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SECOND REGULAR SESSION
HOUSE COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
HOUSE BILL NO. 2605
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBL Y
4968H.02C JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
T o repeal sections 108.240 and 1 15.127, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof two new sections
relating to elections.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Sections 108.240 and 1 15.127, RSMo, are repealed and two new sections
2 enacted in lieu thereof, to be known as sections 108.240 and 1 15.127, to read as follows:
108.240. 1. Before any general obligation bearer bond or general obligation
2 registered bond, hereafter issued by any county , township, city , town, village or school district
3 or special road district or fire protection district or by virtue of the provisions of chapters 243,
4 245, 248, and sections 242.010 to 242.690 for any purpose whatever , shall obtain validity or
5 be negotiated:
6 (1) If such bonds are in bearer form, such bonds shall first be presented to the state
7 auditor , who, other provisions of law notwithstanding, shall certify by manual or facsimile
8 endorsement of such bonds that all conditions of the laws have been complied with in its
9 issue, if that be the case, and also that the conditions of the contract, under which they were
10 ordered to be issued, have also been complied with and the evidence of that fact shall be filed
11 and preserved by the auditor . The state auditor may endorse bearer bonds with the auditor's
12 facsimile signature in lieu of manual signature after filing the auditor's manual signature,
13 certified by the auditor under oath, with the secretary of state; and
14 (2) If such bonds are in registered form, the proceedings relating to the issuance of
15 such registered bonds shall first be presented to the state auditor , who shall examine the same
16 and shall issue a certificate that such proceedings comply with all conditions of the laws, if
17 that be the case, and also that the conditions of the contract, under which they were ordered to
18 be issued, have also been complied with, and the evidence of these facts shall be filed and
EXPLANA TION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is
intended to be omitted from the law . Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language.
19 preserved by the auditor . The state auditor shall also maintain the following information: the
20 name of the issuer of the bonds; the amount thereof; the maturity dates thereof; the interest
21 rates thereon; and the provisions with respect to prepayment, if any .
22 2. Such bearer bonds after receiving the said certificate of the auditor as herein
23 provided and such registered bonds after the issuance of the said certificate as herein provided
24 shall thereafter be held in every action, suit or proceeding in which their validity is, or may
25 be, brought into question, prima facie, valid and binding obligations, and in every action
26 brought to enforce collection of such bonds, the certificate of such auditor , or a duly certified
27 copy thereof, shall be admitted and received in evidence of the validity of such bonds,
28 together with the coupons thereto attached if any; provided, the only defense which can be
29 of fered against the validity of such bonds shall be for for gery or fraud. But this section shall
30 not be construed to give validity to any such bonds as may be issued in excess of the limit
31 fixed by the constitution, or contrary to its provisions, but all such bonds shall, to the extent of
32 such excess, be held void; and provided further , that the remedy of injunction shall also lie at
33 the instance of any taxpayer of the respective county , city , town, village, township or school
34 district or special road district or fire protection district or drainage district or levy district to
35 prevent the registration of any bonds, alleged to be illegally issued or funded.
36 3. For purposes of subsection 1 of this section, once the time period set forth in
37 section 1 15.557 has expir ed, if no election contest has been br ought, all conditions of
38 chapter 1 15 shall be deemed as having been complied with in the issuance of the bond.
1 15.127. 1. Except as provided in subsection 4 of this section, upon receipt of notice
2 of a special election to fill a vacancy submitted pursuant to subsection 2 of section 1 15.125,
3 the election authority shall cause legal notice of the special election to be published in a
4 newspaper of general circulation in its jurisdiction. The notice shall include the name of the
5 of ficer or agency calling the election, the date and time of the election, the name of the of fice
6 to be filled and the date by which candidates must be selected or filed for the office. W ithin
7 one week prior to each special election to fill a vacancy held in its jurisdiction, the election
8 authority shall cause legal notice of the election to be published in two newspapers of
9 dif ferent political faith and general circulation in the jurisdiction. The legal notice shall
10 include the date and time of the election, the name of the of ficer or agency calling the election
11 and a sample ballot. If there is only one newspaper of general circulation in the jurisdiction,
12 the notice shall be published in the newspaper within one week prior to the election. If there
13 are two or more newspapers of general circulation in the jurisdiction, but no two of opposite
14 political faith, the notice shall be published in any two of the newspapers within one week
15 prior to the election.
