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SS#2/SCS/SB 1029 - This act creates and modifies provisions relating to education.
FUNDING FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION SERVICES
(Sections 67.547 and 67.5420)
This act provides that current law relating to the distribution of sales tax proceeds in St. Louis County shall not apply to a tax for the purpose of funding early childhood educational services, and requires that such proceeds shall be deposited in the county's Early Childhood Education Fund, which is created by the act. (Section 67.547)
This act also requires the proceeds of any tax imposed by St. Louis County or St. Louis City for the purposes of improving the quality, affordability, and access to early childhood development programs for children aged five years and younger to be deposited into the county or city Early Childhood Education Fund. The administrative control and management of such funds shall be by the board of directors responsible for the administration of a city or county Community Children's Services Fund.
The board of directors shall use or disburse the funds in the Early Childhood Education Fund to provide and administer programs subsidizing the cost of providing early childhood education, prioritizing children in financial need. Financial assistance may be used for early childhood education and child care provided by public, private, not-for-profit, and for-profit entities licensed, contracted to receive child care subsidies, or otherwise registered by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, including preschools, childcare centers, nursery schools, local education agencies, charter schools, Head Start and Early Head Start programs, informal childcare providers and independent and system-affiliated family child care homes, as described in the act. (Section 67.5420)
These provisions are similar to SB 1662 (2026), HCS/HB 2379 (2026), HB 3149 (2026), SB 20 (2025), SB 1447 (2024), HB 373 (2023), and a provision in SS/HCS/HBs 2097 & 1905 (2026).
MISSOURI EMPOWERMENT SCHOLARSHIP ACCOUNTS PROGRAM
(Sections 135.714, 135.715, and 135.716)
Currently, educational assistance organizations (EAOs) that award student scholarships through the Missouri Empowerment Scholarship Accounts Program are required to spend at least 90% of all taxpayer contributions on scholarship accounts. Between three and ten percent of such contributions may be spent on marketing and administrative expenses, depending on the total amount of contributions received. Additionally, four percent of all contributions are to be deposited into a state fund to be used by the State Treasurer for marketing and administrative expenses or the costs incurred in administering the program, whichever is less.
This act requires EAOs to ensure that at least 94% of all contributions and state appropriations are spent on scholarship accounts. Three percent of the EAO's remaining revenue from contributions and appropriations may be spent on the EAO's administrative expenses. Additionally, three percent, rather than four percent, of all contributions and appropriations to each EAO shall be deposited into the Missouri Empowerment Scholarship Accounts Fund, to be used by the State Treasurer for administrative expenses or the costs incurred in administering the program, whichever is less. (Sections 135.714, 135.715, and 135.716).
The act further provides that each EAO shall submit to an annual audit conducted by the State Auditor within six months of the end of the EAO's fiscal year, rather than submitting audits prepared by a certified public accountant to the State Treasurer annually. The State Treasurer shall provide all information included in the annual audits if requested by a public governmental body, without redactions. However, any personally identifiable information of any qualified student or parent that satisfies the definition of "personally identifiable information" under the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act shall be a closed record under the Missouri Sunshine Law and shall not be disclosed to the public by any public governmental body. (Section 135.714)
SCHOOL DISTRICT FINANCIAL INFORMATION
(Section 162.192)
Under this act, each school district shall maintain a searchable, publicly accessible database on its website setting forth all financial transactions conducted with school district funds. The financial ledger shall be available without login credentials, registration, or fees, and shall be downloadable and exportable in formats specified in the act. The financial ledger shall record transactions using codes set forth in the Missouri Financial Accounting Manual published by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), as applicable. Certain data fields shall be included in the financial ledger at minimum, such as transaction date, transaction amount, revenue or expenditure designation, fund code, function code, object code, vendor or payee name, and a description or memo field.
The homepage of each public school's website shall include a direct link to the financial ledger of the school district that oversees such public school. The link shall make the financial ledger accessible within one click, and shall be functional and mobile-responsive. DESE may provide standardized language or icons that public schools may use for this purpose.
