The MOST Policy Initiative team had a busy legislative session, writing more than 40 new Science Notes for legislators across both parties and representing all corners of the state. Fellows also shared 73 Science Notes with 41 legislators and provided informational testimony in 9 hearings on more than 15 Science Notes. More than half of Science Notes written and shared were related to legislation that was introduced this session.
This session was busy: legislators introduced more than 3,100 bills and truly agreed and finally passed (TAFP) 101, an increase from 69 bills in 2025 (Missouri House of Representatives 2026, Missouri Senate 2026, Missouri Senate 2025). A breakdown by subject area is shown in Figure 1.
Major bills this session included a healthcare omnibus covering everything from healthcare professional licensure to contraceptive access, sentencing changes for juvenile offenders, and a proposal to eliminate Missouri’s income tax which will head to voters in August.
In addition, many bills received significant consideration from the legislature, even though they were not ultimately TAFP. The legislature took up childcare tax credits, exploring additional power sources including nuclear and hydropower, approval for psychedelic treatments for mental health conditions, and changing school ratings to an A-F system championed by Governor Kehoe.
Read more about the bills and Science Notes in major topic areas: