HB 1948 Missouri House · 2026 Regular Session

Establishes provisions relating to the "Missouri Fathership Project"

HB 1948 designates June as "Fatherhood Engagement Month" in Missouri and creates the "Missouri Fatherhood Engagement Project" within the Department of Social Services. The project provides grants to community organizations to hire specialists who help fathers rebuild relationships with children through counseling, navigating court systems, and overcoming barriers to reunification. These specialists work directly with fathers in family court cases to develop personalized plans for reconnecting with children and meeting court-ordered requirements. Organizations receiving grants must report annually on outcomes like father-child reunifications and case plan completions.

Bill status failed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Dec 2025

Committee Review

Apr 2026

House Passage

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Governor

Introduced Dec 1, 2025 Last action Apr 15, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

House Committee Substitute → Perfected · 2 edits

MINOR

The bill was finalized and reclassified from a committee substitute to a perfected version, indicating it has passed all legislative stages. The substantive content of the bill remains unchanged, as the removed lines were explanatory notes and draft markings rather than active legal text.

Scope change

No change in the bill's scope or applicability; the text represents the same policy proposal.

TECHNICAL

Removed draft markings and explanatory notes (such as bracketed text and line numbers) that were used during the committee review process but are not part of the final law.

Updated the document header to reflect the bill's status as 'PERFECTED' and changed the clerk's code from 'H' to 'P', signifying the bill is ready for the Governor's signature.

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

Apr 2, 2026

Upper · Passed

Public Hearing Scheduled (S) - Wednesday, April 8, 2026, 8:00 a.m., Senate Committee Room 1 - 1st Floor

upper

Mar 30, 2026

Upper · Passed

Public Hearing Scheduled (S) - CANCELLED: Wendesday, April 1, 2026, 8:00 a.m., Senate Committee Room 1 - 1st Floor

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Committee

Second read and referred: Families, Seniors and Health(S)

upper

Mar 2, 2026

Lower · Passed

Third Read and Passed (H) - AYES: 141 NOES: 4 PRESENT: 0

lower

Mar 2, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported Do Pass (H) - AYES: 7 NOES: 0 PRESENT: 0

lower

Mar 2, 2026

Lower · Passed

Voted Do Pass (H)

lower

Feb 26, 2026

Committee

Referred: Fiscal Review(H)

lower

Feb 25, 2026

Lower · Passed

Perfected with Amendments (H) - HA 1, adopted

lower

Feb 25, 2026

Lower · Passed

HCS Adopted (H)

lower

Feb 17, 2026

Lower · Passed

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

lower

Feb 16, 2026

Lower · Passed

Voted Do Pass (H)

lower

Feb 11, 2026

Committee

Referred: Rules - Legislative(H)

lower

Feb 3, 2026

Lower · Passed

HCS Reported Do Pass (H) - AYES: 17 NOES: 0 PRESENT: 0

lower

Feb 3, 2026

Lower · Passed

HCS Voted Do Pass (H)

lower

Jan 8, 2026

Committee

Referred: Children and Families(H)

lower

Dec 1, 2025

Introduced

Prefiled (H)

lower

1 primary · 1 co-sponsor