HCS HB 365 -- COUNTY SHERIFF'S REVOLVING FUNDS

SPONSOR:  Lipke (Munzlinger)

COMMITTEE ACTION:  Voted "do pass" by the Committee on Crime
Prevention and Public Safety by a vote of 12 to 0.

This substitute repeals the provision in Section 50.535, RSMo,
requiring money in a county sheriff's revolving fund to be used
only for the purchase of equipment and to provide training for
law enforcement officers.  County sheriffs will be allowed to use
moneys in the fund to cover the costs associated with the
processing of concealed carry endorsements.  If the actual
expenses in a given year exceed the revenue generated by the
statutory maximum application fee of $100, a sheriff may present
specific and verified evidence of the unreimbursed expenses to
the Office of Administration.  Upon certification by the Attorney
General, the Office of Administration will reimburse the sheriff
from an appropriation made for that purpose.

The substitute contains an emergency clause.

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

PROPONENTS:  Supporters say that because of the ambiguities
regarding funding in the concealed firearms bill passed in 2003
and the subsequent ruling of the Missouri Supreme Court on that
legislation, the concealed carry endorsement provisions are being
applied differently in some counties.  Currently, county
sheriffs, as the chief administrators of this permitting process,
face lawsuits from both sides of this issue.  The bill will
clarify those ambiguities, make the law enforced uniformly
throughout the state, and end the litigation on this issue.

Testifying for the bill were Representative Munzlinger; Office of
the Attorney General; Johnson County Sheriff's Office; Missouri
Sheriffs Association; National Rifle Association; and Missouri
Family Network.

OPPONENTS:  There was no opposition voiced to the committee.

Richard Smreker, Senior Legislative Analyst

Missouri House of Representatives
93rd General Assembly, 1st Regular Session
Last Updated August 25, 2005 at 1:19 pm