HCS SS SCS SB 580 -- POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS

SPONSOR:  Griesheimer (Brown, 30)

COMMITTEE ACTION:  Voted "do pass" by the Committee on Local
Government by a vote of 12 to 1.

This substitute changes the laws regarding political
subdivisions, tax credits, utilities, motor vehicle licensing,
surveying, unclaimed property, retirement systems, taxes,
excavation, and waste management.  In its main provisions, the
substitute:

(1)  Affirms the fundamental civil right of a Missouri employee
to report an act of his or her employer which the employee
reasonably believes to be in violation of the law or strong
mandate of public policy and the fundamental right to not engage
in the violation (Section 1.201, RSMo);

(2)  Establishes the Joint Committee on Missouri's Eco Friendly
Solid Waste composed of five members of the Senate appointed by
the President Pro Tem and five members of the House of
Representatives, appointed by the Speaker, with no more than
three members from either chamber being of the same political
party.  The committee must examine Missouri's present and future
solid waste management needs to determine the best strategy to
ensure an affordable and environmentally conscious long-term
strategy for waste management that will meet the needs of the
people and businesses of Missouri for the next 25 years.  The
committee must submit a final report with its recommendations for
any legislative action deemed necessary to the General Assembly
by December 31, 2010, at which time the committee will be
dissolved.  Until the committee issues its report, the Department
of Natural Resources is prohibited from issuing a permit for any
new nonsource separated material recovery facility (Section
21.870);

(3)  Allows the State Auditor to audit a retirement system
established by the state or a political subdivision once every
three years unless otherwise required by law to audit a system
more frequently.  Currently, the auditor must review these
systems at least once every three years (Sections 29.212, 56.809,
70.605, 104.190, 104.480, and 169.020);

(4)  Increases the assessed valuation thresholds for a county to
move into a higher classification.  The minimum assessed
valuation threshold for counties of the first classification is
increased from $600 million to $900 million and from $450 million
to $600 million for counties of the second classification.  All
counties with an assessed valuation of less than $600 million
will be third classification counties.  The required assessed
valuation thresholds for changes in county classification will be
increased each year by an amount equal to the change in the
annual average of the federal Consumer Price Index or zero,
whichever is greater.  Provisions are made to allow certain
counties that would otherwise change classification under the
existing thresholds to remain at their current classification
until they qualify to change classification under the new
thresholds (Section 48.020);

(5)  Prohibits the salary established for each county official
from being reduced when any county changes classification until
the official at the time of the change leaves office (Section
48.050);

(6)  Adds Platte County to the list of counties authorized to
impose by rule, regulation, or ordinance a civil fine of up to
$1,000 for each violation of any rule, regulation, or ordinance
adopted by the county commission that is a misdemeanor and allows
all counties on the list to impose the fine for an infraction of
a municipal ordinance (Section 49.272);

(7)  Authorizes all counties of the third classification to erect
and maintain a jail or holding cell facility outside the county
seat.  Currently, this only applies to Moniteau County (Section
49.310);

(8)  Authorizes a county to amend its budget when there is a
verifiable decline in funds that could not have been estimated or
anticipated when the budget was adopted.  Currently, a county is
only authorized to amend its annual budget when it receives
additional funds that could not be estimated.  Any decrease in
appropriations must be allocated among the county departments in
a fair and equitable manner, cannot unduly affect any one
department, and cannot impact any dedicated fund authorized by
law.  The county must provide 30 days' notice of a public hearing
regarding any amendment to the county budget.  The substitute
also requires a county to hold at least one public hearing to
review the budget after each quarter of the fiscal year unless
the county reviews its budget monthly and to give five days'
notice of the hearing.  The budget amendment provision and the
quarterly review provision must be reviewed in four years to
determine whether they are still necessary (Sections 50.622 and
50.830);

(9)  Requires a county of the first classification to advertise
contracts and purchases for bid on the county's web site, if it
has one, for not less than 15 days.  Currently, counties are not
required to obtain bids on any purchase of $4,500 or less.  The
substitute increases that threshold to $5,000 or less (Section
50.660);

(10)  Increases the threshold amount when a county may waive
competitive bidding after determining that there is only one
feasible source for the supply for both the required notice and
advertising to purchases of $6,000 or more.  Currently, counties
may waive competitive bidding when the county commission
determines that there is only one feasible source for the supply,
but the commission must post notice of a proposed purchase of at
least $3,000 and advertise in a newspaper for purchases of $5,000
or more at least 10 days in advance (Section 50.783);

(11)  Authorizes the county clerk's designee who is responsible
for payroll and personnel records to perform certain duties with
regard to the county employees' retirement fund.  Currently, only
the county clerk is authorized to perform the specified duties
(Section 50.1020);

(12)  Specifies that, in counties adopting a charter form of
government after January 1, 2008, the collector will continue to
receive a 7% fee for the collection of delinquent taxes rather
than the 2% fee that all other charter county collectors receive.
Currently, this only applies to Jefferson County.  The substitute
also authorizes certain counties of the first and second
classification to collect property taxes using electronic records
and disbursements.  County collectors of these counties are
required by the fifteenth day of each month to file, with the
county clerk and auditor, a detailed statement of all taxes and
license fees collected during the preceding month.  Taxing
authorities will be required to request notification of current
taxes paid under protest by February 1, and county collectors
must provide the information by March 1.  The county collector-
treasurer in a county of the third or fourth classification that
abolishes its township form of government must assume all duties,
compensation, fee schedules, and requirements of the collector-
treasurer (Sections 52.290, 52.312, 52.361, 52.370, 54.010,
55.140, 55.190, 139.031, 139.140, 139.150, 139.210, 139.220,
140.050, 140.070, 140.080, 140.160, and 165.071);

(13)  Increases from $250 to $1,000 the minimum threshold value
of county property that must be inventoried annually by the
auditor in a charter county (Section 55.030);

(14)  Requires all county coroners or deputy coroners to complete
required educational training within six months of their election
or appointment.  Currently, certain county coroners and deputy
coroners are required to complete the training on an annual basis
(Section 58.030);

(15)  Requires a request for records filed or recorded by the
recorder of deeds dated after December 31, 1969, to be made to
the office in which the record was originally recorded (Section
59.003);

(16)  Authorizes the recorder of deeds in Jackson County to
collect a $1 donation over and above any required fees charged
for recording or providing a certified copy of a marriage license
or birth certificate.  Moneys collected will be deposited into
the housing resource commission fund to assist homeless families
and provide financial assistance to organizations addressing
homelessness in the county.  The recorder must provide a
check-off box for the donation on any required form (Sections
59.318 and 193.265);

(17)  Requires a surveyor who establishes, restores, or
re-establishes one or more corners to file the results with the
recorder of deeds of the county in which the survey is located
regardless of whether it creates a new parcel of land within 60
days of the survey certification.  Currently, only a land
surveyor who establishes, restores, or re-establishes one or more
corners that create a new parcel of land is required to file the
results (Section 60.650);

(18)  Requires the Office of the State Land Surveyor within the
Department of Natural Resources to establish rules setting
minimum standards for digital cadastral parcel mapping.  Any map
designed and used to reflect legal property descriptions or
boundaries for use in a digital cadastral mapping system must
comply with the rules established by the office with certain
exceptions.  The substitute also adds the determination of land
boundaries and positions of the United States Public Land Survey
System and the creation, preparation, and modification of
electronic or computerized data to the list of work or services
that a professional land surveyor can perform (Sections 60.670
and 327.272);

(19)  Specifies that Jefferson County cannot adopt any charter
provision or any order or ordinance that prevents the county from
contracting out the county's probation services with a private
entity (Section 66.720);

(20)  Authorizes public entities and political subdivisions to
deposit funds and earn interest based on short-term sweeps of
accounts and the redeposit of funds.  These cash sweeps into
higher interest-bearing certificates of deposit will only be
undertaken at certain financial institutions that are properly
insured if certain conditions are met (Section 67.085);

(21)  Changes the deadline from September 1 to October 1 for
political subdivisions located at least partially within a
charter county or the City of St. Louis to set ad valorem
property tax rates (Section 67.110);

(22)  Authorizes any county to establish ordinances regarding
curfew hours for persons younger than 17 years of age.  Any minor
who violates a curfew ordinance will be guilty of a class C
misdemeanor.  If the minor's parent or guardian has knowledge of
the violation, he or she will also be guilty of a class C
misdemeanor (Section 67.309);

(23)  Establishes the Political Subdivision Construction Bidding
Standards Act which creates standards for advertising,
soliciting, accepting, and rejecting competitive bids and
awarding construction contracts of $8,000 or more for certain
political subdivisions of the state (Section 67.314);

(24)  Requires tax-supported neighborhood improvement district
bonds to be retired within 20 years from the date the bonds are
contracted and neighborhood improvement district bonds which are
not supported by a tax to be retired within the greater of 120%
of the average economic life of the improvement, as certified by
a professional engineer, or 30 years from the date the bonds are
contracted.  The substitute also specifies that each parcel of
property in a neighborhood improvement district will be assessed
as a full share of the assessment per lot if a single parcel
within the district in Boone County is divided into additional
parcels within five years of the final costs of the improvement's
assessment (Section 67.456);

(25)  Authorizes the City of Jefferson City to impose, upon voter
approval, a transient guest tax of up to 7% per occupied room per
night for promoting the city as a convention, visitor, and
tourist center (Section 67.1000);

(26)  Authorizes the City of Excelsior Springs 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);

(27)  Authorizes Carter County to impose, upon voter approval, a
transient guest tax of up to 5% per occupied room per night with
50% of the proceeds to be used to fund county law enforcement and
50% to be used for the promotion of tourism (Section 67.1018);

(28)  Authorizes the cities of Ashland, Brentwood, and Sugar
Creek and Montgomery County to impose, upon voter approval, a
transient guest tax between 2% and 5% per occupied room per night
to be used for the promotion of tourism.  Motels in the City of
Sugar Creek that are owned by not-for-profit organizations are
exempt from this provision (Sections 67.1360 and 94.834);

(29)  Allows the City of St. Joseph and Buchanan County to also
use the revenue from its transient guest tax for capital
expenditures incurred in funding the promotion of tourism and
convention facilities and to contract with one another to share
the tax revenues for the purpose of promoting tourism and the
construction, maintenance, and improvement of convention center
and recreational facilities (Sections 67.1361 and 70.220);

(30)  Allows a community improvement district located within a
blighted area to contract with a private property owner for the
original construction or improvements of certain projects
(Section 67.1461);

(31)  Authorizes real property owners in the Cameron School
District located in the counties of Caldwell, Clinton, Daviess,
and DeKalb, upon voter approval, to establish an exhibition
center and recreational facility district and to impose a
one-quarter of 1% sales tax for a period of up to 25 years to
fund the district (Section 67.2000);

(32)  Authorizes the governing body of any county, city,
incorporated town, or village to engage in projects involving a
technology business facility which is a facility located in an
underground mine with at least two million square feet of space
used for data processing, hosting, and related services or
Internet publishing and broadcasting and web search portals
(Section 67.2050);

(33)  Requires the governing body of any county, city, town, or
village or any entity created by these political subdivisions to
give notice at least four business days prior to voting and to
hold a public meeting to allow public comment on an issue
involving the implementation of a tax increase, a retail
development project which utilizes the power of eminent domain,
creation of a transportation development or community improvement
district, or the approval of a redevelopment plan that pledges
public funds as financing (Section 67.2725);

(34)  Makes it lawful for Caldwell County to enter into a
contract with private corporations engaged in pumping and
delivering water at wholesale for domestic consumption.  The
county may also acquire, own, and hold, with private
corporations, water mains or interests in water mains to secure
an adequate supply of water for its inhabitants (Section
67.3025);

(35)  Establishes the Port Improvement District Act which
authorizes a port authority to establish a port improvement
district within its boundaries for the purpose of funding
qualified project costs.  Port authorities located within Clay
County can only establish a port improvement district within
4,000 feet of the center of the Missouri River.  These provisions
are nonseverable (Sections 68.025 - 68.260 and Section 3);

