More bills prefiled on first day than last year despite rule change

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

Lawmakers prefiled 343 on Friday, the first day of prefiling for the 2024 legislative session.

Missouri senators and representatives begin filing their proposed legislation on Dec. 1 every year, the month prior to the beginning of the legislative session. Prefiling continues through the rest of the month. The bills are then officially introduced on the first day of session, which will be Jan. 3, 2024. Bills can be introduced until March 1, 2024.

This is the first year a new rule is limiting the number of bills each representative can file. House Rule 39 was added during the 2023 legislative session. It states that members of the Missouri House of Representatives cannot file more than 20 bills without approval from the Speaker of the House. Despite this new rule, seven more bills were filed on the first day this year than last year.

Over the years, the number of bills prefiled has steadily increased. The record was set on Dec. 1, 2020 when 372 bills were prefiled for the 2021 legislative session.

The bills prefiled can set the tone for the upcoming legislative session. So far, a lot of bills were filed on things that didn't make it to the finish line last year, including initiative petition reform.