Missouri SB 1392: Modifies provisions of the Missouri Empowerment Scholarship Accounts Program and authorizes charter schools to operate in Boone County, St. Charles County, and St. Louis County

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. 1392
102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR TRENT.
5544S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
AN ACT
To repeal sections 135.713, 135.714, 135.715, 160.400, and 166.700, RSMo, and to enact in lieu
thereof five new sections relating to educational opportunities for elementary and
secondary school students.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Sections 135.713, 135.714, 135.715, 160.400, 1
and 166.700, RSMo, are repealed and five new sections enacted 2
in lieu thereof, to be known as sections 135.713, 135.714, 3
135.715, 160.400, and 166.700, to read as follows:4
135.713. 1. Any taxpayer who makes a qualifying 1
contribution to an educational assistance organization after 2
August 28, 2021, may claim a credit against the tax 3
otherwise due under chapter 143, other than taxes withheld 4
under sections 143.191 to 143.265, and chapter 153 in an 5
amount equal to one hundred percent of the amount the 6
taxpayer contributed during the tax year for which the 7
credit is claimed. No taxpayer shall claim a credit under 8
sections 135.712 to 135.719 for any contribution made by the 9
taxpayer, or an agent of the taxpayer, on behalf of the 10
taxpayer's dependent or, in the case of a business taxpayer, 11
on behalf of the business's agent's dependent. 12
2. The amount of the tax credit claimed shall not 13
exceed fifty percent of the taxpayer's state tax liability 14
for the tax year for which the credit is claimed. The state 15
treasurer shall certify the tax credit amount to the 16

SB 1392 2
taxpayer. A taxpayer may carry the credit forward to any of 17
such taxpayer's four subsequent tax years. All tax credits 18
authorized under the program shall not be transferred, sold, 19
or assigned, and are [not] refundable. 20
3. The cumulative amount of tax credits that may be 21
allocated to all taxpayers contributing to educational 22
assistance organizations in any one calendar year shall not 23
exceed a maximum of [fifty] seventy-five million dollars[, 24
which]. Such maximum amount shall be annually adjusted from 25
the 2021 maximum amount by the state treasurer for inflation 26
based on the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers 27
for the Midwest region, as defined and officially recorded 28
by the United States Department of Labor or its successor, 29
[such annual increase will cease when the amount of tax 30
credits reach seventy-five million dollars] and shall 31
additionally be annually adjusted by any percentage increase 32
in the amount appropriated for pupil transportation under 33
section 163.161 above the threshold of ninety percent of the 34
projected amount necessary to fully fund transportation aid 35
funding for the current fiscal year. The state treasurer 36
shall establish a procedure by which, from the beginning of 37
the calendar year until August first, the cumulative amount 38
of tax credits shall be allocated on a first-come, first- 39
served basis among all educational assistance 40
organizations. If an educational assistance organization 41
fails to use all, or some percentage to be determined by the 42
state treasurer, of its allocated tax credits during this 43
period, the state treasurer may reallocate these unused tax 44
credits to those educational assistance organizations that 45
have used all, or some percentage to be determined by the 46
state treasurer, of their allocated tax credits during this 47
period. The state treasurer may establish more than one 48

SB 1392 3
period and reallocate more than once during each calendar 49
year. The state treasurer shall establish the procedure 50
described in this subsection in such a manner as to ensure 51
that taxpayers can claim all the tax credits possible up to 52
the cumulative amount of tax credits available for the 53
calendar year. 54
4. A taxpayer who makes a contribution to an education 55
assistance organization shall not designate the student who 56
will receive a scholarship grant. 57
[5. The provisions of sections 135.712 to 135.719 and 58
sections 166.700 to 166.720 shall be effective in any fiscal 59
year immediately subsequent to any fiscal year in which the 60
amount appropriated for pupil transportation under section 61
163.161 equals or exceeds forty percent of the projected 62
amount necessary to fully fund transportation aid funding 63
for fiscal year 2021. If the amount appropriated for 64
transportation under section 163.161 in any succeeding year 65
falls below such amount, no additional scholarships for 66
newly qualified students shall be awarded.] 67
135.714. 1. Each educational assistance organization 1
shall: 2
(1) Notify the state treasurer of [its] such 3
organization's intent to provide scholarship accounts to 4
qualified students; 5
(2) Demonstrate to the state treasurer that [it] such 6
organi