(36)  Authorizes the governing body of a municipality to annex a
parcel of land within a research, development, or office park
project located in an unincorporated area of the county if the
parcel is compact and contiguous to the existing boundaries of
the municipality and the municipality obtains the written consent
of all the property owners within the unincorporated area of the
parcel (Section 71.275);

(37)  Prohibits a municipality other than Kansas City or St.
Louis or a water or sewer services provider supplying an occupant
of a premises with water or sewer services from holding the owner
of the premises liable for the occupant's delinquent water or
sewer services payment.  The municipality or water or sewer
services provider may sue the occupant who received the services
in a civil suit to recover any sums owed for the services plus
reasonable attorney fees as set by the court (Sections 71.515,
250.140, and 393.107);

(38)  Authorizes the City of Washington to submit any question to
a vote of the people as an advisory referendum.  If a majority of
the voters vote in favor of the question, it must be used only to
indicate the preference of the voters and will not have the force
and effect of law (Section 77.305);

(39)  Prohibits the City of Byrnes Mill from annexing any
property adjacent to the city if there are no registered voters
residing on the property unless the city has obtained the written
consent of all the property owners in the adjacent property
(Section 79.025);

(40)  Prohibits third class cities from imposing a storm water
usage fee based on the runoff rate on property owned by any
church, public school, nonprofit organization, or political
subdivision (Section 88.832);

(41)  Authorizes the collector of revenue in the City of St.
Louis to collect charges for trash collection in the same manner
that property taxes are collected and specifies that delinquent
or unpaid charges will be deemed a personal debt of the person
owing the charges and a lien on the person's real property until
paid (Section 92.013);

(42)  Increases the monthly interest rate charged from 1% to 2%,
increases the maximum annual interest rate from 10% to 18%, and
repeals the prime rate limitation on the interest rate for
delinquent property taxes in the City of St. Louis (Sections
92.715, 140.100, and 141.830);

(43)  Authorizes the City of Grandview to impose, upon voter
approval, a transient guest tax of up to 5% per occupied room per
night to be used for the promotion of tourism (Section 94.271);

(44)  Authorizes the City of North Kansas City to impose, upon
voter approval, a transient guest tax of up to 5% per occupied
room per night to be used for funding tourism and infrastructure
improvements (Section 94.832);

(45)  Authorizes the City of Raytown to impose, upon voter
approval, a transient guest tax of up to 5% per occupied room per
night to be used for the promotion, operation, and development of
tourism and convention facilities (Section 94.840);

(46)  Authorizes the City of Van Buren to impose, upon voter
approval, a transient guest tax of up to 5% per occupied room per
night to be used for general revenue purposes (Section 94.845);

(47)  Authorizes the City of Waynesville to impose, upon voter
approval, a transient guest tax of up to 3% per occupied room per
night to be used for the construction, maintenance, and repair of
a multipurpose conference and convention center (Section
94.1011);

(48)  Requires a candidate for office in a special district; a
township in a township organization county; or a city, town, or
village to pay various taxes and fees prior to being eligible to
run for an elected office (Sections 115.305, 115.342, and
115.346);

(49)  Prohibits an individual who has been convicted of, found
guilty of, or pled guilty to a felony in Missouri to any crime in
another jurisdiction that would be a felony if committed in
Missouri or to any federal felony or misdemeanor from qualifying
as a candidate for any elective public office including elective
public office of any political subdivision.  Crimes involving
misconduct in public office or dishonesty whether classified as
misdemeanors or felonies will also disqualify an individual
(Section 115.350);

(50)  Authorizes an annual tax credit for up to 10 years if
approved by the Department of Economic Development to a taxpayer
who establishes a new business facility in a certified industrial
zone approved or designated as an enhanced enterprise zone and
meets certain specified investment and employment requirements.
A taxpayer who receives this tax credit cannot also receive tax
credits from the new or expanded business facilities, enterprise
zones, relocating a business to a distressed community, or
Missouri Quality Jobs programs (Sections 135.950 - 135.969);

