Contentious Legislative Session Ends

The 2024 legislatives session ended Friday around 3 PM.

It was a contentious session, and some are saying there may have to be a special session.

Lawmakers approved a roughly $51 billion state budget before the deadline.

Overall, the Missouri House passed 46 bills this session with 18 of those bills being appropriation bills.

A resolution to reform the initiative petition process failed to pass.

It had been the subject of much debate during the session including a 50-hour filibuster.

Governor Parson has signed six bills so far this year including one which bans Medicaid funding to Planned Parenthood.

Here is a statement released from Missouri Right To Life:

The following is from Steve Rupp, President of Missouri Right to Life:

The 2024 legislative session ended today, Friday, May 17. While we are thankful to see the final passage of legislation to defund Planned Parenthood, we are disappointed that passage of Initiative Petition Reform to protect the Missouri Constitution and unborn babies by Concurrent Majorities, did not pass.

The House sent the Senate two bills with language that would have put on the ballot the question for Missourians to vote and determine if they want to increase the protection of our Missouri Constitution. This concurrent majority package of 50+ 1 and a vote of a majority of 5 of 8 Congressional Districts in order to change our Missouri Constitution would have gone to the voters of Missouri. The best chance we had to do that was through Senate Joint Resolution 74 (SJR 74).

The sponsor of SJR 74, Senator Mary Elizabeth Coleman, failed to hold to the language of the bill that included election integrity language to ensure that only citizens can vote and that foreign countries could not influence the amending of our Missouri Constitution. When SJR 74 was stripped of the election integrity language in February without the sponsor of the bill speaking against it, we know now that the bill was on a path to fail.

After much debate and the final filibuster of the session by pro-abortion Democrats, the refusal by the Sponsor of SJR 74, Senator Mary Elizabeth Coleman, to work to call the previous question to shut down the filibuster and come to a vote on protecting our Missouri Constitution, the failure of the President Pro-Tem of the Senate, Senator Caleb Rowden and the failure of the Majority Floor Leader, Senator Cindy O’Laughlin to lead and give support in passing SJR 74, the bill died.

Although some Republicans have abandoned their constituency base of conservatives and conservative values, there are many Missourians who will remember those who failed to pass SJR 74.

Pro-Life Missourians will continue to work to save babies and protect women from the abortion industry. We pray for Missouri and our pro-life work ahead.