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SB1216 • 2026

Expands the requirement for children to wear personal flotation devices

Expands the requirement for children to wear personal flotation devices

Children
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Nurrenbern, Maggie; House handler: N/A
Last action
2026-01-27
Official status
Second Read and Referred S Transportation, Infrastructure and Public Safety Committee
Effective date
2026-08-28

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

Expands the requirement for children to wear personal flotation devices

The following summaries of this bill are available: Print All Summaries Introduced Print SB 1216 - Currently, children under the age of seven years old are required to wear a personal flotation device when on board any watercraft on the waters of Missouri.

What This Bill Does

  • The following summaries of this bill are available: Print All Summaries Introduced Print SB 1216 - Currently, children under the age of seven years old are required to wear a personal flotation device when on board any watercraft on the waters of Missouri.
  • This act names the provision "Hannah's Law" and raises the age until which a child is required to wear a personal flotation device to twelve.
  • The act also requires a child who is wading or swimming in navigable public waters more than three feet in depth to wear a personal flotation device.
  • This act exempts children from the personal flotation device requirement if supervised by a lifeguard.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

  1. 2026-01-27 S239

    Second Read and Referred S Transportation, Infrastructure and Public Safety Committee

  2. 2026-01-07 S71

    S First Read

  3. 2025-12-01 Missouri House of Representatives and Missouri Senate

    Prefiled

Official Summary Text

The following summaries of this bill are available:

Print All Summaries

Introduced

Print

SB 1216 - Currently, children under the age of seven years old are required to wear a personal flotation device when on board any watercraft on the waters of Missouri. This act names the provision "Hannah's Law" and raises the age until which a child is required to wear a personal flotation device to twelve. The act also requires a child who is wading or swimming in navigable public waters more than three feet in depth to wear a personal flotation device. This act exempts children from the personal flotation device requirement if supervised by a lifeguard.

This act is identical to HB 3293 (2026), SB 176 (2025), HB 619 (2025), and SB 1211 (2024), similar to HB 2557 (2024), identical to SB 307 (2023) and SB 913 (2022), and similar to HB 2212 (2022).
TAYLOR MIDDLETON

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 BILL NO. 1216
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR NURRENBERN.
3851S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
AN ACT
To repeal section 306.220, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof one new section relating to personal
flotation devices, with penalty provisions.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Section 306.220, RSMo, is repealed and one new 1
section enacted in lieu thereof, to be known as section 306.220, 2
to read as follows:3
306.220. 1. The provisions of this section shall be 1
known and referred to as "Hannah's Law". 2
2. Each person under the age of [seven] twelve who is 3
on board any watercraft which is on the waters of this state 4
or who is wading or swimming in navigable public waters more 5
than three feet in depth shall wear a personal flotation 6
device which is approved by the United States Coast Guard. 7
Any person who allows a person under the age of [seven] 8
twelve to be on board any watercraft which is on the waters 9
of this state without wearing a personal flotation device, 10
or to wade or swim in navigable public waters more than 11
three feet in depth without wearing a personal flotation 12
device, shall be deemed guilty of a class C misdemeanor. 13
This section does not apply when the person under the age of 14
[seven] twelve is in a part of a watercraft which is fully 15
enclosed, where such enclosure will prevent such person from 16
falling out of or being thrown from the watercraft. This 17
SB 1216 2
section does not apply when a person under the age of twelve 18
is supervised by a lifeguard. 19
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