(51)  Requires certain commercial vehicles powered only by
battery-generated electrical energy and produced before
January 1, 2014, to be assessed at 17% of their true value in
money and exempts those commercial vehicles from state and local
sales and use taxes (Sections 137.115 and 144.055);

(52)  Prohibits an increase in the assessed valuation of a motor
vehicle from year to year, but the provision will not apply to
the calculation of the assessed valuation of a motor vehicle that
is purchased or sold between assessments (Section 137.126);

(53)  Requires assessors in all noncharter counties and Jefferson
County to give property owners additional information with the
notice of increased assessed valuation.  This requirement applies
to all calendar years prior to January 1 of the year following
receipt of the necessary software from the State Tax Commission.
Currently, assessors in noncharter counties must give taxpayers a
projected tax liability notice with the notice of increased
assessed valuation beginning January 1, 2011.  Beginning January
1 of the year following receipt of the software, assessors in all
noncharter counties and Jefferson County must give taxpayers a
projected tax liability notice with the notice of increased
assessed valuation.  Beginning January 1, 2011, in St. Louis
County, the assessor must provide the taxpayer with a notice that
information regarding the assessment method and computation of
value for real property is available on the assessor's web site,
the web site address, and the assessor's contact information so
taxpayers without Internet access can request and receive the
information.  Currently, the assessor must provide the clerk with
the assessment book on or before March 1 of each year so that the
clerk can make an abstract of the assessment book.  The
substitute changes the annual requirement to every odd-numbered
tax year (Sections 137.180, 137.243, and 137.355);

(54)  Authorizes each party to an appeal that is scheduled to be
heard before the State Tax Commission to request one change of
the assigned hearing officer by filing a written application to
disqualify the officer within 30 days of the assignment (Section
138.431);

(55)  Prohibits any interest from being charged against a person
who fails to pay taxes due to the collector because a terminal
illness prevents him or her from being present at home if, within
60 days following the due date, the person pays the full amount
and gives the collector a written request for a waiver of
interest containing a notarized letter from the person's doctor
stating the person's medical reason for not being able to pay in
a timely manner (Section 139.100);

(56)  Changes the laws regarding the sale of real property for
the collection of delinquent taxes (Sections 140.150 and 140.170
- 140.420);

(57)  Specifies that sales made by or to religious and charitable
organizations and not-for-profit civic, social, or service or
fraternal organizations in their associated functions and
activities in any location containing more than 5,000 square feet
primarily devoted to the sales will not be exempt from state and
local use tax.  Currently, these sales are exempt from the taxes.
The substitute also authorizes a state and local sales and use
tax exemption for any sale, at cost, of utilities consumed in the
operation of a sports complex leased by a sports complex
authority to a professional team (Section 144.030);

(58)  Authorizes a state and local sales and use tax exemption
for all machinery, equipment, computers, electrical energy, gas,
water, and other utilities including telecommunication services
used in new and existing data storage centers and server farm
facilities.  An exemption is also authorized for the purchase of
tangible personal property for the construction, repair, or
remodeling of a new data storage center or server farm facility.
The departments of Economic Development and Revenue are
authorized to conduct random audits to ensure compliance with the
requirements for state and local sales and use tax exemptions
authorized under the substitute (Section 144.810);

(59)  Specifies that any retired member of the Public School
Retirement System of Kansas City performing substitute,
part-time, or temporary employment for an employer in the system
cannot earn more than 50% of the annual salary or wages earned
prior to retirement adjusted for inflation and continue to
receive his or her retirement allowance.  Anyone exceeding this
limit will have his or her retirement allowance suspended for any
month in which the limit was exceeded and each subsequent month
he or she receives remuneration from any employer in the system
(Section 169.324);

(60)  Changes the due date that the librarian of a consolidated
public library district is required to submit an annual status
report to the district board from August 31 to September 30 and
the date that the board is required to submit this report and an
independent audit to the county commission and the Missouri State
Library from September 30 to October 31 of each year (Section
182.647);

