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SECOND REGULAR SESSION
HOUSE JOINT
RESOLUTION NO. 172
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBL Y
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENT A TIVE MA YHEW .
6814H.02I JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
JOINT RESOLUTION
Submitting to the qualified voters of Missouri an amendment repealing Sections 40(a), 40(b),
43(a), 43(b), and 43(c) of Article IV of the Constitution of Missouri, and adopting
four new sections in lieu thereof relating to the management and funding of the
department of conservation.
Be it r esolved by the House of Repr esentatives, the Senate concurring ther ein:
That at the next general election to be held in the state of Missouri, on T uesday next
2 following the first Monday in November , 2026, or at a special election to be called by the
3 governor for that purpose, there is hereby submitted to the qualified voters of this state, for
4 adoption or rejection, the following amendment to Article IV of the Constitution of the state
5 of Missouri:
Section A. Sections 40(a), 40(b), 43(a), 43(b), and 43(c), Article IV , Constitution of
2 Missouri, are repealed and four new sections adopted in lieu thereof, to be known as Sections
3 40(a), 43(a), 43(b), and 43(c), to read as follows:
Section 40(a). 1. The control, management, restoration, conservation and regulation
2 of the bird, fish, game, forestry and all wildlife resources of the state, including hatcheries,
3 sanctuaries, refuges, reservations and all other property owned, acquired or used for such
4 purposes and the acquisition and establishment thereof, and the administration of all laws
5 pertaining thereto, shall be vested in a conservation commission [ consisting of four members
6 appointed by the governor , by and with the advice and consent of the senate, not more than
7 two of whom ] .
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.
8 2. (1) The number , qualifications, and terms of the members of the conservation
9 commission shall be fixed by law . The number of commissioners shall not exceed seven
10 and not mor e than one-half of the commission's members shall be of the same political
11 party .
12 (2) The members shall have knowledge of and interest in the state's natural
13 r esources or wildlife conservation.
14 (3) The members shall hold of fice for terms of six years beginning on the first day of
15 July of consecutive odd years. T wo of the terms shall be concurrent; one shall begin two
16 years before and one two years after the concurrent terms.
17 (4) (a) Each member shall res ide in a congr essional district that is differ ent fr om
18 the congr essional districts in which the other members res ide.
19 (b) Upon the expiration of a member's term or upon a vacancy , a member
20 appointed by the governor to begin a new term or to fill the vacancy shall res ide in a
21 congr essional district that is differ ent fr om:
22 a. The congr essional districts in which the other members resi de; and
23 b. The congr essional district in which the member previ ously filling the office
24 r esided.
25 (5) If the governor fails to fill a vacancy within thirty days, the remaining members
26 shall fill the vacancy for the unexpired term by a majority vote of the rem aining members.
27 The rem aining members shall choose an individual to fill the vacancy fr om a list of ten
28 individuals pr ovided by the general assembly . Each year the Missouri house of
29 r epresent atives shall cr eate the list of ten individuals qualified to fill a vacancy and the
30 general assembly shall adopt a concurr ent res olution containing such list. The vote by
31 the rem aining members of the commission on the individual to fill the vacancy and any
32 deliberations on such vote shall be public .
33 (6) The members shall receive no salary or other compensation for their services as
34 members, but shall receive their necessary traveling and other expenses incurred while
35 actually engaged in the dischar ge of their of ficial duties.
36 (7) (a) No member shall accept dir ectly or indirectl y a gift of any tangible or
37 intangible item, service, or thing of value fr om any individual or entity that receiv es or
38 has r eceived any rem uneration fr om the conservation commission or that performs
39 services for or is a vendor or contractor for the conservation commission.
40 (b) Upon receiv ing a claim that a member accepted a gift in violation of
41 paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the Missouri ethics commission or its successor shall
42 investigate and determine whether such gift influenced or attempted to influence a
43 member's performance of official duties. If the ethics commission determines such gift
44 influenced or attempted to influence a member's performance of official duties, the
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45 member shall immediately forfeit and vacate the office and the ethics commission shall
46 r efer such determination to the Missouri attorney general for pr osecution of the offense
47 of bribery of a public servant under state law .
48 3. (1) Any individual or entity that enters a contract with the conservation
49 commission shall report each tangible or intangible item, service, or thing of value such
50 individual or entity pro vided dir ectly or indir ectly to each member of the conservation
51 commission or to a person relat ed to such member within the first degr ee of
52 consanguinity .
53 (2) Reports made under subdivision (1) of this subsection shall be filed quarterly
54 with the Missouri ethics commission or its successor as r equir ed by general law .
55 (3) The re ports req uired under subdivision (1) of this subsection shall list each
56 such item, service, or thing of value pr ovided in the five years befor e the beginning date
57 of the contract thr ough the five years after the ending date of the contract.
