Annelise Hanshaw

Republican state Sen. Mike Cierpiot of Lee’s Summit, said birth certificates reflect “facts on the day you were born." His bill is inspired by a case where a transgender student sued the Blue Springs School District after being barred from locker rooms and bathrooms.

Republican state Sen. Rick Brattin has proposed giving families a direct refund for expenses related to educating their children at home or private schools. Public educators raised multiple concerns about the plan.

The case may decide if the Missouri Human Rights Act covers legal sex, such as when a birth certificate is amended after gender transition, or is limited to sex as assigned at birth. The MHRA makes it illegal to deny public accommodations on the basis of sex, among other restrictions.

Some child care centers closed and others turned away families during months of missed payments caused by software problems. But Education Commissioner Karla Eslinger said 70% of that backlog has been resolved.

Dean Johnson, who also co-founded Crossroad Charter Schools in Kansas City, said that Quality Schools Coalition was forced to shutter after four years when a top donor declined to renew their funding.

Missouri state Rep. Doug Clemens, a Democrat from St. Ann, filed the bill regulating the treatment of breeding animals, such as requiring veterinary care. But it faces opposition from agricultural groups.

Bills largely split by partisan divides seek to expand or modify charter school operation in Missouri

Pre-filed bills aim to prevent transgender Missourians from using their gender identity on state-issued licenses. Current policy requires a person to provide proof of gender transition surgery to change their gender marker, which LGBTQ advocates say is discriminatory.

The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education believes that lowering a GPA requirement for teachers will improve teacher recruitment and retention without reducing educator quality.

A 74-page ruling backs state’s argument defending law that has blocked transgender Missourians from accessing gender-affirming health care,