HCS HB 1030, 1033, 1146, 1225 & 1326 -- POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS
Johnson (47)

COMMITTEE OF ORIGIN:  Local Government

This substitute changes the laws regarding political
subdivisions.  In its main provisions, the substitute:

(1)  Allows a county commission to reject the transfer of title
of real property to the county by donation or dedication if it is
in the best interest of the county to do so.  The preparer of a
document donating or dedicating real property to a county cannot
submit the document for recording unless the grantee's acceptance
is proved or acknowledged (Section 49.292, RSMo);

(2)  Prohibits a county from receiving state funds unless the
county has agreed by ordinance or order to engage in mandatory
mediation in disputes arising with another county over financial
expenditures.  Costs of the mediation will be shared between the
counties involved (Section 50.032);

(3)  Establishes the salary schedule for public administrators in
second, third, and fourth classification counties who choose to
be paid by salary and who are considered full-time county
officials as the base schedule for those officials, unless the
current salary is lower than the compensation in the schedule.
The lowering of county official salaries below the level being
paid on August 28, 2005, is retroactively prohibited, and any
action or vote doing so is voided (Section 50.327);

(4)  Authorizes the salary commission in Cape Girardeau County to
meet to determine whether to equalize the base salaries of the
treasurer and public administrator with the base salaries of the
auditor and recorder of deeds (Section 50.339);

(5)  Eliminates the requirement of advertising in first
classification counties for county contracts or purchases
involving an expenditure of less than $7,500 (Section 50.660);

(6)  Requires all noncharter counties to mail property tax
statements and receipts to taxpayers at least 30 days before
being due.  Currently, statements are required to be mailed at
least 15 days before the due date (Section 52.230);

(7)  Adds new requirements for candidates seeking the office of
county treasurer (Section 54.040);

(8)  Allows sensitive personal identifying information contained
in recordable documents to be redacted or removed by the preparer
of the document or the recorder of deeds (Sections 59.331 and
59.332);

(9)  Requires county boards that receive funding from the county
treasury and whose members are appointed by the county commission
to submit an annual report each fiscal year itemizing
expenditures (Section 67.048);

(10)  Allows the governing body of any municipality or county to
authorize its employees or agents to stand in a road to solicit
charitable contributions.  The employee or agent must make
written application at least 11 days before soliciting and may
need to provide proof of liability insurance.  The governing body
may require payment of a reasonable fee (Section 67.304);

(11)  Requires that 75% of the general county sales tax revenue
in New Madrid County be distributed to the county and the
remaining 25% be distributed equally among the incorporated
cities, towns, and villages of the county.  Currently, all the
revenue goes to the county (Section 67.547);

(12)  Authorizes the governing body of Boone County to have
exclusive control over the expenditures and operation of a
regional recreational district located only in that county on
land owned solely by the county (Section 67.797);

(13)  Authorizes Perry County to impose, upon voter approval, a
sales tax of up to one-fourth of 1% to equally fund senior
services and youth programs.  A senior services tax commission
must be established to administer the revenue received for senior
services (Section 67.997);

(14)  Authorizes the City of Gladstone to impose, upon voter
approval, a transient guest tax of up to 5% on hotel and motel
rooms to be used for the promotion of tourism (Section 67.1003);

(15)  Authorizes Franklin County to impose, upon voter approval,
a transient guest tax up to 5% per room per night in the Sullivan
C-II School District to be used for the promotion of tourism
(Section 67.1360);

(16)  Prohibits owners, employees, shareholders, or independent
contractors over whom the regional taxicab commission has
oversight or any person who stands to benefit economically or
politically from serving on the commission.  An advisory
committee, comprised of 10 transportation industry
representatives, is established (Section 67.1806);

(17)  Authorizes Pulaski County to impose, upon voter approval, a
sales tax of one-eighth of 1% to fund construction of a women's
and children's shelter.  The sales tax will expire three years
after its effective date unless repealed sooner (Section
67.2040);

(18)  Allows the City of Excelsior Springs, upon voter approval,
to issue bonds and levy a sales tax of up to 0.5% on all retail
sales made within the city for the purpose of constructing,
equipping, operating, and maintaining a community center (Section
67.2715);

