Senate passes annexation bill allowing Saint Joseph to annex local airport after amendments

The Missouri Senate on the floor passed the senate substitute for House Bill 2818, an annexation bill that would allow the city of Saint Joseph to bring its local airport inside city boundaries, after adopting a series of amendments that addressed county-specific scope and public-hearing requirements.

Senator from Livingston explained that the airport parcel is effectively separated by a changed river course and that annexation would help the city secure maintenance grants and better serve the 139th Airlift Wing based there. "With this annexation, it would help the city of Saint Joseph be able to better serve not only the public at that airport, but also the Hundred And 39th Airlift Wing itself," the senator said.

The floor debate pivoted to several local concerns. Senators pressed for clarity on which jurisdictions the substitute applies to, and several senators raised alarms about the bill as originally written: it had removed "water and sewer systems" from the list of major services that must be described in a public hearing for contested annexations. Senator from the 24th argued that water and sewer constitute essential services and pushed an amendment to preserve public hearings on those systems. The Senate adopted that amendment (Senate Amendment 2) by voice vote.

Another point of contention was the removal of Saint Charles County from the substitute. Senators representing that area described constituent opposition to involuntary annexation and the amendment to reinsert Saint Charles County (Senate Amendment 1) was offered and adopted. A further amendment (Senate Amendment 3) clarified that the special provisions apply only to the two intended counties (Saint Charles and Jefferson). Each amendment was adopted by voice vote on the floor.

After amendment adoption the sponsor moved that the substitute be read a third time and finally passed. The secretary called the roll; the bill was declared passed by a constitutional majority (reported as 28 yeas and 1 nay on the floor transcript).

The record shows multiple House messages and conference committee appointments read into the journal during the same session. The Senate adjourned to reconvene Tuesday, April 28 at 1 p.m.

Ending: House Bill 2818 passed the Senate as amended (voice roll-call reported 28-1) and will proceed according to the legislative process for any subsequent conference or enrollment steps.