Mo. Rev. Stat. § 21.950 — MO Code / Chapter 21 / Section 21.950
21.950 Article V convention, selection and participation of Missouri commissioners ...
Status: in_force

21.950. Article V convention, selection and participation of Missouri commissioners — recommended commissioner instructions. — 1. When a convention is called to propose amendments to the United States Constitution pursuant to Article V of the United States Constitution, the selection and participation of commissioners from Missouri to such convention shall be governed by this section.

2. (1) Missouri shall have a number of commissioners equal to the number of congressional districts in the state at the time with one commissioner from each congressional district and a number of alternate commissioners equal to the number of congressional districts in the state at the time with one alternate commissioner from each congressional district.

(2) Commissioners and alternates shall be residents of the state of Missouri and shall otherwise meet the same qualifications necessary to hold office in the Missouri house of representatives. Commissioners and alternates may include persons holding public office, subject to further limits described below, except that no person shall be eligible who is:

(a) A member of the United States House of Representatives or Senate;

(b) An employee of the United States;

(c) An employee or other representative of a contractor with the United States; or

(d) An elected official holding a statewide office.

Commissioners and alternates are also subject to those existing ethics rules that apply to members of the general assembly.

(3) The house of representatives and senate shall select, by adoption of a concurrent resolution, the commissioners and alternates who meet the eligibility requirements described in this section and who are submitted to the house of representatives and the senate by the joint legislative committee as provided in subsection 4 of this section. Of the commissioners, at least one-third shall not be sitting members of the general assembly. Of the alternate commissioners, at least one-third shall not be sitting members of the general assembly.

(4) A majority of the commissioners shall constitute a quorum for all decisions made by the delegation, and no commissioner may give his or her vote by proxy or otherwise to any other commissioner. The commissioners shall select a chair to administer the work of the commissioners.

3. (1) Each commissioner and alternate shall, by oath or affirmation as a condition of participating in the convention, agree to faithfully and impartially discharge all the duties incumbent upon a commissioner, including the duty to abide by instructions established by concurrent resolution of the general assembly for participation in the convention and the duty to act only within the scope of the general assembly's application for the convention if Missouri applied for the convention in which the commissioners are participating. Each commissioner and alternate shall further agree to immediately notify the joint legislative committee if he or she believes that any Missouri commissioner or alternate has violated his or her oath or instructions while participating in the convention.

(2) Prior to the Article V convention, the general assembly shall consider recommended commissioner instructions presented to it by the joint legislative committee as discussed further in subsection 4 of this section and shall by concurrent resolution provide duly approved instructions to the commissioners and alternates regarding the scope of matters the commissioners may consider and vote on at the convention, including rules of procedure and proposed amendments. Such instructions may be changed by the general assembly prior to or during the convention. These instructions shall include, but shall not be limited to:

(a) An instruction that the commissioners shall not support any voting rule other than the rule whereby each state exercises one vote; and

(b) An instruction that on all voting matters at the convention, the decision of a simple majority of the Missouri commissioners shall constitute a single vote for the state of Missouri.

(3) Any vote cast by a commissioner or alternate at an Article V convention that is outside the scope of any of the following is an unauthorized vote and is therefore void:

(a) The instructions established by any concurrent resolution adopted under this section; or

(b) Any limits identified in the Missouri general assembly's application for the convention.

4. (1) After or near the time an Article V convention is called, a joint legislative committee shall be duly authorized by the general assembly for the purposes described in this section. The joint legislative committee shall be comprised of five members of the senate appointed by the president pro tempore of the senate, with three members from the majority party and two members from the minority party, and five members of the house of representatives appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives, with three members from the majority party and two members from the minority party, and shall have the initial task of recommending eligible commissioners to the house of representatives and the senate for consideration of appointment as commissioners. The joint legislative committee shall submit at least three persons from each congressional district who are eligible, as provided in this section, to serve as commissioners and at least three different persons from each congressional district who are eligible, as provided in this section, to serve as alternate commissioners. The house of representatives and the senate shall select a commissioner and alternate commissioner from each congressional district from the names submitted by the joint legislative committee. The joint legislative committee shall also be charged with presenting recommended commissioner instructions to the full general assembly for consideration leading to a concurrent resolution as discussed in subdivision (2) of subsection 3 of this section. Such commissioner instructions shall define the scope of matters the commissioners may consider and vote on at the Article V convention, including rules of procedure and proposed amendments as discussed more fully in subsection 3 of this section. All recommendations that secure a simple majority vote of the members present shall be deemed approved recommended commissioner instructions to be submitted to the full general assembly for its consideration.

(2) After commissioners have been selected, the joint legislative committee may recall any commissioner and revoke such commissioner's authority. However, the joint legislative committee shall recall and revoke the authority only in the event the commissioner casts or attempts to cast an unauthorized vote as described in this section. The joint legislative committee shall also appoint one of the selected alternates to take the place of a commissioner so recalled. The joint legislative committee shall promptly investigate any notice that a commissioner or alternate has cast an unauthorized vote or otherwise exceeded the scope of the general assembly's application for the convention or the general assembly's instructions to the commissioners. The joint legislative committee shall act to ensure that the commissioners remain faithful to the terms of the convention application and the general assembly's instructions. Before or during the Article V convention, the joint legislative committee may advise the commissioners on questions that arise regarding the scope of the convention and the legislative instructions to commissioners.

(3) By concurrent resolution, the general assembly may change or supersede any action of the joint legislative committee or recall commissioners or alternates to the convention, or appoint new commissioners or alternates.

(4) The joint legislative committee shall be authorized to conduct its business via telephone or by electronic communication.

5. If the provisions of this section conflict with the rules or procedures established by the Article V convention, the general assembly may, by concurrent resolution, conform these provisions to such rules or procedures.

(L. 2026 S.B. 1119)