Session began on Jan. 7. Nearly 700 proposals have been submitted in the Missouri Senate for consideration during the 2026 Legislative Session. Needless to say, it will be a busy and productive legislative session as lawmakers tackle issues and work to improve the lives of all Missourians.

With the goals to rein in government, enhance election integrity, and reduce taxes in mind, I have pre-filed 27 bills to date. I carried a few of these in past sessions and hope to build on the momentum they gained.

I will proudly chair the Senate Economic and Workforce Development Committee again this session. The other committees I will serve on include Emerging Issues and Professional Registration, Government Efficiency, and Judiciary and Civil and Criminal Jurisprudence. Several committees conducted hearings this past week, and the remainder will begin when we return from the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. I enjoy serving on this variety of committees and look forward to vetting legislation on important legal, emerging and pro-business proposals in the coming months.

Enhancing Missouri’s Election Integrity

Securing and enhancing Missouri’s election integrity is fundamental to preserving the trust that our democracy depends on — ensuring that every vote cast truly reflects the will of eligible American citizens, and that the voice of Missouri families is never diluted or undermined by any form of irregularity or unauthorized participation.

With the overwhelming approval of Amendment 7 in November 2024 — passing with more than 68% of the vote — Missourians decisively enshrined in our state constitution the principle that only U.S. citizens are entitled to vote in our elections. This strong mandate, which I proudly sponsored in the Senate, sent a clear message: fair, honest, and secure elections are non-negotiable for safeguarding our republic and upholding the one-person, one-vote principle that has defined our state and nation for generations.

The SAVE Act, Senate Bill 986, which I have proudly filed again this year, builds directly on this voter-approved constitutional foundation and the broader national momentum for secure elections.

SB 986 is a straightforward, common-sense measure designed to strengthen public trust in our electoral system by ensuring that only U.S. citizens can register to vote in our elections. It requires applicants to provide clear documentary proof of citizenship—helping to confirm elections are conducted fairly, securely, and with the integrity that Americans expect and deserve. This commonsense reform aims to restore and reinforce confidence that our elections reflect the will of eligible citizens alone. By implementing this simple verification, we strengthen public confidence that our electoral system remains secure, honest, and reflective of the will of eligible American citizens alone—delivering the integrity and fairness that Missouri families expect and deserve.

Last year, the governor signed my bill to ban foreign influence in Missouri’s ballot initiatives into law. To build on this enhanced security feature, I filed Senate Bill 896 restrict government agencies from soliciting, accepting, or using any funds or in-kind donations for election administration.

Election interference can come in many forms. In recent years, we have seen the rise of dark-money groups seeking to undermine our state’s electoral process, under the guise of reforming our elections to “bring together election officials” around a set of common values and standards.

In 2020, an organization called the Center for Tech and Civic Life was at the heart of an effort to use more than $400 million provided by Mark Zuckerberg to influence the way election offices functioned and to steer funds disproportionately to jurisdictions that voted Democratic. Funds that have since been commonly referred to as “Zuckerbucks.”

In 2022, Missouri banned Zuckerbucks, preventing election authorities from accepting private cash or grants to run elections. The passage of this law was an important step. However, those who had been utilizing this process quickly learned of a loophole. In an attempt to usurp the Zuckerbucks ban, they began shifting to a membership-based model, requiring fees from participating members. These are often simply converted into scholarships to cover those membership costs, which are then instantly converted into “credits” that member offices can use to buy services from the Center for Tech and Civic Life and other allied groups.

Senate Bill 896, which I refer to as “Zuckerbucks 2.0 Ban,” closes that loophole by restricting government agencies from soliciting, accepting, or using in-kind contributions for election administration. In addition to the direct donation ban created by the original Zuckerbucks legislation, this legislation also closes the membership-based loophole by barring government entities or election officers from joining any membership, participating in any program, or purchasing any services from these organizations that are actively seeking to use this as a means of exerting influence over our local electoral process.