Missouri 2025 Regular Session

Missouri Senate Bill SB235 Compare Versions

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Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2	FIRST REGULAR SESSION
3	3	SENATE BILL NO. 235
4	4	103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
5	5	INTRODUCED BY SENATOR HENDERSON.
6	6	1311S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
7	7	AN ACT
8	8	To amend chapter 454, RSMo, by adding thereto one new section relating to child maintenance
9	9	orders for certain persons convicted of driving while intoxicated.
10	10
11	11	Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
12	12	Section A. Chapter 454, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto 1
13	13	one new section, to be known as section 454.1050, to read as 2
14	14	follows:3
15	15	454.1050. 1. This section shall be known and may be 1
16	16	cited as "Bentley's Law". 2
17	17	2. If a person is convicted of the o ffense of driving 3
18	18	while intoxicated, such offense caused the death of a parent 4
19	19	or parents of a child or children, and a surviving parent or 5
20	20	guardian files a petition to receive child maintenance from 6
21	21	the person convicted of such offense, such person sh all be 7
22	22	ordered by the court to pay child maintenance to the child 8
23	23	or children until the child or children: 9
24	24	(1) Die; 10
25	25	(2) Marry; 11
26	26	(3) Enter active military duty; 12
27	27	(4) Reach eighteen years of age unless the provisions 13
28	28	of subsection 3 of this section apply; or 14
29	29	(5) Reach twenty-one years of age unless the 15
30	30	provisions of the maintenance order specifically extend 16
31	31	beyond the child's or children's twenty -first birthdays for 17 SB 235 2
32	32	reasons provided under subdivision (1) of subsection 3 of 18
33	33	this section. 19
34	34	3. (1) If the child or children are physically or 20
35	35	mentally incapacitated from supporting themselves and 21
36	36	insolvent and unmarried, the court may extend the 22
37	37	maintenance obligation past the child's or children's 23
38	38	eighteenth birthday. 24
39	39	(2) (a) If the child or children reach eighteen years 25
40	40	of age and are enrolled in and attending a secondary school 26
41	41	program of instruction, maintenance shall continue, if the 27
42	42	child or children continue to attend and progress toward 28
43	43	completion of such program, until the child or children 29
44	44	complete such program or reach twenty -one years of age, 30
45	45	whichever first occurs. 31
46	46	(b) If the child or children are enrolled in an 32
47	47	institution of vocational or higher education no later than 33
48	48	October first follow ing graduation from a secondary school 34
49	49	or completion of a graduation equivalence degree program and 35
50	50	so long as the child or children enroll for and complete at 36
51	51	least twelve hours of credit each semester, not including 37
52	52	the summer semester, at an institu tion of vocational or 38
53	53	higher education and achieve grades sufficient to reenroll 39
54	54	at such institution, maintenance shall continue until the 40
55	55	child or children complete their education or until the 41
56	56	child or children reach twenty -one years of age, whicheve r 42
57	57	first occurs. To remain eligible for such continued 43
58	58	maintenance, at the beginning of each semester the child or 44
59	59	children shall submit to the court a transcript or similar 45
60	60	official document provided by the institution of vocational 46
61	61	or higher education that includes the courses the child or 47
62	62	children are enrolled in and have completed for each term, 48
63	63	the grades and credits received for each such course, and an 49 SB 235 3
64	64	official document from the institution listing the courses 50
65	65	that the child or children are enrolled in for the upcoming 51
66	66	term and the number of credits for each such course. When 52
67	67	enrolled in at least twelve credit hours, if the child or 53
68	68	children receive failing grades in half or more of the 54
69	69	child's or children's courseload in any one semeste r, 55
70	70	payment of maintenance for the child or children receiving 56
71	71	the failing grades may be terminated and shall not be 57
72	72	eligible for reinstatement. Upon request for notification 58
73	73	of the child's or children's grades by the court, the child 59
74	74	or children shall produce the required documents to the 60
75	75	court within thirty days of receipt of grades from the 61
76	76	education institution. If the child or children fail to 62
77	77	produce the required documents, payment of maintenance may 63
78	78	terminate without the accrual of any main tenance arrearage 64
79	79	and shall not be eligible for reinstatement. If the 65
80	80	circumstances of the child or children manifestly dictate, 66
81	81	the court may waive the October first deadline for 67
82	82	enrollment required by this subdivision. As used in this 68
83	83	subdivision, "institution of vocational education" means any 69
84	84	postsecondary training or schooling for which the child is 70
85	85	assessed a fee and attends classes regularly. "Higher 71
86	86	education" means any community college, college, or 72
87	87	university at which the child attends classes regularly. A 73
88	88	child or children who have been diagnosed with a 74
89	89	developmental disability, as defined under section 630.005, 75
90	90	or whose physical disability or diagnosed health problem 76
91	91	limits the child's or children's ability to carry the number 77
92	92	of credit hours prescribed in this subdivision, shall remain 78