A school district's financial ledger shall be updated at least monthly. Details of each calendar month's financial transactions shall be posted no later than 45 days after the close of that calendar month. For record keeping purposes, a school district shall maintain at least five fiscal years of historical data on its financial ledger.
Protected personal information may be redacted only to the extent required by applicable law. Vendor names, amounts, and accounting codes shall not be redacted. Payroll data may be presented in aggregated form where disclosure of individual information is restricted.
Debt obligations shall be posted in a separate section of the financial ledger, with disclosure of outstanding debt balances, issuance dates, repayment schedules, annual debt service amounts, and debt service as a percentage of total expenditures.
DESE may provide or approve standardized templates or platforms school districts may use for their financial ledgers. DESE may additionally provide guidance to assist school districts with compliance.
DESE shall promulgate rules establishing procedures and timelines for school districts to certify compliance annually. A school district that violates any provision of this act may be subject to the withholding of state aid from such school district.
DESE shall establish a process for members of the public to file complaints if they believe a school district has violated any provision of the act. DESE may also establish a public compliance dashboard on DESE's website to enable members of the public to check whether a particular school district is certified as in compliance.
This provision is similar to provisions in SCS/SB 1207 (2026), SCS/HBs 2120 & 1698 (2026), SCS/HBs 2230 & 2978 (2026), SCS/HCS/HB 2710 (2026), SCS/HCS/HB 2748 (2026), SCS/HB 2872 (2026), and SCS/HB 2896 (2026).
SCHOOL DISTRICT LEGAL EXPENSES
(Section 162.821)
The act requires school districts to include the amount expended for legal services in their Annual Secretary of the Board Report. If the report does not include the amount expended for legal services, then the Attorney General may bring a civil action, including an action for injunctive relief, against the school district. Such action shall be brought in the county where the school district is located.
This provision is identical to SB 1353 (2026), substantially similar to SB 793 (2025), and similar to provisions in SCS/HCS/HB 2710 (2026) and in HCS/SB 1351 (2026).
OLIVIA SHANNON
Senate Committee Substitute
Print
SCS/SB 1029 - This act creates provisions relating to education.
SCHOOL DISTRICT FINANCIAL INFORMATION (Section 162.192)
Under this act, each school district shall maintain a searchable, publicly accessible database on its website setting forth all financial transactions conducted with school district funds. The financial ledger shall be available without login credentials, registration, or fees, and shall be downloadable and exportable in formats specified in the act. The financial ledger shall record transactions using codes set forth in the Missouri Financial Accounting Manual published by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), as applicable. Certain data fields shall be included in the financial ledger at minimum, such as transaction date, transaction amount, revenue or expenditure designation, fund code, function code, object code, vendor or payee name, and a description or memo field.
The homepage of each public school's website shall include a direct link to the financial ledger of the school district that oversees such public school. The link shall make the financial ledger accessible within one click, and shall be functional and mobile-responsive. DESE may provide standardized language or icons that public schools may use for this purpose.
A school district's financial ledger shall be updated at least monthly. Details of each calendar month's financial transactions shall be posted no later than 45 days after the close of that calendar month. For record keeping purposes, a school district shall maintain at least five fiscal years of historical data on its financial ledger.
Protected personal information may be redacted only to the extent required by applicable law. Vendor names, amounts, and accounting codes shall not be redacted. Payroll data may be presented in aggregated form where disclosure of individual information is restricted.
Debt obligations shall be posted in a separate section of the financial ledger, with disclosure of outstanding debt balances, issuance dates, repayment schedules, annual debt service amounts, and debt service as a percentage of total expenditures.
DESE may provide or approve standardized templates or platforms school districts may use for their financial ledgers. DESE may additionally provide guidance to assist school districts with compliance.