(61)  Authorizes the establishment of the Kansas City Zoological
District which may be composed of the counties of Cass and
Jackson, at the option of the voters of each county.  Each member
county may impose, upon voter approval, a sales tax of up to
one-quarter of 1% for the financial support of zoological
activities within the district (Sections 184.500 - 184.512);

(62)  Increases from eight to 10 the number of members on the
sewer district boards of trustees in the counties of Cass and
Jackson.  Each board will consist of the county executive, mayors
of the five largest-user cities, mayors of three other cities who
are members of the sewer district advisory board, and one member
of the county legislature.  In the event the district extends its
boundaries into a bordering county, the presiding commissioner or
county executive of the bordering county will become the eleventh
member of the board (Section 204.300);

(63)  Requires the state, if it would otherwise be liable for
costs, to reimburse counties for housing prisoners on its behalf
upon the final disposition of the case, regardless of whether the
imposition or execution of a sentence is suspended or imposed.
Amounts chargeable to the state under these provisions are
subject to appropriations (Section 221.105);

(64)  Increases the penalty for an unscreened junkyard violation
from a misdemeanor to a class C misdemeanor for the first
violation and a class A misdemeanor for a subsequent violation.
In addition to the penalties, the violator must remove the junk
or build a fence to screen the junk from the public (Section
226.720);

(65)  Specifies that the provisions of Section 262.802, regarding
abeyance of water and sewer assessments for certain farmland
property, will not apply to any drainage district or levee
district established under state law (Section 246.310);

(66)  Authorizes the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District to
enter into design-build contracts for construction projects
exceeding $1 million (Section 249.425);

(67)  Authorizes any sewer district established under Sections
249.430 - 249.668 in a charter county to subdivide into
subdistricts, issue bonds, collect annual rental charges, and
construct and finance certain additional lateral sewers (Section
249.669);

(68)  Requires the Department of Natural Resources to establish
minimum design, siting, operation, inspection, monitoring,
financial assurance, and closure requirements by regulation for
all material recovery facilities.  The department may establish
different requirements depending on the nature and content of the
solid waste streams processed by the facility, the degree of
automation to be used in the processing and recovery activities,
the amount and type of nonrecyclable wastes remaining after
resource recovery, and other factors as determined by the
department.  Until the material recovery facility regulations
have become final and effective, the department is prohibited
from issuing any permit to construct or operate a material
recovery facility unless the facility processes only solid waste
collected as part of a source-separated or single-stream
residential, commercial, or industrial recycling program (Section
260.205);

(69)  Requires any city or political subdivision that owns or
operates a solid waste processing facility where the collection
or processing of solid waste is currently being provided by a
private entity to notify the entity by certified mail of its
intent to own or operate a processing facility in the area.  No
city or political subdivision may begin ownership or operation of
a solid waste reprocessing facility where solid waste processing
is currently handled by a private entity until at least five
years from notifying the private entity of its intent to begin
operation.  If the city or political subdivision does not begin
processing solid waste within six years of the notification, it
must renotify the private entity (Section 260.247);

(70)  Allows for a special license plate for members of the
National Wild Turkey Federation (Section 301.4010);

(71)  Requires a person applying for an original certificate of
ownership for an all-terrain vehicle or a recreational
off-highway vehicle to provide certain information in an
affidavit.  Beginning January 1, 2011, a nonresident is required
to obtain and display an annual permit from the Department of
Natural Resources or to display a valid highway license on the
off-highway vehicle to operate it in Missouri.  The cost of the
permit will be $20.  Anyone violating this provision will be
guilty of an infraction (Sections 301.4015 - 301.4029);

(72)  Specifies that, when determining a city's gross general
operating revenue from fines and court costs, traffic violations
will include moving and nonmoving violations and any moving
violations that are pled or amended to nonmoving traffic
violations.  Currently, if any city receives more than 35% of its
annual gross general operating revenue from fines and court costs
for traffic violations occurring on state highways, all revenues
in excess of the 35% threshold are distributed to the county
schools (Section 302.341);

