SPONSOR: Hicks
COMMITTEE ACTION: Voted "Do Pass with HCS" by the Special Committee on Homeland Security by a vote of 9 to 0. Voted "Do Pass" by the Standing Committee on Administrative Oversight by a vote of 7 to 0.
The following is a summary of the House Committee Substitute for HB 785.
This bill establishes the "Capitol Police Board", which shall consist of the Governor, the Speaker of the House, the President Pro Tem of the Senate, the minority Floor Leader of the House, the minority Floor Leader of the Senate, and the Chief Justice of the Missouri Supreme Court, or their designees, and the chair of the State Capitol Commission. This Board shall be housed in the House of Representatives for administration purposes and provide for public safety at the seat of government and for the safety and security of elected officials, government employees, and their guests as needed outside the seat of government. The Board shall hire a Chief of Police and establish all necessary rules and regulations.
The bill specifies the Circuit Court of Cole County has authority to enforce the traffic or parking regulations of the Capitol Police Board.
The following is a summary of the public testimony from the committee hearing. The testimony was based on the introduced version of the bill.
This bill is similar to HCS HB 1521 (2020).
PROPONENTS: Supporters say that this bill will provide a faster response time to incidents that occur on the capitol grounds. The bill will remove political and bureaucratic obstacles that might inhibit the Capitol Police from ensuring the safety of the staff,representatives, and visitors to the seat of government in Missouri.
Testifying for the bill was Representative Hicks.
OPPONENTS: There was no opposition voiced to the committee.
Statutes affected: