POLISCOPE
Back to bills
Part ofCourts →

The civic record

Read. Follow. Verify.
HB 2109MISSOURISession 2026State Billin committee
High Impact

Missouri House Bill 2109 establishes family justice centers and modifies witness and victim tampering laws

Original title: VICTIMS OF CRIME

Last action · May 15, 2026: Referred: Emerging Issues(H)Sponsor: Lane Roberts

Bill progressHistory & official text ↓
Introduced
Committee
Floor Vote
Passed
Law

Track this bill to get notified when it advances a stage. One tap to stop, anytime.

Public stanceCommunity reactions are separate from the official record and reporting.

What This Bill Would Do

House Bill 2109 establishes legal guidelines and confidentiality requirements for multiagency s serving victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking, while prohibiting centers from requiring criminal justice participation to receive services. The measure also modifies witness and victim tampering offenses to eliminate the requirement that the state prove the underlying criminal offense in certain cases and sets penalty provisions.

Why it matters

Changes legal protections and operational standards for victims seeking support at s and alters evidentiary requirements for prosecuting witness or victim tampering offenses in Missouri courts.

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.

Directly affected

Crime victims

Victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, and human trafficking receive guaranteed confidentiality and service access without mandatory law enforcement cooperation at family justice centers, and are subject to broader legal definitions under tampering statutes.

Directly affected

Family justice center personnel and volunteers

Staff and volunteers are bound by strict confidentiality requirements, rendered incompetent to testify without a written waiver, and granted civil immunity when performing duties in good faith.

Directly affected

Law enforcement and prosecuting attorneys

Key Facts

You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to cooperate with law enforcement to get help at a family justice center?
No. The bill explicitly prohibits s from requiring persons served to participate in the criminal justice system or cooperate with law enforcement in order to receive advocacy, counseling, medical care, or other services.
Can family justice center workers be forced to testify about what a client tells them?
No. Any person employed or volunteering at a center is concerning confidential client information unless the client provides a written waiver.
What is the penalty for tampering with a witness or victim under the bill?
It is a class A misdemeanor, unless the original charge is a felony, in which case it is a class D felony. Persons convicted are not eligible for probation, parole, conditional release, or suspended imposition of sentence.

What else do you want to know?

News Coverage

No news coverage found yet. Articles are indexed twice daily.

Follow the record

Votes, people, money & the original source

Where This Stands

Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.

Procedural history

4 actions
  1. May 15, 2026HouseCommittee
    Referred: Emerging Issues(H)
  2. Jan 8, 2026HouseFloor
    Read Second Time (H)
  3. Jan 7, 2026HouseIntroduced
    Read First Time (H)
  4. Dec 2, 2025HouseIntroduced
    Prefiled (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

Lane RobertsHouse · District 161RepublicanSponsor

Connected Entities

State v. Owens, department of social services, Joseph Engler and 2 more
otherState v. Owens“Legal case referenced in legislative intent”Map →
Organizationdepartment of social services“Agency participating in family justice centers”Map →
PersonJoseph Engler“Chief Clerk of the House”Map →
OrganizationGeneral Assembly“Legislative body enacting the bill”Map →
Organizationchildren's division“Division of the department of social services”Map →

Sources

Open source document

house.mo.gov

Analysis Score

0–100
  • Significance75
    How much this matters to a regular citizen
  • Controversy40
    Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
  • Entertainment10
    Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
  • Buzz30
    Current news / social attention level

Publisher tools

Share or embed this record

POLISCOPE publisher tools

Share or embed this record