Donna Baringer

Because the House made changes to the legislation previously approved by the Senate, including adding language that was stripped off, it has to again get Senate approval.

The ordinance would stop the open carry of firearms without a concealed carry permit. A similar proposal, which would have barred minors from carrying a firearm in public without adult supervision, failed to gain ground in the state legislature this year.

The legislation allows for the governor to appoint a special prosecutor for a period of up to five years if the rate of homicides in any jurisdiction exceeds 35 cases per every 100,000 people.

The St. Louis Democrat backs a bill allowing the governor to appoint a special prosecutor to handle serious crimes, a measure widely seen as a reaction to St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s management of her office.

The law makes technical changes on privately owned vacant properties with the goal of redevelopment, while millions in federal funding would go toward the removal of city-owned buildings.

The elections bill was just one piece of legislation Parson signed into law on Wednesday. Others included funding charter schools, bills related to utilities and another barring homeless people from sleeping on state-owned land.

The new map passed by the House likely would keep Missouri’s current congressional delegation of six Republicans and two Democrats. It now goes to the Missouri Senate with only four days left in the legislative session.

Failure to pass a map before May 13 will likely lead to federal courts redrawing the state’s eight congressional districts.

The St. Louis Democrat also talked about election-related issues that may pop up during the 2022 session.

The bill to allow unrestricted tuition increases now goes to the Missouri Senate after House lawmakers passed it Tuesday.