(19)  Requires that all property owners within an area proposed
to be incorporated into a city be notified by mail of the
proposed incorporation, the date of the hearing, and that a
public hearing will be held.  The names and mailing addresses of
all property owners within the proposed area are required in the
petition for incorporation, and sufficient funds to cover the
cost of mailing the notice must also be included (Section
72.080);

(20)  Provides that no ordinance of the City of Kansas City will
be construed to prohibit the use of tobacco in any facility owned
and operated by a tax-exempt entity (Section 82.301);

(21)  Authorizes the City of St. Louis to impose, upon voter
approval, a sales tax of up to 0.5% for the operation of public
safety departments as well as for compensation, pension programs,
and health care for public safety employees and pensioners
(Section 92.500);

(22)  Authorizes the City of Kimberling City to impose, upon
voter approval, a transient guest tax of up to 4% on hotel and
motel rooms for the promotion of tourism and the construction or
maintenance of infrastructure improvements (Section 94.839);

(23)  Authorizes municipalities in St. Louis County to impose,
upon voter approval, a sales tax of up to 0.5% for improving
public safety to be used solely for equipment purchases and
employee salaries for police, fire, and emergency medical
providers.  Before placing the tax on the ballot, the
municipality must itemize the police, fire, and emergency medical
provider budgets; and the revenue generated from this tax will be
divided proportionally between these departments based upon the
declared budgets.  Municipalities in St. Louis County imposing a
tax under this authorization cannot charge residents a fee for
ambulance or fire protection services rendered (Section 94.860);

(24)  Authorizes the City of Joplin to impose, upon voter
approval, a retail sales tax of up to 0.5% to be used for
nonprofit museums and nonprofit organizations that develop,
promote, or operate historical locations (Section 94.950);

(25)  Specifies that for industrial development project plans
approved after May 15, 2005, in Boone County, reimbursements in
excess of the actual costs must be disbursed to each affected
taxing entity in proportion to the current ad valorem tax levy of
each affected taxing entity, not just the entities in current law
(Section 100.050);

(26)  Allows the City of Gladstone to levy separate and differing
tax rates for real and personal property as long as the city
bills and collects its own assessment.  The separate and
differing rates cannot exceed the city's tax rate ceiling
(Section 137.115);

(27)  Removes the county assessor from a county board of
equalization, but requires the assessor or a staff member to
attend the hearings and present evidence pertaining to the
assessment.  The county commission must appoint one additional
member with relevant experience to the board.  Currently, county
commissioners may appoint two additional members.  The substitute
also extends statewide a requirement that a property owner's
position must prevail if a majority of the board of equalization
is not present for a hearing after request by the property owner.
Currently, this provision only applies to St. Louis County
(Sections 138.010 and 138.135);

(28)  Authorizes the waiver of penalties and interest for the
underpayment of property tax when the underpayment is the result
of an error or omission by a county employee (Section 139.100);

(29)  Authorizes counties and municipalities to contract for
private collection services for delinquent taxes (Section
140.852);

(30)  Establishes a minimum number of 50 voters required to sign
a petition to attach a school district to an adjacent
seven-director school district (Section 162.441);

(31)  Allows the City of Corder to sell or use property
originally acquired from a school district for public use for any
purpose after 25 years (Section 177.091);

(32)  Requires members of ambulance district boards first elected
after January 1, 2006, to complete educational training.  The
training will be offered by a statewide association organized for
the benefit of ambulance districts or approved by the State
Advisory Council on Emergency Medical Services.  The content of
the training must include the duties of the ambulance district
director, all ambulance district statutes and regulations, ethics
and sunshine laws, financial and fiduciary responsibilities, and
laws relating to the setting of tax rates and revenue
limitations.  If a board member does not receive the required
training within one year of taking office, the board member
cannot receive an attendance fee until the training is completed
(Section 190.053);

(33)  Allows the State Registrar within the Department of Health
and Senior Services to appoint a person employed by a city health
agency as a local registrar (Section 193.065);

