Missouri Senate Republicans said Thursday that they will continue to try to make transgender restrictions permanent after a bill temporarily stalled Wednesday night.
Senate Democrats filibustered to end the debate for now.
Senate Floor Leader Tony Luetkemeyer, R-Parkville, said the legislation is a priority for the Republican caucus this year.
“While this issue drew the first filibuster of the session, let me be clear, we are not backing down, and we aren't alone in this fight,” Luetkemeyer said.
Luetkemeyer was referencing the executive order recently issued by President Donald Trump barring transgender women from participating on women’s sports teams.
Missouri Senate Republicans changed a bill Wednesday night to include language that removes the expiration date on a law barring transgender minors from accessing gender-affirming care.
The legislation began as a bill that repealed the expiration date related to certain construction projects. It quickly ballooned on the Senate floor into legislation repealing sunsets on a multitude of laws.
Senate Minority Leader Doug Beck, D-Affton, said the caucus backed the part of the bill that included an amendment to repeal the sunset on a tax that funds roughly one-third of the state’s Medicaid program.
For the past few years, the Federal Reimbursement Allowance has been a source of intense debate, with more conservative Republicans standing against it.
“What the FRA does is it actually allows the vast majority of Missourians to get health care. And we think that's important,” Beck said.
The FRA was most recently renewed last session and is set to expire on Sept. 30, 2029.
The actions in the Senate came the same week as a more than seven-hour House hearing on bills that also remove the expiration date on the gender-affirming care ban.
Speaking on Thursday, House Floor Leader Alex Riley, R-Springfield, said that with the Senate working better this year compared to recent sessions, this may be the time to repeal the sunset on the ban.
“We recognize that since that is something we want to prioritize, that is something that we want to work on, doing it now in this year where things seem to be running a little smoothly, makes a lot of sense,” Riley said.
House Minority Leader Ashley Aune, D-Kansas City, said that in her time sitting in on these hearings, she’s learned much by hearing from the transgender community.
“I wish that before we propose legislation or pass legislation like this, that legislators, that our president would take the time to understand the problem, understand the science, and make a decision based on that information, rather than making a decision based on personal bias,” Aune said.
