44 (Sets up an onerous voter purging regime that makes voter inactivity over a 2 year period a criteria for removal from the voter registration list)

• 30 Minute Matters: Email your opposition to this bill to your State Senator and members of the Local Government and Elections Committee. Committee members can be found HERE. Deadline: Committee meets January 23rd at 2pm

Education Bills

SB 42 (School districts would be prohibited from teaching about “any divisive concepts." The bill also targets trans kids.)

• 30 Minute Matters: Email your opposition to this bill to your State Senator and members of the Senate Education and Workforce Development Committee members can be found HERE. Deadline: Committee meets January 24th at 8am

Tax Bills

SB 93 (Would reduce the current 4% income tax on corporations to 0% by 2027)

• 30 Minute Matters: Email your opposition to this bill to your State Senator and members of the Economic Development and Tax Policy Committee before the hearing. Committee Members can be found HERE. Deadline: Committee meets January 23rd at 2pm

Tax Bill!

SB 8 (Gradually does away with personal property tax which will hurt school districts etc that rely on this revenue stream)

• Five for Democracy: Email members of the Economic Development and Tax Policy Committee to encourage them to oppose this legislation. Deadline: Committee meets January 17th at 2pm

Up and at 'em!

Welcome back! Rachel and Anne are back to ease you into the 2023 Missouri Legislative Session. This week's Five for Democracy is easy! Just hit the follow button for this podcast on your favorite podcast platform. That's it!