DESE shall promulgate rules establishing procedures and timelines for school districts to certify compliance annually. A school district that violates any provision of this act may be subject to the withholding of state aid from such school district.
DESE shall establish a process for members of the public to file complaints if they believe a school district has violated any provision of the act. DESE may also establish a public compliance dashboard on DESE's website to enable members of the public to check whether a particular school district is certified as in compliance.
SCHOOL DISTRICT LEGAL EXPENSES (Section 162.821)
The act requires school districts to include the amount expended for legal services in their Annual Secretary of the Board Report. If the report does not include the amount expended for legal services, then the Attorney General may bring a civil action, including an action for injunctive relief, against the school district. Such action shall be brought in the county where the school district is located.
This provision is identical to SB 1353 (2026) and substantially similar to SB 793 (2025).
OLIVIA SHANNON
Introduced
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SB 1029 - This act requires each school district to maintain an easily accessible online record of all money the district receives and spends. Each public school within a school district shall prominently link to the district's financial ledger on the school's own website.
OLIVIA SHANNON
Current Bill Text
Read the full stored bill text
EXPLANATION-Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in this bill is not enacted
and is intended to be omitted in the law.
SECOND REGULAR SESSION
SENATE COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
SENATE BILL NO. 1029
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
5566S.03C KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
AN ACT
To repeal section 162.821, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof two new sections relating to
education.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Section 162.821, RSMo, is repealed and two new 1
sections enacted in lieu thereof, to be known as sections 2
162.192 and 162.821, to read as follows:3
162.192. 1. For purposes of this section, "financial 1
ledger" means a searchable, machine-readable, publicly 2
accessible database maintained by a school district that: 3
(1) Sets forth all financial transactions conducted 4
with school district funds, including, but not limited to, 5
the school funds established pursuant to section 165.011; 6
(2) Is available without login credentials, 7
registration, or fees; 8
(3) Is downloadable and exportable in formats 9
including, but not limited to, comma-separated values (CSV) 10
format and Microsoft Excel format; 11
(4) Records all transactions using Missouri financial 12
accounting manual classification categories, as applicable; 13
and 14
(5) Includes the following minimum required data 15
fields for each financial transaction, and is searchable and 16
filterable by such fields, at minimum: 17
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(a) Transaction date; 18
(b) Transaction amount; 19
(c) Revenue or expenditure designation; 20
(d) Fund code; 21
(e) Function code; 22
(f) Object code; 23
(g) Vendor or payee name; and 24
(h) Description or memo field. 25
2. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the 26
contrary, each school district shall maintain a financial 27
ledger on its publicly accessible website. The homepage of 28
each public school's website shall include a direct link to 29
the financial ledger of the school district that has 30
oversight responsibility for that public school. The link 31
shall make the financial ledger accessible within one click, 32
shall be clearly labeled as a link to the school district's 33
financial ledger, and shall be functional and mobile- 34
responsive. The department may provide standardized 35
language or icons that public schools may use for the 36
purpose of ensuring compliance with this subsection. 37
3. A school district's financial ledger shall be 38
updated at least monthly. Details of each calendar month's 39
financial transactions shall be posted no later than forty- 40
five days after the close of that calendar month. 41
4. For historical record keeping purposes, a school 42
district shall maintain complete financial ledger data on 43
its publicly accessible website for no fewer than five prior 44
fiscal years. 45
5. A school district may redact protected personal 46
information on the financial ledger only to the extent 47
required by applicable law. Vendor names, amounts, and 48
accounting codes shall not be redacted. Payroll data may be 49
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presented in aggregated form where disclosure of individual 50
information is restricted. 51
6. Debt obligations shall be posted in a separate 52
section of the financial ledger, with disclosure of the 53
following information: 54
(1) Outstanding debt balances; 55
(2) Issuance dates; 56
(3) Repayment schedules; 57
(4) Annual debt service amounts; and 58
(5) Debt service as a percentage of total expenditures. 59
