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Missouri Senate Bill SB562

Missouri 2025 Regular Session

Missouri Senate Bill SB562 Compare Versions

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22 EXPLANATION-Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in this bill is not enacted
33 and is intended to be omitted in the law.
44 FIRST REGULAR SESSION
55 SENATE BILL NO. 562
66 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
77 INTRODUCED BY SENATOR GREGORY (15).
88 1959S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
99 AN ACT
1010 To repeal sections 452.335 and 452.370, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof two new sections
1111 relating to support orders.
1212
1313 Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
1414 Section A. Sections 452.335 and 452.370, RSMo, are 1
1515 repealed and two new sections enacted in lieu thereof, to be 2
1616 known as sections 452.335 and 452.370, to read as fol lows:3
1717 452.335. 1. In a proceeding for nonretroactive 1
1818 invalidity, dissolution of marriage or legal separation, or 2
1919 a proceeding for maintenance following dissolution of the 3
2020 marriage by a court which lacked personal jurisdiction over 4
2121 the absent spouse, the court may grant a maintenance order , 5
2222 which may be bridge, rehabilitative, or durational, to 6
2323 either spouse, but only if it finds that the spouse seeking 7
2424 maintenance: 8
2525 (1) Lacks sufficient property, including marital 9
2626 property apportioned t o him or her, to provide for his or 10
2727 her reasonable needs; and 11
2828 (2) Is unable to support himself or herself through 12
2929 appropriate employment or is the custodian of a child , or a 13
3030 disabled or incapacitated adult dependent, whose condition 14
3131 or circumstances make it appropriate that the custodian not 15
3232 be required to seek employment outside the home. 16
3333 2. The general assembly hereby finds and declares that 17
3434 every spouse has a continuing duty to become self -supporting 18 SB 562 2
3535 following the dissolution of a marr iage, so long as 19
3636 physically and mentally capable. Further, maintenance is 20
3737 not intended as a substitute for gainful employment, an open - 21
3838 ended obligation without limitation, or a guarantee of a 22
3939 certain standard of living. The maintenance order shall be 23
4040 in such amounts and for such periods of time as the court 24
4141 deems just, and after considering all relevant factors , 25
4242 including: 26
4343 (1) The financial resources of the party seeking 27
4444 maintenance, including marital property apportioned to him 28
4545 or her, and his or her ability to meet his or her needs 29
4646 independently, including the extent to which a provision for 30
4747 support of a child, or a disabled or incapacitated adult 31
4848 dependent, living with the party includes a sum for that 32
4949 party as custodian; 33
5050 (2) The time necessary to acquire sufficient education 34
5151 or training to enable the party seeking maintenance to find 35
5252 appropriate employment; 36
5353 (3) The comparative earning capacity of each spouse 37
5454 and the efforts made by each spouse to take steps to become 38
5555 self-supporting in accordance with this subsection ; 39
5656 (4) The standard of living established during the 40
5757 marriage considered in light of this subsection ; 41
5858 (5) The obligations and assets, including the marital 42
5959 property apportioned to him or her and the separate property 43
6060 of each party; 44
6161 (6) The duration of the marriage; 45
6262 (7) The age[,] and the physical and emotional 46
6363 condition of [the spouse seeking maintenance ] each party; 47
6464 (8) The ability of the spouse from whom maintenance is 48
6565 sought to meet his or her needs while meeting those of the 49
6666 spouse seeking maintenance; 50 SB 562 3
6767 (9) The conduct of the parties during the marriage; 51
6868 [and] 52
6969 (10) The factors set forth in subsection 9 of this 53
7070 section; and 54
7171 (11) Any other relevant factors. 55
7272 3. The maintenance order shall state if it is bridge, 56
7373 rehabilitative, or durational and whether the order is 57
7474 modifiable or nonmodifiable. Bridge, rehabilitative, and 58
7575 durational maintenance orders shall not be combined. The 59
7676 court [may] shall order maintenance which includes a 60
7777 termination date in accordance with the provisions of this 61
7878 section. Unless the maintenance order which includes a 62
7979 termination date is nonmodifiable, the court may order the 63
8080 maintenance decreased, increased, terminate d, extended, or 64
8181 otherwise modified based upon a substantial and continuing 65
8282 change of circumstances which occurred prior to the 66
8383 termination date of the original order , provided that no 67
8484 maintenance order shall be modified to extend its duration 68