(73)  Changes the time period in which an underground facility
owner must contact the excavator in response to a notice of
intent to excavate.  Currently, an underground facility owner
must contact the excavator within two working days beginning at
12:00 a.m. following the receipt of the request by the
notification center.  The substitute removes the 12:00 a.m.
starting time and specifies that the period begins upon receipt
of the notice and will end at the same time on the second working
day (Section 319.030);

(74) Specifies that an employee who has worked for at least seven
years for a fire department cannot be required to reside within
the department's geographical boundaries but must reside within a
one-hour response time if the only school district in the area is
or has been unaccredited or provisionally accredited in the last
five years of his or her employment.  Currently, upon approval of
the board of aldermen, a fire department employee must not be
required to live within the department boundaries if the only
public school district in the area has been unaccredited or
provisionally accredited in the last five years of the person's
employment (Section 320.097);

(75)  Prohibits an employee of a fire protection or ambulance
district from serving as a member of any fire protection or
ambulance district board in the same county where he or she is
employed.  Currently, employees of fire protection or ambulance
districts are prohibited from serving as a member of a fire
protection or ambulance district board of directors, unless it is
a voluntary district (Section 321.017);

(76)  Prohibits a person contracting to provide professional
legal and accounting services to a fire protection district from
receiving compensation after the lawful termination of the
contract, except for services actually rendered (Section
321.018);

(77)  Specifies that the director of a fire protection district
who has been found guilty of or pled guilty to a felony must
immediately forfeit the office (Section 321.130);

(78)  Changes the date that a fire protection district board
located at least partially within a charter county or the City of
St. Louis is required to certify its property tax rate from no
later than September 1 to no later than October 1 (Section
321.250);

(79)  Requires the membership requirements for the industrial
development corporation board of directors in Lewis County to be
consistent with the requirements of all other industrial
corporation boards in other counties.  Currently, the board of
directors of an industrial development corporation in Lewis
County has its own specific requirements (Section 349.045);

(80)  Establishes procedures for the sale of water or sewer
systems of a small water utility to a large public water utility
(Section 393.320);

(81)  Allows design professionals, contractors, subcontractors,
and other persons who perform work or labor on buildings or real
property to place a lien on three acres of the real property for
work or rental services that have not been paid.  Currently,
these persons may place a lien on one acre of real property
(Section 429.015);

(82)  Changes the method by which notice of a mechanics lien on
real property of an absent or nonresident owner may be given and
requires an applicable recording fee (Section 429.110);

(83)  Specifies that the automatic renewal of contracts for
service, maintenance, or repair to or for any residential real
property intended for personal, family, or household use will be
invalid unless a written notice by certified mail or email is
given to the customer 30 to 90 days prior to the contract being
renewed.  Contracts for credit insurance and service contracts
regulated under Chapter 385 are not included in the notice
requirement (Section 431.210);

(84)  Exempts intangible property due or owed by a business
association to or for the benefit of another business association
resulting from a transaction occurring in the normal and ordinary
course of business from the provisions relating to unclaimed
property and the Uniform Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act.
The State Treasurer cannot enforce the provisions of Chapter 447
relating to lost and unclaimed property more than three years
after the holder of property filed a report or gave express
notice of a dispute.  If a report is filed fraudulently with the
intent to evade escheatment of property, the State Treasurer can
enforce these provisions within six years after the report was
filed.  If no report is filed, the State Treasurer may enforce
these provisions at any time (Sections 447.535 and 447.548);

(85)  Specifies that the required continuing instruction for
public administrators in certain counties of the first
classification does not have to be classroom instruction in order
for them to receive compensation.  A public administrator from a
second, third, or fourth classification county or the City of St.
Louis who chooses to receive an annual salary will receive $2,000
of the salary only if he or she has completed at least 20 hours
of instruction each year approved by a professional association
of county public administrators (Sections 473.739 and 473.742);

(86)  Prohibits an action to recover damages from a person
performing a land survey for errors or omissions in the survey,
except in the case of fraud, from being more than 10 years from
the completion of the survey.  Currently, the action is
prohibited more than five years after the discovery of the error
or omission (Section 516.098);

