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Read. Follow. Verify.Missouri House Bill 1639 sets new accommodation standards for college students and professional licensing applicants with disabilities
Last action · May 15, 2026: Referred: Emerging Issues(H)Sponsor: Matthew Overcast
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What This Bill Would Do
House Bill 1639 establishes the Missouri Pathways to Access and Success Act, requiring public colleges and professional licensing bodies to accept standardized disability documentation and limiting their ability to deny requested s.
The measure directly alters the evidentiary burden for students and workers seeking disability s, requiring licensing boards to defer to s and reimburse legal fees for wrongfully denied requests.
- The Missouri General Assembly is the state legislature responsible for enacting laws regarding higher education and professional registration. context
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Students with disabilities
Public institutions of higher education are required to accept standardized documentation for establishing eligibility for accommodations.
Applicants for professional licensing examinations
Licensing bodies must give substantial deference to qualified treating professionals and historical accommodations when evaluating examination requests.
Public institutions of higher education
Must adopt transparent policies accepting specified forms of documentation and disseminate accommodation information to students, parents, and faculty.
Licensing bodies
Must adhere to strict 30-day decision timelines, provide detailed denials, fund required staff training, and report annual accommodation statistics.
Key Facts
- Establishes the Missouri Pathways to Access and Success Act, applying to public higher education institutions and professional licensing examinations.
- Mandates that public colleges accept IEPs, Section 504 plans, ADA records, professional evaluations, previous college disability plans, or military service documentation as sufficient proof of a disability.
- Creates a rebuttable presumption of eligibility for professional licensing exam accommodations if an applicant has a documented history of receiving accommodations in education or standardized tests.
- Requires professional licensing bodies to grant accommodations backed by a qualified treating professional unless they show clear and convincing evidence of an undue burden or fundamental alteration.
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- Prohibits licensing boards from denying accommodations solely based on the opinion of an expert who has not personally examined the applicant, absent objective evidence of fraud.
- Mandates that licensing bodies provide written decisions on accommodation requests within thirty days and include detailed explanations for any denials.
- Establishes a three-member independent review panel within the division of professional registration of the department of commerce and insurance to hear appeals of denied accommodations within forty-five days.
- Requires licensing bodies found to have wrongfully denied an accommodation to reimburse the applicant's reasonable attorney's fees and costs.
- Requires licensing bodies to report annual accommodation request data to the department of commerce and insurance for public website publication before February first of each year.
- Mandates that licensing body personnel involved in evaluations receive ADA compliance training at least once every two years from an approved external expert.
Frequently Asked Questions
What documentation is sufficient to establish a disability at a public college under this bill?
What happens if a professional licensing body denies an accommodation request?
Are professional licensing bodies required to provide training on ADA compliance?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
4 actions- May 15, 2026HouseCommitteeReferred: Emerging Issues(H)
- Jan 8, 2026HouseFloorRead Second Time (H)
- Jan 7, 2026HouseIntroducedRead First Time (H)
- Dec 1, 2025HouseIntroducedPrefiled (H)
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Standardization of Disability Proof Across Higher Ed and Licensing
The bill bridges educational disability documentation standards (such as IEPs and 504 plans) directly into professional licensing examinations.
Connected Entities
Sources
house.mo.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy40Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz30Current news / social attention level
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