8585 in excess of the limits established in this section, except 69
8686 as provided in subsection 10 of this section . 70
8787 4. For purposes of determining maintenance only, or a 71
8888 modification thereto, a short -term marriage is a marriage 72
8989 having a duration of three years but less than ten years; a 73
9090 moderate-term marriage is a marriage having a duration of 74
9191 ten years but less than twenty years; and a long -term 75
9292 marriage is a marriage having a duration of twenty years or 76
9393 more. The duration of a marriage is the period of time f rom 77
9494 the first day of the marriage until the date of the filing 78
9595 of a petition for dissolution of marriage or legal 79
9696 separation. 80
9797 5. Except as provided under subsection 10 of this 81
9898 section, for marriages lasting: 82 SB 562 4
9999 (1) Three years but less than te n years, the duration 83
100100 of maintenance shall not exceed fifty percent of the 84
101101 marriage's length; 85
102102 (2) Ten years but less than twenty years, the duration 86
103103 of maintenance shall not exceed sixty percent of the 87
104104 marriage's length; and 88
105105 (3) Twenty or more years, the duration of maintenance 89
106106 shall not exceed seventy -five percent of the marriage's 90
107107 length. 91
108108 Marriages lasting less than three years shall be ineligible 92
109109 for maintenance. 93
110110 6. Bridge maintenance may be awarded to assist a party 94
111111 to a short-term marriage seeking maintenance with 95
112112 legitimate, identifiable short -term needs. The length of 96
113113 the maintenance shall not exceed two years. An award of 97
114114 bridge maintenance shall terminate upon the death of either 98
115115 party or upon the remarriage of the pa rty receiving 99
116116 maintenance. An award of bridge maintenance shall not be 100
117117 modifiable in amount or duration. 101
118118 7. (1) Rehabilitative maintenance may be awarded to 102
119119 assist a party to a short -term or moderate-term marriage 103
120120 seeking maintenance in establi shing the capacity for self - 104
121121 support through either: 105
122122 (a) The redevelopment of previous skills or 106
123123 credentials; or 107
124124 (b) The acquisition of education, training, or work 108
125125 experience necessary to develop appropriate employment 109
126126 skills or credentials . 110
127127 (2) The length of the rehabilitative maintenance shall 111
128128 not exceed four years. 112 SB 562 5
129129 (3) An award of rehabilitative maintenance may be 113
130130 modified or terminated based upon substantial and continuing 114
131131 changed circumstances, as a result of the failure, or 115
132132 insufficient efforts being made by the party receiving 116
133133 rehabilitative maintenance, to establish the capacity for 117
134134 self-support as provided in this subsection, or upon 118
135135 completion of the rehabilitative efforts contemplated by 119
136136 this subsection, if appl icable, provided that the length of 120
137137 the maintenance shall not be modified to exceed the limits 121
138138 set forth in this subsection, except in accordance with 122
139139 subsection 10 of this section. 123
140140 8. Durational maintenance may be awarded to provide 124
141141 for the needs and necessities of life as they were 125
142142 established during a moderate -term or long-term marriage. 126
143143 Durational maintenance may be awarded if such an award is 127
144144 appropriate upon consideration of the factors set forth in 128
145145 subsection 2 of this section. 129
146146 9. In establishing the term of durational maintenance, 130
147147 and for purposes of all maintenance modifications decided on 131
148148 or after August 28, 2025, the court shall consider all 132
149149 relevant factors, including, but not limited to: 133
150150 (1) The retirement, or the p rospect and ability of the 134
151151 payer of maintenance to retire, from full -time employment or 135
152152 reduce his or her employment status to part -time or accept 136
153153 lower-paying employment as part of a plan to retire; 137
154154 (2) The age of the party paying maintenance; 138
155155 (3) The duration and amount of maintenance already 139
156156 paid, and the efforts made by the party seeking maintenance 140
157157 to become self-supporting; 141
158158 (4) The likelihood that the lifestyle of both spouses 142
159159 may reasonably decline following a dissolution of m arriage 143 SB 562 6
160160 or legal separation and as the parties approach retirement 144
161161 age; and 145
162162 (5) The provisions of subsection 2 of this section. 146
163163 10. Notwithstanding the limits set forth in 147
164164 subsections 5 and 7 of this section to the contrary, a court 148
165165 may award durational maintenance or modify rehabilitative or 149
166166 durational maintenance in excess of the limits set forth in 150
167167 this section if the court specifically finds, after 151
