HCS SCS SB 420 & 344 -- JUDICIAL PROCEDURES AND PERSONNEL

SPONSOR:  Mayer (Byrd)

COMMITTEE ACTION:  Voted "do pass" by the Committee on Judiciary
by a vote of 12 to 0.

This substitute changes the laws regarding judicial procedures
and personnel.  In its main provisions, the substitute:

(1)  Specifies that health professionals who volunteer to be
deployed during a state emergency may be deployed and any claim
against the professionals that is based on acts or omissions
during the period of deployment is covered under the State Legal
Expense Fund;

(2)  Requires a notice of foreclosure in the cities of Kansas
City and St. Louis to be posted on the affected property;

(3)  Exempts the police boards of the cities of Kansas City and
St. Louis from coverage under the State Legal Expense Fund;

(4)  Revises the limit that the State Legal Expense Fund can pay
to a claimant in the case of a claim or judgment against an
officer or employee of the state or a state agency;

(5)  Clarifies provisions allowing the Children's Division in the
Department of Social Services to exercise discretion in awarding
custody or visitation or the placing of a child back in the home
of a parent, or any person residing in the home, who has been
found guilty or plead guilty to specified offenses;

(6)  Revises the Safe Place for Newborns Act of 2002 to apply to
the voluntary relinquishment of a child no more than one year
old.  Current law applies to children between six years of age
and 30 days of age;

(7)  Clarifies provisions prohibiting a child under the care of
the state or the jurisdiction of a juvenile court from being
reunited with a parent or being placed back in the home with a
parent who has been found guilty or plead guilty to specific
crimes of sexual offenses or offenses against the family when a
child was the victim;

(8)  Establishes the Task Force on Alternative Sentencing within
the Department of Corrections and specifies its duties;

(9)  Requires a verified petition to be submitted in order to
form a transportation district;

(10)  Allows the court to enter a judgment abating child support
for a period of up to five months for any semester in which a
child completes at least six but less than 12 credit hours when a
child has pursued a path of continuous attendance at an
institution of higher learning and has demonstrated evidence of a
plan to continue the attendance;

(11)  Changes the review of the child support guidelines from
every three years to every four years;

(12)  Specifies that child orders of protection may be issued for
at least 180 days and up to one year;

(13)  Allows the court to retain jurisdiction over a full order
of protection for a child for the duration of the order and
allows the court to schedule compliance review hearings to
monitor compliance with the order;

(14)  Specifies that the term "owner," when used to define a
person having a right to create a beneficiary deed, will include
any person regardless of the terminology used to refer to the
owner in the deed.  This provision will apply to all beneficiary
deeds, including those executed prior to August 28, 2005;

(15)  Allows a court to appoint a standby guardian to temporarily
assume the duties of guardian of a minor child, which becomes
effective on the disability, incapacitation, or death of the
appointing parent or guardian;

(16)  Provides for the replacement of a disqualified probate
judge;

(17)  Provides for six circuit court judges in the 11th and 23rd
judicial circuits beginning January 1, 2007;

(18)  Specifies that the family court commissioner and the drug
court commissioner positions in the 11th and 23rd judicial
circuit will become associate circuit judge positions beginning
January 1, 2007;

(19)  Provides that there will be one additional associate
circuit judge in Cass County beginning January 1, 2007;

(20)  Requires clerks who process passport applications and
collect a fee for the processing to account for the expenditure
of the fee in an annual report to the presiding judge and the
Office of State Courts Administrator.  The fees may only be used
for the maintenance of the courthouse or to fund operations of
the circuit court;

(21)  Adds attorneys licensed to practice law in this state to
the definition of "notary public";

(22)  Specifies that courts or entities collecting court costs on
their behalf are not required to refund the overpayment of court
costs if the overpayment is less than $5.  The overpaid funds may
be retained by the court for the operation of the circuit court;

(23)  Assesses a court cost of $1 in all criminal cases to be
deposited into the Legal Defense and Defender Fund;

(24)  Allows circuit courts to contract with private entities
operating under a contract with a state agency or the Office of
State Courts Administrator to collect past due court-ordered
penalties or fines;

(25)  Specifies that health care providers and employees of
religious institutions may be excused from jury duty upon timely
application to the court;

(26)  Requires courts to specify the date a prospective juror
will appear for jury service before granting a postponement;

(27)  Specifies that the service of summons in an unlawful
detainer action will be delivered by ordinary, rather than
certified, mail.  If the officer assigned to execute the summons
returns to the court with information that the defendant cannot
be found and with proof by affidavit that the summons was mailed,
the judge will proceed to hear the matter as if personal service
had been made;

(28)  Allows a person who is aggrieved by a final decision in a
contested case regarding the employment of any employee of the
state or its political subdivisions to petition the court for a
trial de novo as an alternative to seeking judicial review of the
decision;

(29)  Allows sheriffs to agree as to which county will house a
defendant after a change of venue;

(30)  Eliminates the bifurcated jury trial proceeding in criminal
cases;

(31)  Specifies that a peace officer may be disciplined for
engaging in gross misconduct while not on active duty;

(32)  Adds two rank-and-file peace officers to the Peace Officer
Standards and Training (POST) Commission;

(33)  Makes revisions to the list of persons that the State
Public Defender is required to provide representation;

(34)  Prohibits the release of personal information of elected
officials on the Internet;

(35)  Specifies that individuals who are determined to be
actually innocent because of DNA testing after August 28, 2000,
have five years from the date of release to file a petition for
restitution.  Currently, the individuals are required to file a
petition for restitution within one year of release;

(36)  Creates a state-funded family court commissioner position
in the 29th judicial circuit;

(37)  Creates a state-funded drug court commissioner position in
the 42nd judicial circuit; and

(38)  Specifies that any drug court commissioner appointed in the
23rd judicial circuit will be a state-funded position.

FISCAL NOTE:  Estimated Cost to General Revenue Fund of $262,570
to Unknown in FY 2006, $746,163 to Unknown in FY 2007, and
$1,198,571 to Unknown in FY 2008.  Estimated Effect on Other
State Funds of a Cost of Unknown to an Income of More than
$3,846,518 in FY 2006, a Cost of Unknown to an Income of More
than $4,669,808 in FY 2007, and a Cost of Unknown to an Income of
More than $4,673,768.

PROPONENTS:  Supporters say that the bill brings consistency to
the landlord-tenant laws.

Testifying for the bill were Senator Mayer; and Office of State
Courts Administrator.

OPPONENTS:  There was no opposition voiced to the committee.

Amy Woods, Senior Legislative Analyst

Missouri House of Representatives
93rd General Assembly, 1st Regular Session
Last Updated August 25, 2005 at 1:21 pm