(87)  Specifies that when three or more political subdivisions of
the state form a business entity for the purpose of providing
liability and other insurance, including public and quasi-public
governmental bodies, the risk coverages procured by a member of
the entity will not be deemed to constitute a contract, purchase,
or expenditure of public funds for which competitive bids must be
solicited (Section 537.620);

(88)  Specifies that, for the purpose of interpreting all tax
measures that are required by law to be enacted by a popular
vote, the fractional requirement for passage will be deemed
satisfied only if the popular vote percentage is equal to or
greater than a four decimal percentage equivalent of the fraction
with the last decimal in the ten thousandths position increased
by adding one.  These provisions must not be construed to permit
or require the rounding requirements if it does not appear in the
context of the tax measure (Section 1); and

(89)  Authorizes the Governor to convey state property in St.
Francois County to the City of Farmington (Section 2).

FISCAL NOTE:  Estimated Cost on General Revenue Fund of Unknown
exceeding $458,635 in FY 2011, Unknown Exceeding $10,711,008 in
FY 2012, and Unknown exceeding $10,821,189 in FY 2013.  Estimated
Effect on Other State Funds of a cost of Unknown to an income of
Less than $100,000 in FY 2011, FY 2012, and FY 2013.

PROPONENTS:  Supporters say that political subdivisions should be
required to bid public contracts the same as the state, counties,
and school districts.  The provisions changing the deadline to
set ad valorem property tax rates for political subdivisions
located at least partially in charter counties or the City of St.
Louis corrects a drafting error and will allow political
subdivisions, especially school districts, to more accurately set
their tax rates and avoid significant revenue losses.  The bill
is needed to help clean up the port in Kansas City.

Testifying for the bill were Senator Griesheimer; Vincent
Gauthier, Port Authority of Kansas City; Site Improvement
Association; Missouri Library Association; Missouri Rural Water
Association; Mid-America Retail Food Industry Joint Labor
Management Committee; Missouri County Collectors Association;
Missouri Council of School Administrators; Cooperating School
Districts of Greater St. Louis; and Cooperating School Districts
of Greater Kansas City.

OPPONENTS:  Those who oppose the bill say that the law
enforcement districts authorized in the bill are problematic,
will cause jurisdictional issues, and seem like the privatization
of law enforcement.  Voters have never favored charging admission
fees at the St. Louis Zoo.  Restricting the days and hours of
operation of a solid waste processing facility in St. Louis
County will open the door to these restrictions statewide and
cause traffic issues, and the problems allegedly addressed by the
legislation have already been addressed at the local level.  The
provisions allowing counties to adjust their budgets downward
need a sunset provision to force a reevaluation of whether they
are working and will strain conciliatory relationships between
county commissions and other county officers.  The provision
prohibiting a school district in Chesterfield from operating a
recycling center within 500 feet of a residential area is aimed
specifically at the Parkway School District, whose recycling
plant was initiated by students, has won awards, and has been
used as a model by other school districts.  The recycling plant
has passed inspections by the county health department and the
Department of Natural Resources, and the school district has
spent a lot of money trying to alleviate the residents' concerns
but they will not be satisfied until it is shut down.

Testifying against the bill were Charles Heiss, Missouri
Sheriffs' Association; Environmental Industry Associations; David
Overfelt, National Solid Waste Management Association; Charles
Valier; Derrick Stanley, Waste Corporation of Missouri,
Incorporated; David Bryant, Fred Weber, Incorporated; Polsinelli
Shughart P.C.; IESI Corporation; Genesis Group Ltd; Environmental
Federation of Missouri; Erik Lueders, Parkway School District;
Mark Richardson, Cole County Prosecuting Attorney, Missouri
Association of Prosecuting Attorneys; Christy Blakemore, Missouri
Circuit Clerks Association; and Judicial Conference of Missouri.

OTHERS:  Others testifying on the bill say that the political
subdivision construction bidding standards language is confusing,
and the central bid repository provisions are problematic.  Local
bidders will not know where to look to bid.

Testifying on the bill was Associated General Contractors of
Missouri, Incorporated.

Missouri House of Representatives
95th General Assembly, 2nd Regular Session
Last Updated September 14, 2010 at 3:14 pm