168168 consideration of all relevant factors, including those set 152
169169 forth in subsection 2 of th is section, that: 153
170170 (1) Such limits will result in a substantial and 154
171171 continuing hardship for the party seeking, or currently 155
172172 receiving, maintenance; 156
173173 (2) The party seeking maintenance meets the criteria 157
174174 in subdivisions (1) and (2) of subsection 1 of this section; 158
175175 (3) The party seeking maintenance will be unable to 159
176176 establish the capacity, despite having made reasonable and 160
177177 continuing efforts to do so, for self -support within the 161
178178 maintenance limits set forth in subsection 5 or 7 of this 162
179179 section for the applicable marital duration at issue; and 163
180180 (4) Extending the maintenance further under this 164
181181 subsection is just and fair to both parties. In any case in 165
182182 which the court orders a party sixty -seven years of age or 166
183183 older to pay or cont inue to pay maintenance, the court shall 167
184184 make written findings of fact and conclusions of law 168
185185 evidencing exceptional circumstances to support its ruling. 169
186186 If the court extends the duration of the maintenance under 170
187187 this subsection, the court shall enter w ritten findings of 171
188188 fact and conclusions of law setting forth the grounds for 172
189189 exceeding the limits set forth in this section in the order 173
190190 establishing or modifying rehabilitative or durational 174 SB 562 7
191191 maintenance, specifically addressing subdivisions (1) to (4) 175
192192 of this subsection. The court shall also incorporate as 176
193193 part of any modifiable maintenance order entered under this 177
194194 chapter a specific order that the party receiving 178
195195 maintenance has an affirmative duty to make reasonable and 179
196196 continuing efforts to es tablish the capacity for self - 180
197197 support and to become self -supporting, and the failure to do 181
198198 so may be relied upon by the court as grounds for a 182
199199 modification or termination of maintenance in any future 183
200200 proceeding unless the physical or mental condition o f the 184
201201 party seeking maintenance or the application of subsection 185
202202 11 or 12 of this section makes the inclusion of such a 186
203203 provision in the order unreasonable or inappropriate. 187
204204 11. Nothing in this section shall be construed to 188
205205 prohibit parties from reaching an agreement, submitted in 189
206206 writing to the court, regarding the type or duration of 190
207207 modifiable or nonmodifiable maintenance, regardless of 191
208208 whether the duration of maintenance in such agreement 192
209209 exceeds the limits described in this section. 193
210210 12. For purposes of modification of prior orders 194
211211 establishing maintenance, the standards set forth in this 195
212212 section shall be applicable to all initial actions and 196
213213 modifications decided on or after August 28, 2025. 197
214214 Notwithstanding provisions to the con trary contained in this 198
215215 section or section 452.370, either party to any maintenance 199
216216 order entered prior to August 28, 2025, may file a 200
217217 modification under section 452.370 seeking to classify 201
218218 maintenance being paid under an existing maintenance order 202
219219 as bridge, rehabilitative, or durational or to shorten or 203
220220 lengthen the term of maintenance being paid under any such 204
221221 order, provided that the time limits, public policy 205
222222 statements, and other provisions of this section and section 206 SB 562 8
223223 452.370 shall control in all such actions initiated under 207
224224 those sections, including, without limitation, the 208
225225 durational limits on maintenance specified in this section. 209
226226 The courts shall have the latitude to give credit for 210
227227 maintenance paid under an existing order toward any modified 211
228228 maintenance term entered as part of a modification order. 212
229229 There shall be a presumption in favor of modifying existing 213
230230 maintenance orders to bring such orders into conformity with 214
231231 the provisions of this section and section 452.370, 215
232232 including the public policy set forth in such sections. 216
233233 452.370. 1. Except as otherwise provided in 1
234234 subsection 6 of section 452.325, and in accordance with the 2
235235 provisions of section 452.335, the provisions of any 3
236236 judgment respecting maintenan ce or support may be modified 4
237237 only upon a showing of [changed circumstances so ] 5
238238 substantial and continuing [as to make the terms 6
239239 unreasonable] changed circumstances . In a proceeding for 7
240240 modification of any child support or maintenance judgment, 8
241241 the court, in determining whether or not [a] substantial 9
