Finishing the Final Days of the 2020 Legislative Session

 Friday, May 15, marks the final day of the Second Regular Session of the 100th General Assembly. As I reflect on the past year, I am reminded of the unique challenges faced by every elected official in the State Capitol. Each legislative session is a challenge, but I believe the coronavirus has affected each of us in a unique way that we couldn’t have predicted or prepared for. While I have often wondered how the legislative session could have been different, if it wasn’t for the virus, I am still proud of the work accomplished by my colleagues over the course of the past five months. While there is still one day left in the legislative session, I wanted to take this opportunity to highlight some of the proposals that received final approval from the General Assembly over the course of the past week.

On Tuesday, May 12, lawmakers truly agreed and final passed Senate Bill 569. This legislation establishes a secure, electronic tracking system for sexual assault forensic evidence (SAFE) kits. I believe this legislation will strengthen the investigations and prosecution of those accused of sexual assault by reforming the handling, tracking and processing of this important forensic evidence. The measure also creates a network of nurses trained to collect evidence and connect them through the telehealth system. Senate Bill 569 includes a “Sexual Assault Survivors’ Bill of Rights” and creates the Missouri Rights of Victims of Sexual Assault Task Force. I believe this legislation has the potential to help the victims of sexual assault find justice, and I am hopeful the governor will sign it into law.

Also on Tuesday, members of the Missouri House of Representatives put the final stamp of approval on House Bill 2046 and sent it to the governor’s desk. This legislation grants reciprocity for all individuals with a professional license from a different state that want to move to Missouri and continue their occupation. In order to receive reciprocity, HB 2046 requires individuals to have a license for at least one year from another state before being eligible. In addition, it also requires the state that issued the license to have minimum education, work experience and clinical supervision requirements. As our state continues to recover from the coronavirus pandemic, I believe this legislation will play an important role in rebuilding our economy. In addition, I am hopeful that this legislation will also allow our state to license additional health care professionals as we continue to battle the coronavirus.

On Wednesday, May 13, lawmakers truly agreed and finally passed Senate Bill 591. This legislation addresses the issue of punitive damages in civil liability lawsuits. Currently, plaintiffs can be awarded compensatory damages and punitive damages in a liability lawsuit. Compensatory damages are designed to make the plaintiff whole, and these damages were unaffected by SB 591. Punitive damages go a step further and are designed to punish the defendant for their harmful behavior. It’s important to note that punitive damages are not covered by businesses’ insurance, and I believe the threat of seeking those damages can be used to bully businesses into settlements or artificially inflate settlement amounts. Senate Bill 591 does not cap or limit punitive damages, but simply requires those punitive claims to be made at the end of the case instead of the beginning. In my opinion, this legislation protects Missourians’ ability to seek justice and ensures egregious actors are still punished, while reducing uncertainty for Missouri businesses. I was proud to support this piece of tort reform legislation, and I am hopeful the governor will sign this legislation into law.

Finally on Wednesday, members of the Missouri House also gave final approval to Senate Joint Resolution 38. If adopted by Missouri voters, SJR 38 would modify Missouri’s legislative redistricting process. I believe our current redistricting process empowers an unelected, unaccountable demographer to draw legislative districts to achieve partisan outcomes. The proposed constitutional amendment would place the redistricting process in the hands of independent, bipartisan, citizen-led commissions that do not include lawmakers. I have been a vocal supporter of SJR 38 throughout the legislative session. In my opinion, the proposed constitutional amendment builds on the positive aspects of Clean Missouri, like banning all lobbyist gifts and tightening campaign contribution limits. By restoring our state’s independent, citizen-led redistricting process, SJR 38 prioritizes the principles of compactness, contiguity and preserving whole communities when drawing out state’s legislative districts. It even includes a compromise to continue to include “fairness” and “competitiveness” in the redistricting criteria. While it will ultimately be up to the voters to decide if they want to adopt SJR 38, I believe the proposed constitutional amendment was thoroughly vetted and represents an opportunity for Missourians to control our state’s redistricting process instead of an unelected mapmaker.

As I prepare this report, there is little more than a day left in the 2020 legislative session. I am still hopeful that several other proposals will reach the legislative finish line and make it to the governor’s desk before the close of business on Friday, but only time will tell. Despite the effects of the coronavirus on the legislative session, I am proud of the work accomplished by my colleagues, and I believe the legislation passed by the General Assembly makes our state a better place to live, work and raise a family.

It is an honor to serve you in the Missouri Senate. Please do not hesitate to contact my office at (573) 751-3678 or by email at dave.schatz@senate.mo.gov if you have any questions or concerns — we are honored to serve you.