Rep. Ed Lewis

Maddy summaryHJR 119 proposes a constitutional amendment to change how judges are selected in Missouri. It would require the governor to appoint judges from three nominees provided by a nonpartisan judicial commission for vacancies in the supreme court, court of appeals, and St. Louis city/Jackson County circuit courts. For other judicial circuits, voters would decide at elections whether to adopt this appointment method (instead of the current system) or maintain the existing process, with changes allowed only once every four years. The amendment must be approved by voters in 2026.

Maddy summaryHB 2760, the "PRAISE Act," prohibits state and local governments from restricting religious services during emergencies declared under specific laws, directly affecting places of worship and their attendees. It ensures religious services cannot be made impractical by emergency orders, unless the emergency involves imminent dangers like wildfires or terrorism that apply broadly to the area. The bill allows places of worship to be exempt from general emergency restrictions and provides a legal path for civil lawsuits seeking injunctions, damages, or declarations if violations occur. It explicitly excludes emergency evacuations for immediate threats but requires services to resume once the danger passes.

Maddy summaryHB 2658 creates a state "no-call database" allowing Missouri residential phone subscribers to opt out of unsolicited telemarketing calls at no cost. It requires telemarketers to check both the FCC's reassigned number database and the state database before calling, and prohibits "call spoofing" (faking caller ID to defraud or harass). The law also mandates that telemarketers clearly identify themselves at the start of calls and blocks efforts to circumvent caller ID services. This directly affects residential subscribers (who can join the database) and telemarketers (who must comply with the rules and database checks).

Maddy summaryHB 2273 establishes a new "Committee on Sex and Human Trafficking Training" to standardize and improve training for professionals who interact with trafficking victims. The committee, composed of representatives from law enforcement, child advocacy, victim services, and medical centers, will create annual training guidelines and produce digital training materials for professions required to complete such training under existing laws. This bill directly affects state agencies, law enforcement, healthcare providers, and child advocacy organizations that must provide or receive trafficking training. The committee's work will replace outdated training requirements with updated standards, effective January 1, 2027, and expire December 31, 2031. The bill does not create new criminal penalties but focuses on coordinating and modernizing existing training obligations.

Maddy summaryHB 1908 ensures Missouri courts can grant a divorce (dissolution of marriage) or legal separation even if one party is pregnant. The bill explicitly states that pregnancy status does not prevent a court from entering such a judgment, removing any prior barrier. Courts must still meet standard requirements, including residency, the marriage being irretrievably broken (for divorce) or not (for legal separation), and arrangements for children and property. This change directly affects individuals in Missouri family court cases involving pregnancy who seek divorce or legal separation.

Maddy summaryHB 2780 establishes new rules for creating neighborhood improvement districts, which allow local governments to fund neighborhood projects through property assessments. It provides two pathways: requiring voter approval (with detailed project disclosures) or a petition signed by owners of 2/3 of the district’s property area. The bill strictly limits cost overruns - final project costs and annual maintenance assessments cannot exceed initial estimates by more than 25%. This directly affects property owners in designated districts, as they may face new assessments for improvements like street repairs or park upgrades.

Maddy summaryHB 1838 exempts certain farm vehicles from Missouri's biennial motor vehicle safety inspection requirement. Specifically, it removes the inspection mandate for farm vehicles registered as local commercial motor vehicles used exclusively for farming operations that travel fewer than 100 miles per calendar year. This applies to vehicles already defined as "covered farm vehicles" under state and federal law. The bill modifies existing safety inspection rules to exclude these qualifying farm vehicles from the standard inspection schedule.

Maddy summaryHB 2274 adopts Missouri into the "Interstate Teacher Mobility Compact," a multi-state agreement designed to simplify teacher licensure across participating states. The bill creates a streamlined pathway for teachers to move between member states, supports eligible military spouses relocating due to military service, and enables sharing of licensure and disciplinary information among states. It establishes an interstate commission to manage the compact and requires member states to recognize teaching licenses from other participating states without requiring additional exams or training. This directly affects teachers seeking employment in Missouri from other compact states, military spouses of active-duty service members, and education officials hiring out-of-state teachers. The compact aims to remove barriers to teacher mobility while maintaining each state's authority over teaching regulations.

Maddy summaryHB 1767, the "Missouri Educators and Parental Empowerment and Rights Act," establishes specific rights for parents and teachers in Missouri public schools. It grants parents the right to access curricula, review school records, receive information about teachers and school data collection, and visit schools during regular hours. Teachers are granted rights including protection from physical abuse or threats, freedom of speech, guaranteed preparation time, and a safe teaching environment. School districts must adopt policies ensuring transparency - such as timely safety incident notifications to parents and clear procedures for parent visits - to support these rights. The bill directly affects parents of K-12 students and school staff in Missouri’s public school districts.

Maddy summaryHJR 3 proposes a constitutional amendment titled "Protect Missouri Voters" to restrict foreign influence in statewide ballot measures. It would ban contributions from foreign adversaries (as defined by U.S. designations) and foreign nationals to support or oppose such measures, with penalties including fines, imprisonment, or triple the illegal contribution amount. The amendment also criminalizes petition signature fraud, requires public hearings before initiative petitions are submitted, mandates majority approval in each congressional district for constitutional initiatives, and ensures the full text of initiatives is provided to voters with their ballots. If approved by voters, these provisions would become part of Missouri's constitution.