242242 [change in] and continuing changed circumstances [has] have 10
243243 occurred, shall consider all financial resources of both 11
244244 parties, including the extent to which the reasonable 12
245245 expenses of either party are, or should be, shared by a 13
246246 spouse or other person with whom he or she cohabits, and the 14
247247 earning capacity of a party who is not employed. If the 15
248248 application of the child support guidelines and criteria set 16
249249 forth in section 452.340 and applicable suprem e court rules 17
250250 to the financial circumstances of the parties would result 18
251251 in a change of child support from the existing amount by 19
252252 twenty percent or more, a prima facie showing has been made 20
253253 of [a change of circumstances so ] substantial and continuing 21
254254 [as to make the present terms unreasonable ] changed 22 SB 562 9
255255 circumstances, if the existing amount was based upon the 23
256256 presumed amount pursuant to the child support guidelines. 24
257257 2. When the party seeking modification has met the 25
258258 burden of proof set forth in subsection 1 of this section, 26
259259 the child support shall be determined in conformity with 27
260260 criteria set forth in section 452.340 and applicable supreme 28
261261 court rules. 29
262262 3. Unless otherwise agreed in writing or expressly 30
263263 provided in the judgment, the obli gation to pay future 31
264264 statutory maintenance is terminated upon the death of either 32
265265 party or the remarriage of the party receiving maintenance. 33
266266 4. Unless otherwise agreed in writing or expressly 34
267267 provided in the judgment, provisions for the support o f a 35
268268 child are terminated by emancipation of the child. The 36
269269 parent entitled to receive child support shall have the duty 37
270270 to notify the parent obligated to pay support of the child's 38
271271 emancipation and failing to do so, the parent entitled to 39
272272 receive child support shall be liable to the parent 40
273273 obligated to pay support for child support paid following 41
274274 emancipation of a minor child, plus interest. 42
275275 5. If a parent has made an assignment of support 43
276276 rights to the family support division on behalf of th e state 44
277277 as a condition of eligibility for benefits pursuant to the 45
278278 Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program and either 46
279279 party initiates a motion to modify the support obligation by 47
280280 reducing it, the state of Missouri shall be named as a party 48
281281 to the proceeding. The state shall be served with a copy of 49
282282 the motion by sending it by certified mail to the director 50
283283 of the family support division. 51
284284 6. The court shall have continuing personal 52
285285 jurisdiction over both the obligee and the obligor of a 53
286286 court order for child support or maintenance for the purpose 54 SB 562 10
287287 of modifying such order. Both obligee and obligor shall 55
288288 notify, in writing, the clerk of the court in which the 56
289289 support or maintenance order was entered of any change of 57
290290 mailing address. If personal service of the motion cannot 58
291291 be had in this state, the motion to modify and notice of 59
292292 hearing shall be served outside the state as provided by 60
293293 supreme court rule 54.14. The order may be modified only as 61
294294 to support or maintenance installme nts which accrued 62
295295 subsequent to the date of personal service. For the purpose 63
296296 of 42 U.S.C. Section 666(a)(9)(C), the circuit clerk shall 64
297297 be considered the appropriate agent to receive notice of the 65
298298 motion to modify for the obligee or the obligor, but only in 66
299299 those instances in which personal service could not be had 67
300300 in this state. 68
301301 7. If a responsive pleading raising the issues of 69
302302 custody or visitation is filed in response to a motion to 70
303303 modify child support filed at the request of the family 71
304304 support division by a prosecuting attorney or circuit 72
305305 attorney or an attorney under contract with the division, 73
306306 such responsive pleading shall be severed upon request. 74
307307 8. Notwithstanding any provision of this section which 75
308308 requires a showing of s ubstantial and continuing [change in] 76
309309 changed circumstances, in a IV -D case filed pursuant to this 77
310310 section by the family support division as provided in 78
311311 section 454.400, the court shall modify a support order in 79
312312 accordance with the guidelines and crite ria set forth in 80
313313 supreme court rule 88.01 and any regulations thereunder if 81
314314 the amount in the current order differs from the amount 82
315315 which would be ordered in accordance with such guidelines or 83
316316 regulations. 84
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