After the mass shooting at the Super Bowl victory rally in Kansas City, numerous stories ran in the national media that reflected how Missouri's gun regulations are among the weakest in the nation and could logically have contributed to the shooting that took place. Of course local media, being closer to the Missouri voting public, spent relatively little time on that topic, even in metro areas since even the metro areas are surrounded by affluent Republican leaning districts with audiences who don't want their local media telling them their lax gun laws could possibly be contributing to the horror just witnessed.
To their credit, some media outlets in the state DID cover news surrounding the decision of the Missouri House Majority Leader to quietly table two gun-related bills which had just passed internal committee votes and were headed for a floor vote in the House prior to reconciliation with similar Senate bills.
Missouri House Bill 2291, proposed by Bishop Davidson (R) District 130 was written to eliminate ANY taxes on weapons and ammunition sold in Missouri.
https://house.mo.gov/Bill.aspx?bill=HB22911. No sales tax levied under this chapter on any firearms or ammunition shall be levied at a rate that is higher than the sales tax levied under this chapter or any other excise tax levied on any sporting goods or equipment or any hunting equipment. 2. Beginning August 28, 2024, in addition to all other exemptions granted pursuant to this chapter, there is hereby specifically exempted from the provisions of and from the computation of the tax levied, assessed, or payable pursuant to this chapter and the local sales tax law as defined in section 32.085 all sales of firearms and ammunition sold in this state.
Here is what supporters of the sales tax exemption said about their proposal, as quoted by Kansas City television station KSHB:
..this bill is intended to preserve our second amendment rights. Taxation on firearms and ammunition is an infringement on our right to bear arms. Therefore, it is unconstitutional to tax firearms and ammunition. This bill specifies that firearms and ammunition sold in this state are exempt from state and local sales tax.
Missouri House Bill 1708, last acted on February 5, 2024, proposed by Adam Schnelting, (R) District 69, is forty three pages of dense, 9-point font text that is related to public transit safety and concealed carry and is virtually unintelligible. The first six pages lay out dozens of new restrictions seemingly aimed at making public transportation of all types safer and more pleasant for the public. Those terms explicitly make it a crime to carry a concealed weapon on any form of public transportation.
https://house.mo.gov/Bill.aspx?bill=HB1708&year=2024&code=R(11) Except as otherwise provided under section 571.107, no weapon or other instrument intended for use as a weapon may be carried in or on any facility or conveyance, except for law enforcement personnel. For the purposes hereof, a weapon shall include, but HB 1708 not be limited to, a firearm, switchblade knife, sword, or any instrument of any kind known as blackjack, billy club, club, sandbag, metal knuckles, leather bands studded with metal, wood impregnated with metal filings or razor blades; except that this subdivision shall not apply to a rifle or shotgun which is unloaded and carried in any enclosed case, box or other container which completely conceals the item from view and identification as a weapon;
Except, later in the forty three page bill, on page 21, the bill includes this language:
3. Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter or chapter 70, 577, or 578 to the contrary, a person carrying a firearm concealed on or about his or her person who is lawfully in possession of a valid concealed carry permit or endorsement shall not be prohibited or impeded from accessing or using any publicly funded transportation system and shall not be harassed or detained for carrying a concealed firearm on the property, vehicles, or conveyances owned, contracted, or leased by such systems that are accessible to the public.
In other words, it's illegal to carry a concealed weapon on public transportation unless... ...you get a concealed carry permit which is ridiculously easy to obtain under existing rules, much less any proposed changes.
Per coverage on these bills by St. Louis Public Radio, the bill's sponsor saw no problem with their content and disagreed with tabling them:
https://www.stlpr.org/government-politics-issues/2024-02-16/missouri-house-will-not-consider-two-bills-expanding-firearm-access-this-sessionThe legislation I have put forward is nothing more than an avenue by which law-abiding [carrying a concealed weapon] holders can protect themselves and their families... ...no new gun restrictions would have prevented the tragic event in Kansas City, as the suspects were already in violation of current firearms law.
Try, Try, Try, Try Again
Was this just a case of one-off bills with unfortunate, coincidentally horrible optics? Hardly. Republicans have been proposing nearly identical legislation to further relax concealed carry restrictions and eliminate ANY sort of taxes on guns since at least 2021. Here are some examples.
Missouri House Bill 2388, last acted on May 15, 2020, was proposed by Ron Hicks (R) District 102 proposed a tax credit to offset amounts paid in sales taxes for newly mandated gun safety mechanisms.
https://house.mo.gov/Bill.aspx?bill=HB2388&year=2020&code=R(1) "Firearm safe", a safe approved by the department of public safety specifically for the storage of one or more firearms;
(2) "Firearm safety device", a device approved for use by the department of public safety that, when installed on a firearm, is designed to prevent the firearm from being operated without first deactivating or removing the device. Examples of firearm safety devices include, but are not limited to, firearm trigger locks and any other locks or cables designed to prevent a firearm from being operated without first deactivating or removing such locks or cables;
Missouri Senate Bill 567, proposed March 4, 2021 by Bill White (R) District 32 was the first of many bills to propose repealing all state taxes from actual weapons purchases (not just aftermarket safety equipment).
https://www.senate.mo.gov/21info/BTS_Web/Bill.aspx?SessionType=R&BillID=59159653Beginning August 28, 2021, this act provides that all sales of firearms made in this state shall be exempt from state and local sales taxes.
Missouri Senate Bill 884, proposed January 27, 2022 by Bill White (R) District 32 re-introduced the same 2021 bill in the 2022 term to repeal sales taxes related to weapons while adding expand terms for concealed carry. https://www.senate.mo.gov/22info/BTS_Web/Bill.aspx?SessionType=R&BillID=71259785
Beginning August 28, 2022, this act provides that all sales of firearms made in this state shall be exempt from state and local sales taxes. This act repeals the requirement that a person must be a resident of Missouri to apply for a concealed carry permit. A concealed carry permit shall be issued by the sheriff of the county or city in which the applicant resides or by the sheriff of the county or city in which the qualified firearm safety instructor of the applicant resides if the applicant meets all other requirements.
Missouri Senate Bill 131, last acted on May 3, 2023, proposed by Rick Brattin (R) District 31 re-introduced the same tax exemption on weapons while adding a rebate for any federal excise taxes paid on weapons and ammunition.
https://www.senate.mo.gov/23info/BTS_Web/Bill.aspx?SessionType=R&BillID=44637For all tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2024, this act authorizes a tax credit for taxpayers making sales of firearms or ammunition. The tax credit shall be equal to the amount of the federal firearms and ammunition excise tax imposed on the sale of such firearms and ammunition sold by the taxpayer during the tax year.
Missouri House Bill 485, last acted on April 17, 2023, proposed by Ben Baker (R) District 160 again proposed simplification and clarification of a small number of exceptions where concealed carry would remain illegal.
https://house.mo.gov/Bill.aspx?bill=HB485&year=2023&code=R1. A concealed carry permit issued pursuant to sections 571.101 to 571.121, a valid concealed carry endorsement issued prior to August 28, 2013, or a concealed carry endorsement or permit issued by another state or political subdivision of another state shall authorize the person in whose name the permit or endorsement is issued to carry concealed firearms on or about his or her person or vehicle throughout the state. No concealed carry permit issued pursuant to sections 571.101 to 571.121, valid concealed carry endorsement issued prior to August 28, 2013, or a concealed carry endorsement or permit issued by another state or political subdivision of another state shall authorize any person to carry concealed firearms into:
(1) Any police, sheriff, or highway patrol office or station without the consent of the chief law enforcement officer in charge of that office or station. Possession of a firearm in a vehicle on the premises of the office or station shall not be a criminal offense so long as the firearm is not removed from the vehicle or brandished while the vehicle is on the premises;
(2) Within twenty-five feet of any polling place on any election day. Possession of a firearm in a vehicle on the premises of the polling place shall not be a criminal offense so long as the firearm is not removed from the vehicle or brandished while the vehicle is on the premises;
Cynical Politics, Insanity or Both?
As the above history reflects, Missouri Republicans have been filing bills related to these topics for YEARS. Republicans have held super-majorities in both the Missouri House and Missouri Senate since at least 2016. Currently, Republicans hold 111 of 163 seats (68%) in the House and 24 of 34 seats (71%) in the Senate. The Missouri Governor has been a Republican since 2017. Given that election history, it's surprising that this legislation has NOT been enacted. The "tick tock" on these bills as tracked in the Missouri Legislature's online system shows these bills have consistently been approved at the committee level for consideration on the floor of both chambers. Both chambers have Republican super-majorities, so what could be keeping them from getting reconciled and signed by the governor?
Is it possible extremely savvy Democratic politicians are continuing to find parliamentary levers to exercise to kill these bills, link them to other polices Republicans won't tolerate, etc? Anything is possible but given the 70% margins in both houses, this level of parliamentary wizardry seems mathematically unlikely, especially over multiple years.
Is it possible there are a few remaining Republicans in key positions of power who are consistently identifying bills like these as unnecessary and potential future political poison and are internally scuttling them at points where they can run out the clock on the legislative session? That also seems unlikely. Candidly, these are Republicans involved.
What other dynamic could explain this yearly parade of horrible policy proposals? One dynamic comes to mind immediately when looking at the content of these bills and the dates they were proposed. Most were proposed beginning in March 2021 - AFTER a Democratic President took office. No links to bill proposals can be found PRIOR to 2020. A likely explanation is that these types of bills have little political value when a Republican holds the White House. Once a Democrat wins the White House, the "government is coming to get your guns" meme is instantly resurrected for theatrical purposes across the country.
The other option left seems to be that these issues are "dog chases car" issues for Republicans, only Republicans have become smart enough and cynical enough in their politics to avoid actually catching this particular car. They TALK about chasing the car. They go through the MOTIONS of chasing the car. They send flyers home to voters each term describing what THEY are "doing" to chase the car. They pad their political resume with all of the bills they'e PROPOSED. But they never actually CATCH the car. They just maintain the car as an ISSUE.
On the surface, that type of cynicism might seem harmless but the time spent going through the motions on what might be Potemkin legislation is squandering legislative time and public attention that is required on other issues the state needs to address, such as education, grid modernization, crumbling roads and bridges, etc. The language of these bills and the public comments from those proposing them raises its own concerns. America is AWASH with guns. There seems to be no limit on how much Americans are willing to pay for guns. Those guns are triggering hundreds of millions (maybe billions?) in emergency care and lifelong care for the roughly forty eight thousand people KILLED every year and another seventy six thousand INJURED by gunfire each year.
WHY ON EARTH would anyone conclude gun owners need to be subsidized by eliminating state sales taxes on weapons and ammunition? Why would anyone propose a state further refund any FEDERAL excise taxes imposed on weapons? Guns don't need tax subsidies to ENCOURAGE people to buy them.
How are taxes on weapons -- like any other good or service -- an infringement upon a citizen's Second Amendment rights? The Second Amendment provides a right to bear arms. It says NOTHING about the right to purchase them at a discount or avoid surcharges intended to recover some of the horrendous social costs those guns generate.
There's no learning taking place in Missouri, even after a horrendous -- and yes, embarrassing -- mass shooting that ruined what should have been a banner PR day for the state. These fetish bills will come up like clockwork in the 2025 session. The House Leader didn't say he objected to these bills, he just said the timing was obviously not good politically. There's a chance legislation this misguided WILL eventually become law in Missouri. That speaks volumes about how warped the "gun fringe" remains, not only in Missouri but across the country.
WTH
