March 24-28
Monday, March 31 is Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV), a day celebrated across the globe. However, the Missouri Legislature has intentionally scheduled three public hearings next week focused on anti-trans bills with one of those being on TDOV and the others on Tuesday and Wednesday.
We are not asking you to abandon your plans to join celebrations across the state. Keep reading to see how we’re encouraging you to take action this week alongside us OR check out the full legislative update on our website here.
TL;DR — Actions You Need to Take
HOUSE ACTIONS
- Testify on HB 1362: With attacks on trans people on TDOV, submit written testimony or sign up to testify in person.
- Testify on SB 10: This bill aims to make permanent the gender-affirming healthcare and trans athlete bans. Submit written testimony or sign up to testify in person.
- Call Your Reps (HRJ 54): The legislature is aiming to overturn the will of the people on abortion and sexual reproductive health rights. We need you to call your representatives and tell them to VOTE NO on HJR 54.
- Call Your Reps (SB 22): This bill aims to make it easier for lawmakers to trick voters by writing the most misleading and unlawful summaries of ballot initiatives. Call your representatives and tell them to vote NO on SB 22.
SENATE ACTIONS
- Call the Senate Families, Seniors, and Health Committee: SJR 57 is up for a public hearing that will ask voters to ban 2STGNC+ people access to restrooms and define “sex” and “gender” as male or female. Republican senators have been incredibly disrespectful to us and our voices, so we are asking you to call committee members to tell them to vote no rather than show up to testify.
- Call Your Senator (HB 567): Once again, the legislature is focused on rolling back the will of the people who voted for paid sick leave and a minimum wage increase. We need you to call your senator and tell them to vote NO on HB 567 and to listen to voters’ decision.
A Deeper Look: House Bills
Testify on HB 1362: Written or In-Person
On Monday, March 31 at 4:30 p.m., the House Emerging Issues Committee will hear HB 1362 (R-Phelps), which aims to make it easier to discriminate against trans, nonbinary, intersex, and two-spirit (2STGNC+) people by making it unnecessarily complicated for them to have identification that accurately reflects who they are. Identity documents are foundational to how we all live. These documents allow us to start new jobs, open bank accounts, find stable housing, buy a car, board a plane, get a bus pass or library card, participate in civic life, and even enroll in school. We are asking community members to prioritize attending community TDOV events as planned and submit written testimony. We also know others will want to join us in person and we welcome you.
This bill is Rep. Phelps’ second attempt at complicating this process. You might remember his original ID ban that was set to be heard back in February (HB 135). This new version of the bill (HB 1362) gets deeper at the Phelps’ attempt to erase 2STGNC+ people from daily life. Under this bill, these communities would need to change the gender marker on their birth certificate in order to request to change it on their government IDs. We know under SB 100, a bill pending a Senate floor debate, aims to ban the ability for people to update their birth certificates. These two bills combined, detrimentally harm 2STGNC+ people and instigate a violent environment for them to thrive.
Testify on SB 10: Written or In-Person
On Tuesday, April 1 at 12 p.m. in the House Government Efficiency Committee, SB 10 (R-Hough) — a huge omnibus bill on the topic of sunsets in laws — will be heard. It began as a bill to repeal the sunset dates on design-build project management regulations, but now carries amendments that would remove the sunsets for the gender-affirming healthcare and trans athlete bans. We showed up to testify against bills threatening to remove these sunsets already this year (HB 113 and HB 35), but we need our lawmakers to hear us again.
Please note, this hearing will only have two hours to hear testimony, so we are encouraging folks to submit written testimony. You are still welcome to join us to testify in person (especially those most impacted by the bans becoming permanent), but there is a real possibility not everyone will be heard.
Call Your Representative on HJR 54
On Monday, March 31 at 12:00 pm, the House Children’s and Families Committee will likely vote out HJR 54. HJR 54 undermines the will of the people, and would ask Missouri voters to return to the ballot box to ban abortion access. Right now, thanks to Missourians, abortion is legal and available in Missouri for the first time in years.No matter our own personal decision-making, Missourians agree that politicians have no place interfering in personal, private decisions like pregnancy, abortion, and the broad spectrum of sexual and reproductive health care. More than 2,000 Missourians submitted comments online opposing HJR 54 in committee. Please join this chorus of voices and call YOUR Representative to vote NO on HJR 54, and protect the will of the people.
Call Your Representative on SB 22
On Tuesday, April 1 at 8 a.m., the House Elections committee will hear SB 22 (Brattin), the “Let Politicians Lie Act.” This bill passed out of the senate, and would give our Secretary of State up to three chances to write the most skewed, misleading language possible for ballot summaries on citizen-initiated and legislatively-referred ballot measures. Under this bill there would be zero checks and balances on misleading and unlawful summaries of citizen-led initiatives on the ballot, leaving voters with politicized and biased information. The initiative petition process is our most direct form of democracy. It has been in place for over 100 years and is used by both progressive and conservative voters to propose policies. SB 22 is simply a political power grab giving politicians the ability to confuse and trick voters. Call your representative now and tell them to vote NO on SB 22.
A Deeper Look: Senate Bills
Call Committee Members on SJR 57
Wednesday, April 2 at 8 a.m., SJR 57 (R-Fitzwater) is up for public hearing in the Senate Families, Seniors, and Health Committee. If passed, this bill will define “sex” and “gender” as male or female and require all publicly funded organizations and institutions to regulate restroom usage accordingly. SJR 57 is a restroom ban for 2STGNC+ people.
With only seven weeks left of session, this is the first hearing this bill has, which leaves a tight timeline for it to be passed. We’ve sat in front of this committee several times this year and Republican senators have been incredibly disrespectful to us and our voices. Instead of asking you to join us to testify, we are asking you to call the committee members to vote NO on SJR 57.
Call Your Senator on HB 567
This past week the legislature focused on rolling back the will of the people. The anti-Prop A bill, HB 567 which passed the House, passed the Senate Commerce Committee yesterday. This bill would completely eliminate paid sick leave for working Missourians and halt the minimum wage increase.
Working families are the drivers of our economy. When all of us can afford to buy basic necessities, and when everyone can afford to be sick, it’s good for all of us. Over 1.6 million Missourians (over 57 percent of voters) agreed with this and voted YES on Proposition A to raise the wage to $15/hr by 2026 and bring earned paid sick days to Missouri workers. The legislature must listen to the will of the people and stand with Missouri families. Gutting Prop A is not an option, so call your senator and demand they vote NO on HB 567.
Additional Key Legislative Movements
SB 160 (R-Hudson, R-Carter) will also be up for public testimony on Monday, March 31 at 4:30 p.m. SB 160 originally required universities and colleges to provide taxpayer funds to student groups that discriminate against its members and the student body in adherence to that group’s political, ideological, or religious beliefs. This bill was amended before passing out of the Senate Chamber to state that any student group can officially form on campus, unless they discriminate against or harm other students in accordance with the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Healy v. James, 408 U.S. 169 (1972). We are still opposed to the idea that student groups can use their own concept of beliefs and ideologies to operate clubs and groups on campus, as these groups could become breeding grounds for white-supremacist, hate-fueled rhetoric capable of causing harm outside of campus life and college years.
Excitedly in the same hearing as the above bill, SB 38 (D-Washington) will be heard as well. This bill passed the Senate Chamber prior to legislative spring break and we hope it ends up on the governor’s desk before session ends. This bill creates the “Missouri Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair,” also known as The CROWN Act. Under this bill, Black public school students will be protected from race-based hair discrimination.
