HB 1694 Missouri House · 2026 Regular Session

Establishes the "Act Against Abusive Website Access Litigation"

HB 1694, the "Act Against Abusive Website Access Litigation," creates a legal defense for Missouri residents and businesses targeted by lawsuits alleging website accessibility violations under the ADA or state law. It defines "abusive litigation" as lawsuits primarily seeking monetary settlement rather than improving accessibility, and allows Missouri residents or the Attorney General to challenge such suits in court. Key provisions include a 90-day window for defendants to fix accessibility issues before new claims can be deemed abusive, and courts may award attorney fees and punitive damages (up to three times fees) against parties filing abusive lawsuits. The bill expires if the federal DOJ issues website accessibility standards under the ADA. It directly affects Missouri-based website operators and plaintiffs filing accessibility lawsuits in state courts.

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Dec 2025

Committee Review

Mar 2026

House Passage

Feb 2026

Senate Passage

Governor

Introduced Dec 1, 2025 Last action Mar 25, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

House Committee Substitute → Perfected · 2 edits

MINOR

The bill was transitioned from a House Committee Substitute version to a Perfected version, indicating it has passed committee review and is ready for final passage. The substantive content remains largely unchanged, with only minor formatting adjustments and the addition of clarifying language about the Attorney General's authority to issue guidance on abusive litigation practices.

TECHNICAL

Header was updated from 'HOUSE COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE' to 'PERFECTED' and the Chief Clerk's designation changed from 'H' to 'P', indicating the bill has completed committee review.

ENFORCEMENT

Added language clarifying that the Attorney General may issue guidance or determinations about when litigation practices are abusive, while ensuring these determinations do not prevent legitimate accessibility enforcement actions.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the House by voice vote (no roll call recorded).

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Mar 25, 2026

Upper · Passed

Public Hearing Scheduled (S) - Wednesday, March 25, 2026, 12:00 p.m., Senate Committee Room-1st Floor

upper

Feb 26, 2026

Committee

Second read and referred: General Laws(S)

upper

Feb 5, 2026

Lower · Passed

Third Read and Passed (H) - AYES: 149 NOES: 0 PRESENT: 2

lower

Feb 4, 2026

Lower · Passed

HCS Adopted (H)

lower

Jan 29, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported Do Pass (H) - AYES: 10 NOES: 0 PRESENT: 0

lower

Jan 29, 2026

Lower · Passed

Voted Do Pass (H)

lower

Jan 27, 2026

Committee

Referred: Rules - Legislative(H)

lower

Jan 22, 2026

Lower · Passed

HCS Reported Do Pass (H) - AYES: 14 NOES: 0 PRESENT: 0

lower

Jan 21, 2026

Lower · Passed

HCS Voted Do Pass (H)

lower

Jan 8, 2026

Committee

Referred: General Laws(H)

lower

Dec 1, 2025

Introduced

Prefiled (H)

lower

1 primary · 11 co-sponsors