16 2. Except as provided in subsections 1 and 4 of this section and in sections 1 15.521,
17 1 15.549 and 1 15.593, the election authority shall cause legal notice of each election held in its
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18 jurisdiction to be published. The notice shall be published in two newspapers of dif ferent
19 political faith and qualified pursuant to chapter 493 which are published within the bounds of
20 the area holding the election. If there is only one so-qualified newspaper , then notice shall be
21 published in only one newspaper . If there is no newspaper published within the bounds of the
22 election area, then the notice shall be published in two qualified newspapers of dif ferent
23 political faith serving the area. Notice shall be published twice[ , the first publication
24 occurring in the second week prior to the election, and the second publication occurring ]
25 within [ one week ] six weeks prior to the election. Each such legal notice shall include the
26 date and time of the election, the name of the of ficer or agency calling the election and a
27 sample ballot; and, unless notice has been given as provided by section 1 15.129, the second
28 publication of notice of the election shall include the location of polling places. The election
29 authority may provide any additional notice of the election it deems desirable.
30 3. The election authority shall print the of ficial ballot as the same appears on the
31 sample ballot, and no candidate's name or ballot issue which appears on the sample ballot or
32 of ficial printed ballot shall be stricken or removed from the ballot except on death of a
33 candidate or by court order , but in no event shall a candidate or issue be stricken or removed
34 from the ballot less than eight weeks before the date of the election.
35 4. In lieu of causing legal notice to be published twice in accordance with any of the
36 provisions of this chapter , the election authority [ in jurisdictions which have less than seven
37 hundred fifty registered voters and in which no newspaper qualified pursuant to chapter 493 is
38 published, ] may cause legal notice to be mailed [ during the second week prior to the election,
39 by first class mail, ] within six weeks prior to the election to each registered voter at the
40 voter's voting address and published once in one or mor e newspapers in the county . An
41 election authority may exclude fr om this mailing any voter that is designated as an
42 inactive voter pursuant to section 1 15.193 . All such legal notices shall include the date and
43 time of the election, the location of the polling place, the name of the of ficer or agency calling
44 the election and a sample ballot.
45 5. If the opening date for filing a declaration of candidacy for any of fice in a political
46 subdivision or special district is not required by law or charter , the opening filing date shall be
47 8:00 a.m., the seventeenth T uesday prior to the election. If the closing date for filing a
48 declaration of candidacy for any of fice in a political subdivision or special district is not
49 required by law or charter , the closing filing date shall be 5:00 p.m., the fourteenth T uesday
50 prior to the election. The political subdivision or special district calling an election shall,
51 before the seventeenth T uesday , prior to any election at which of fices are to be filled, notify
52 the general public of the opening filing date, the of fice or offices to be filled, the proper place
53 for filing and the closing filing date of the election. Such notification may be accomplished
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54 by legal notice published in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the political
55 subdivision or special district.
56 6. Except as provided for in sections 1 15.247 and 1 15.359, if there is no additional
57 cost for the printing or reprinting of ballots or if the candidate agrees to pay any printing or
58 reprinting costs, a candidate who has filed for an of fice or who has been duly nominated for
59 an of fice may , at any time after the certification of the notice of election required in
60 subsection 1 of section 1 15.125 but no later than 5:00 p.m. on the eighth T uesday before the
61 election, withdraw as a candidate pursuant to a court order , which, except for good cause
62 shown by the election authority in opposition thereto, shall be freely given upon application
63 by the candidate to the circuit court of the area of such candidate's residence.
✔
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