93	93	eligible for maintenance so long as such child or children 79
94	94	are enrolled in and attending an institution of vocational 80
95	95	or higher education and the child or children continue to 81 SB 235 4
96	96	meet the other requirements of this subdivision. A child or 82
97	97	children who are employed at least fifteen hours per week 83
98	98	during the semester may take as few as nine credit hours per 84
99	99	semester and remain eligible for maintenance so long as all 85
100	100	other requirements of this s ubdivision are complied with. 86
101	101	4. The court shall order the person convicted of the 87
102	102	offense of driving while intoxicated as provided under 88
103	103	subsection 2 of this section to pay maintenance in an amount 89
104	104	that is reasonable or necessary for the maintena nce of the 90
105	105	child or children after considering all relevant factors, 91
106	106	including: 92
107	107	(1) The financial needs and resources of the child or 93
108	108	children; 94
109	109	(2) The financial resources and needs of the surviving 95
110	110	parent or, if no other parent is alive or capable of caring 96
111	111	for the child or children, the guardian of the child or 97
112	112	children, including the state if the state is the guardian; 98
113	113	(3) The standard of living the child or children would 99
114	114	have enjoyed; 100
115	115	(4) The physical and emotional condit ion of the child 101
116	116	or children and the child's or children's educational needs; 102
117	117	(5) The child's or children's physical and legal 103
118	118	custody arrangements; and 104
119	119	(6) The reasonable work-related child care expenses of 105
120	120	the surviving parent or guardian. 106
121	121	5. In addition to the relevant factors listed under 107
122	122	subsection 4 of this section, the court shall consider the 108
123	123	guidelines set out under subsection 8 of section 452.340 and 109
124	124	Missouri Supreme Court Civil Procedure Rule Form 14 in 110
125	125	determining the amount reasonable or necessary for the 111
126	126	maintenance of the child or children. 112 SB 235 5
127	127	6. (1) The court shall order that child maintenance 113
128	128	payments be made to the circuit clerk as trustee for 114
129	129	remittance to the surviving parent or guardian entitled to 115
130	130	receive the payments. The circuit clerk shall remit such 116
131	131	payments to the surviving parent or guardian within three 117
132	132	working days of receipt by the circuit clerk. Circuit 118
133	133	clerks shall deposit all receipts no later than the next 119
134	134	working day after receipt. 120
135	135	(2) As an alternative to subdivision (1) of this 121
136	136	subsection, the court may, upon its own motion, order that 122
137	137	maintenance payments be made to the family support payment 123
138	138	center established under section 454.530 as trustee for 124
139	139	remittance to the survivin g parent or guardian. However, 125
140	140	the court shall not order payments to be made to the payment 126
141	141	center if the family support division notifies the court 127
142	142	that such payments shall not be made to the center. In such 128
143	143	cases, payments shall be made to the cler k as trustee until 129
144	144	the division notifies the court that payments shall be 130
145	145	directed to the payment center. 131
146	146	7. In addition to any other remedy provided by law for 132
147	147	the enforcement of child maintenance, if a maintenance order 133
148	148	has been entered, the di rector of the family support 134
149	149	division or the director's designee shall issue an order 135
150	150	directing any employer or other payer of the person required 136
151	151	to pay child maintenance under this section to withhold and 137
152	152	pay over to the family support division or th e clerk of the 138
153	153	circuit court in the county in which a trusteeship is or 139
154	154	will be established moneys due or to become due to the 140
155	155	surviving parent or guardian for the child or children in an 141
156	156	amount not to exceed federal wage garnishment limitations. 142
157	157	8. If a person ordered to pay child maintenance under 143
158	158	this section is incarcerated and unable to pay the required 144 SB 235 6
159	159	maintenance, the person shall have up to one year after the 145
160	160	release from incarceration to begin payment, including any 146
161	161	arrearage. If any obligation under this section is to 147
162	162	terminate as provided under subsection 2 of this section but 148
163	163	the person's obligation is not paid in full, payments shall 149
164	164	continue until the entire arrearage is paid. 150
165	165	9. (1) If the surviving parent or guardian of the 151
166	166	child or children brings a civil action against the person 152
167	167	convicted of driving while intoxicated prior to any child 153
168	168	maintenance order under this section and the surviving 154
169	169	parent or guardian obtains a judgment in his or her favor in 155
170	170	the civil suit, no maintenance shall be ordered under this 156
171	171	section. 157
172	172	(2) If the court orders child maintenance under this 158
173	173	section but the surviving parent or guardian brings a civil 159
174	174	action and obtains a judgment in his or her favor, the child 160
175	175	maintenance order shall offset the judgment awarded in the 161
176	176	civil action. 162
177	177	10. The provisions of any order respecting maintenance 163
178	178	under this section may be modified only upon a showing of 164
179	179	changed circumstances so substantial and continuing as to 165
180	180	make the terms unreasonable. 166
181	181	