(34)  Allows county commissions, at their discretion, to open a
county road and conclusively establishes the status as a public
road of any county road for which the county has received county
aid road trust funds for at least five years after January 1,
1990.  The county highway engineer is no longer required to
examine and approve a road or road change before the county
commission takes action on the road (Sections 228.040, 228.070,
and 228.190);

(35)  Reduces the compensation of county highway commission
members who are not also members of the county's governing body
from a fixed fee per meeting to an amount set by the governing
body plus mileage in counties that have adopted alternative
county highway commissions (Section 230.220);

(36)  Authorizes Jasper County, upon voter approval, to impose a
landfill fee (Section 260.830);

(37)  Requires members of fire protection district (FPD) boards
first elected after January 1, 2006, to complete educational
training.  The content of the training will be determined by the
State Fire Marshal but must include the duties of the FPD
director, all FPD statutes and regulations, ethics and sunshine
laws, financial and fiduciary responsibilities, and laws relating
to the setting of tax rates and revenue limitations.  If a board
member does not receive the required training within one year of
taking office, the board member cannot receive an attendance fee
until the training is completed (Section 321.162);

(38)  Authorizes the circuit court to fill a vacancy on a fire
protection district board if the two remaining elected members
cannot agree (Section 321.200);

(39)  Authorizes any ambulance or fire protection district in the
counties of Greene, Platte, Clay, St. Charles, and St. Louis,
upon voter approval, to impose a sales tax of up to 0.5% for the
operation of the district and for the reduction of property
taxes.  Currently, the ambulance and fire protection districts in
these counties are excepted from the tax authorization.
Ambulance or fire protection districts in St. Louis County
imposing a tax under this authorization cannot charge residents a
fee for services rendered (Section 321.552);

(40)  Establishes a consolidation process for fire protection
districts in Jefferson County upon approval by the voters within
the fire protection districts (Section 321.688);

(41)  Makes any term or provision in a contract unenforceable if
it requires a public administrator who is acting as a guardian to
personally pay or guarantee the debt of a ward or protectee
(Section 473.748);

(42)  Lowers the mandatory retirement age for municipal court
judges in Jackson County from 75 years to 65 years (Section
479.020);

(43)  Excludes personal private information about an individual
that is maintained by a municipality from the definition of
"public record" for the purpose of the Sunshine Law (Section
610.010);

(44)  Extends the expiration date to August 28, 2007, on the
authorization for borrowing by the board of fund commissioners
for the purposes of water pollution control, improvement of
drinking water, storm water control, and rural water and sewer
grants and loans (Sections 644.584, 644.585, and 644.586);

(45)  Requires the removal of all emergency lights, sirens, and
decals designating a vehicle as an emergency vehicle prior to
selling or consigning the vehicle unless it is being sold
directly to another public or private safety agency (Section
650.465);

(46)  Reassigns the Monroe City R-I School District to a county
with a higher dollar value modifier (Section 1);

(47)  Requires the cities of Rogersville and Springfield to abide
by the terms of the November 15, 2005, settlement agreement
between the cities relating to involuntary annexation of certain
real property located between the two cities (Section 2);

(48)  Authorizes the City of Joplin to impose a retail sales tax
of up to 0.5% to be used for nonprofit museums and nonprofit
organizations that develop, promote, or operate historical
locations.  Any city is authorized to impose, upon voter
approval, a sales tax of up to 0.5% for the purpose of operating,
building, or renovating historical locations and museums to
promote tourism (Section 4); and

(49)  Grandfathers the fire water flow rate for a church
extension building in the City of Harrisonville when the fire
water flow rate for the church itself was grandfathered after the
church was annexed by the municipality (Section 5).

The substitute contains an emergency clause for the provision
regarding the Monroe City R-I School District.

FISCAL NOTE:  Estimated Income on General Revenue Fund of $17,049
or Unknown in FY 2007, $32,714 or Unknown in FY 2008, and $47,980
or Unknown in FY 2009.  No impact on Other State Funds in FY
2007, FY 2008, and FY 2009.

Missouri House of Representatives
93rd General Assembly, 2nd Regular Session
Last Updated November 29, 2006 at 9:41 am