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Read. Follow. Verify.Missouri House Bill 1745 Establishes Mandatory Administrative Complaint Process for Minimum Wage and Overtime Claims
Last action · March 12, 2026: Reported Do Pass (H)Sponsor: Scott Miller
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What This Bill Would Do
Missouri HB 1745 requires employees alleging state minimum wage or overtime violations arising on or after January 1, 2027, to file a formal complaint with the department before filing a civil lawsuit. The department must investigate within 90 days, administer a settlement window, and issue a right-to-sue notice if the dispute is unresolved.
Workers pursuing unpaid wages must navigate a mandatory state agency review process and risk forfeiting claims or paying opposing legal fees if they bypass the procedure or reject settlement offers exceeding final court awards.
- Representative Scott Miller introduced House Bill 1745 during the 2026 Regular Session of the Missouri General Assembly. 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.
Employees
Employees claiming minimum wage or overtime violations must complete a mandatory departmental complaint and settlement process before filing a civil lawsuit.
Employers
Employers receive a formal administrative review process, a 30-day window to offer settlements after investigative reports, and potential cost recoveries if employee lawsuits fail to exceed settlement offers.
Department
The department is required to investigate complaints within 90 days, administer settlement negotiations, issue investigative reports and right-to-sue notices, and promulgate rules.
Key Facts
- Beginning January 1, 2027, employees must first file a complaint with the department regarding state minimum wage or overtime violations as a jurisdictional condition precedent to filing a civil lawsuit.
- Complaints must include all pay periods for which the employee alleges a violation, along with pay stubs, time sheets, and supporting evidence.
- Omitting pay periods from the complaint waives the right to future complaints for those periods, subject to applicable state and federal laws.
- The department must investigate the complaint and issue an investigative report within ninety days, unless an extension is agreed upon by both the employee and employer.
Show all 8 facts
- Employers have thirty days from receipt of the investigative report to make a settlement offer, and employees have thirty days to consider it.
- If no settlement is reached within one hundred eighty days after the investigative report is issued, the department must issue a right-to-sue notice and close the administrative file.
- Employees who file suit without first filing a administrative complaint will have their suit dismissed without prejudice and must compensate the employer for all legal fees and costs.
- If an employee files suit after a right-to-sue notice and is awarded damages equal to or less than the department's finding or employer's settlement offer, the employee is liable for all costs incurred by both parties.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if an employee files a wage lawsuit without filing a departmental complaint first?
How long does the department have to complete its investigation?
What occurs if a settlement cannot be reached after the investigative report is issued?
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
8 actions- Mar 12, 2026HouseCommitteeReported Do Pass (H)
- Mar 11, 2026HouseCommitteeVoted Do Pass (H)
- Mar 11, 2026HouseExecutive Session Completed (H)
- Feb 25, 2026HousePublic Hearing Completed (H)
- Feb 5, 2026HouseCommitteeReferred: Commerce(H)
- Jan 8, 2026HouseFloorRead Second Time (H)
Show 2 earlier actions
- 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.
Mandatory Administrative Exhaustion for Wage Claims
Shifts enforcement structure by requiring department investigation and settlement windows prior to civil court filings for minimum wage and overtime disputes.
Connected Entities
Sources
house.mo.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy60Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz30Current news / social attention level
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