Section 43(a). 1. Except as otherwise prov ided in subsection 2 of this section, for
2 the purpose of providing additional moneys to be expended and used by the conservation
3 commission, department of conservation, for the control, management, restoration,
4 conservation and regulation of the bird, fish, game, forestry and wildlife resources of the
5 state, including the purchase or other acquisition of property for said purposes, and for the
6 administration of the laws pertaining thereto, an additional sales tax of one-eighth of one
7 percent is hereby levied and imposed upon all sellers for the privilege of selling tangible
8 personal property or rendering taxable services at retail in this state upon the sales and
9 services which now are or hereafter are listed and set forth in, and, except as to the amount of
10 tax, subject to the provisions of and to be collected as provided in the "Sales T ax Law" and
11 subject to the rules and regulations promulgated in connection therewith; and an additional
12 use tax of one-eighth of one percent is levied and imposed for the privilege of storing, using
13 or consuming within this state any article of tangible personal property as set forth and
14 provided in the "Compensating Use T ax Law" and, except as to the amount of the tax, subject
15 to the provisions of and to be collected as provided in the "Compensating Use T ax Law" and
16 subject to the rules and regulations promulgated in connection therewith.
17 2. (1) Beginning on January first of the calendar year immediately following the
18 effective date of this subsection, the percen tages of the total revenu es described in
19 subdivision (2) of this subsection that ar e derived fro m the sales and use taxes levied and
20 imposed under subsection 1 of this section shall be expended and used solely as pr ovided
21 in subdivision (2) of this subsection.
22 (2) The per centages of the total rev enues described in this subdivision that are
23 derived fr om the sales and use taxes levied and imposed under subsection 1 of this
24 section shall be expended and used as follows:
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25 (a) For duties and res ponsibilities of the division of state parks of the department
26 of natural res ource s, ten per cent; and
27 (b) For duties and res ponsibilities of local political subdivisions in which land
28 owned by the department of conservation is located, ten per cent.
29 (3) (a) Of the ten per cent of r evenues for local political subdivisions under
30 paragraph (b) of subdivision (2) of this subsection, the amount apportioned to each
31 political subdivision shall be based on the number of acres of land owned by the
32 department of conservation within each such political subdivision. Such r evenues shall
33 be divided and distributed to such political subdivisions in the same pr oportions and in
34 the same manner as other rea l prop erty tax reven ues ar e divided and distributed in such
35 political subdivisions.
36 (b) The amounts divided and distributed under paragraph (a) of this subdivision
37 shall be separate fr om and in addition to any payments in lieu of real pr operty taxes
38 made under subsection 2 of section 43(b) of this article.
Section 43(b). 1. Except as otherwise pr ovided in subsection 2 of section 43(a) of
2 this article, the moneys arising from the additional sales and use taxes provided for in
3 subsection 1 of section 43(a) [ hereof ] of this article and all fees, moneys or funds arising
4 from the operation and transactions of the conservation commission, department of
5 conservation, and from the application and the administration of the laws and regulations
6 pertaining to the bird, fish, game, forestry and wildlife resources of the state and from the sale
7 of property used for said purposes, shall be expended and used by the conservation
8 commission, department of conservation, for the control, management, restoration,
9 conservation and regulation of the bird, fish, game, forestry and wildlife resources of the
10 state, including the purchase or other acquisition of property for said purposes, and for the
11 administration of the laws pertaining thereto, and for no other purpose.
12 2. Except as otherwise pro vided in subsection 1 of section 43(a) of this article, the
13 moneys and funds of the conservation commission arising from the additional sales and use
14 taxes provided for in subsection 1 of section 43(a) [ hereof ] of this article shall also be used
15 by the conservation commission, department of conservation, to make payments to counties
16 for the unimproved value of land for distribution to the appropriate political subdivisions as
17 payment in lieu of real property taxes for all privately owned land acquired by the
18 commission [ after July 1, 1977 ] and for land classified as forest cropland in the forest
19 cropland program administered by the department of conservation in such amounts as may be
20 determined by the conservation commission, but in no event shall the amount determined be
21 less than the property tax being paid [ at the time of purchase of acquired lands ] on r eal
22 pr operty owned by private citizens within such political subdivision as determined by
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23 the annual assessment of r eal pr operty in such political subdivision as pr ovided under
24 general law .
25 3. The general assembly shall re view any pr oposed sale of r eal pr operty
26 administer ed by the department of conservation and any prop osed pur chase of r eal
27 pr operty for department of conservation purposes before such sale or pur chase is made
28 final. After such rev iew , if the general assembly disappr oves of such sale or pur chase,
29 the general assembly shall adopt a concurr ent reso lution in accordance with Article IV ,
30 Section 8 of the Constitution of Missouri to disappr ove and annul such sale or pur chase.
Section 43(c). [ The ef fective date of this amendment shall be July 1, 1977. All laws
2 inconsistent with this amendment shall no longer remain in full force and ef fect after July 1,
3 1977. ] All of the provisions of sections [ 43(a)-(c) ] 43(a) to 43(c) of this article shall be self-
4 enforcing except that the general assembly shall adjust brackets for the collection of the sales
5 and use taxes.
[ Section 40(b) . The members of the present conservation commission
2 shall serve out the terms for which they were appointed, with all their powers
3 and duties. ]
✔
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