HB 593 -- PEACE OFFICER RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS

SPONSOR:  Portwood

COMMITTEE ACTION:  Voted "do pass" by the Committee on Crime
Prevention and Public Safety by a vote of 10 to 1.

This bill prohibits the Board of Police Commissioners in the City
of St. Louis from requiring peace officers to reside within the
city limits after the person has been employed for four
consecutive years as a peace officer.  The board may require
officers to live within the state and may offer incentives to
encourage them to live within the city, but may not discriminate
against them based on their residency.

FISCAL NOTE:  No impact on state funds in FY 2006, FY 2007, and
FY 2008.

PROPONENTS:  Supporters say that the main reason officers choose
to leave the city is the lack of an appropriate public school for
their children.  The St. Louis Public School District is not even
accredited at this time.  Officers who stay within the city must
send their children to private schools, which is a hardship for
officers whose pay is inadequate.  For those officers whose
children have special needs, staying in the city is not an
option.  The Board of Police Commissioners says it has a waiver
procedure established for officers with special needs children,
but it is strongly suggested that you don't apply for that
waiver.  It costs the city about $50,000 to train an officer, and
many of them leave as soon as possible.  This basically means the
City of St. Louis is paying to train officers for other cities.

Testifying for the bill were Representative Portwood; St. Louis
Police Leadership Association; and Missouri Fraternal Order of
Police.

OPPONENTS:  Those who oppose the bill say that this a local
control issue and should be decided by the local entities
involved.  The Board of Police Commissioners was the body that
enacted the current requirements, and it should be the body
making any changes to it.  The board has addressed this issue
repeatedly and, along with the Mayor's Office, has chosen to keep
the residency requirements in place.  Peace officers are no
different than other employees of the City of St. Louis.  Every
employee must live within the city.  The argument that the city
can't keep officers because of the residency requirement is not
supported by the data.  A very small percentage of police
officers leaving the city cite the residency requirement as a
reason for leaving.

Testifying against the bill were Representatives Johnson (61) and
El-Amin; Office of the Mayor, City of St. Louis; St. Louis Board
of Police Commissioners; Missouri Municipal League; and St. Louis
City Police Officers' Association.

Richard Smreker, Senior Legislative Analyst

Missouri House of Representatives
93rd General Assembly, 1st Regular Session
Last Updated August 25, 2005 at 1:20 pm