7. The department may provide or approve standardized 60
templates or platforms a school district may use to comply 61
with the provisions of this section. A school district may 62
use a third-party template or platform that is approved by 63
the department. 64
8. The department may provide guidance to assist 65
school districts in complying with the provisions of this 66
section. Such guidance may include: 67
(1) High-level expenditure summaries by classification 68
category under the Missouri financial accounting manual; 69
(2) Standardized definitions of terms to be used in 70
the financial ledger; and 71
(3) Clear explanations of methodology and limitations 72
applicable to the compilation and presentation of financial 73
ledger data. 74
9. School districts shall annually certify compliance 75
with this section to the department. The department shall 76
promulgate rules establishing procedures and timelines for 77
school districts to certify compliance. 78
10. If the department finds that any school district 79
has violated a provision of this section, the department may 80
withhold state aid to which the school district is entitled 81
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under chapter 163 until the school district proves to the 82
satisfaction of the department that the school district is 83
no longer in violation of this section. 84
11. The department shall establish a process for 85
members of the public to file complaints with the department 86
if they believe a school district has violated any provision 87
of this section. The department may establish a public 88
compliance dashboard on the department's website to enable 89
members of the public to check whether a particular school 90
district is certified as in compliance with the provisions 91
of this section. 92
12. The department shall promulgate rules to implement 93
the provisions of this section. Any rule or portion of a 94
rule, as that term is defined in section 536.010, that is 95
created under the authority delegated in this section shall 96
become effective only if it complies with and is subject to 97
all of the provisions of chapter 536 and, if applicable, 98
section 536.028. This section and chapter 536 are 99
nonseverable and if any of the powers vested with the 100
general assembly pursuant to chapter 536 to review, to delay 101
the effective date, or to disapprove and annul a rule are 102
subsequently held unconstitutional, then the grant of 103
rulemaking authority and any rule proposed or adopted after 104
August 28, 2026, shall be invalid and void. 105
162.821. The district secretary shall keep a record of 1
the proceedings of all annual and special elections of the 2
voters of the district and of the proceedings of the board 3
of education. He shall make copies of the election notices, 4
contracts with teachers, certificates and all other papers 5
relating to the business of the district, and securely keep 6
the same. He shall maintain a correct plat of the district 7
and shall promptly notify the department of elementary and 8
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secondary education and the county clerk of each county 9
affected of all changes in the boundaries of the district. 10
He shall transmit to the county commission and to the state 11
department of elementary and secondary education, on or 12
before the fifteenth day of August in each year, a report 13
embracing the following items: 14
(1) The number of children, male and female, attending 15
the public schools during the year; 16
(2) Total number of days' attendance by all such 17
children; 18
(3) The number of days the public schools of the 19
district have been maintained during the school year; 20
(4) The number of teachers employed, male and female, 21
and the wages per month of each; 22
(5) Estimated value of school property owned and 23
managed by the district; 24
(6) Assessed valuation of the district; 25
(7) Rate of school tax on the assessed valuation of 26
the district; 27
(8) Cash on hand at the beginning of the year; 28
(9) Tuition fees received and credited to the 29
teachers' fund of the district; 30
(10) Public funds received by county treasurer; 31
(11) District tax received by county (or township) 32
treasurer; 33
(12) Amount paid on teachers' wages; 34
(13) Amount paid for incidental expenses; 35
(14) Amount expended for purchasing site, erecting 36
schoolhouses, rent and repairs; 37
(15) Amount expended in cancelling bonded indebtedness 38
and paying interest on same; 39
(16) Amount expended for library; 40
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(17) Amount expended for legal services. If the 41
report does not include the amount expended for legal 42
services, then the attorney general may investigate the 43
violation of this subdivision and may bring a civil action, 44
including an action for injunctive relief, against the 45
school district. Such action shall be brought in the county 46
where the school district is located; 47
(18) Cash on hand at the end of the year; 48
[(18)] (19) Such other information as may be required 49
by the state board of education. 50
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