Missouri Senate returns Senate Bill 4 to informal calendar after pipeline-assessment chapter removed

Senate Bill 4, a measure to revise and add provisions relating to gas utilities sponsored by Senator Mike Sirpoy of Lee's Summit, was placed back on the Missouri Senate’s informal calendar on Wednesday after lawmakers removed a chapter on pipeline assessments.

The change — described during floor discussion as the removal of the pipeline-assessment section — prompted senators to pause formal action and schedule the bill for future consideration. "The pipeline assessment part, it's gone now. That entire chapter is out of the bill," said a senator on the floor (not named in the transcript).

The bill is one of three utilities-related measures this session; senators said Senate Bill 5 concerns water and Senate Bill 6 concerns electricity. During debate, Senator Tracy McCreery of St. Louis County said she had been opposed to the bill’s original version. Another floor speaker characterized the bill’s evolution by saying, "I think it's moved from a very terrible bill to just a bad bill. But there are some things in here that I think are gonna be helpful to consumers." That remark appeared during floor discussion and was attributed in the transcript to an unnamed senator.

No formal vote or recorded tally on Senate Bill 4 was reported in the transcript. Senate staff returned the measure to the informal calendar for a future consideration date, and senators indicated they expect additional work before further action. The transcript did not specify a new calendar date or list any formal amendments other than the removal of the pipeline-assessment chapter.

Reporting from the state capital, Dean Morgan noted that Senate Bill 4 remains pending and is being considered alongside Senate Bill 5 and Senate Bill 6 as part of the legislature’s package of utility-related legislation.