Missouri's newest laws go into force

Legislators have been out of the Capitol for more than three months, but the results of much of their work officially become law this weekend.

Saturday was the effective date for more than 150 laws, including weighty topics such as an overhaul of the state's system for handling abused and neglected children and daily issues such as when motorists must turn on their vehicles' headlights.

Some changes will be evident right away, while others take some work by state agencies to get up and running.

Chief among House Speaker Catherine Hanaway's legislative accomplishments this year was passage of the bill changing how the state deals with abused and neglected children. Among other things, the bill expands background checks on new foster parents, makes foster care hearings public and requires the state to use more private companies for case management services.

Parts of the bill already are department policy. Some of the law's changes took effect July 1, and some will be put into place next year.

For example, the amount available for tax credits for adoptive parents increased as of July 1. And while a new rule requiring judges to hold hearings within three days of removing a child from a home does not have to be in place until February, the rule is already being developed and training is underway, Hanaway said.

"It certainly won't be like a light switch being flipped on," she said. "These are extraordinarily complex problems. The good news is we're getting started. ... It's an invitation for all of us to live up to what's written in it."

Several changes in motor vehicle laws also took effect.

It is now a law that when it's raining and windshield wipers are necessary, you must also turn on your headlights.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol says headlights are required any time the weather conditions dictate the use of windshield wipers. Headlights will also be required during periods of fog, even if the use of windshield wipers is not necessary.

Headlights are also to be used any time from a half hour after sunset to a half hour before sunrise and at any other time when there is not enough natural light to see people or vehicles on the highway at a distance of 500 feet.

Another section of the law allowing a driver's license suspension for passing a stopped school bus does not take effect until next year.

The Department of Revenue also is preparing for a law whose effects will be felt next year. It offers a property tax break to the elderly and disabled when their home values rise quickly, if the legislature provides the money for it.

Another law in effect this weekend requires police to complete a demographic report on everyone they stop, not just those who are ticketed, as the law had read.

Sen. Jon Dolan, R-Lake St. Louis, said it shouldn't make much of a difference because good departments are already recording that information.

"It was already the spirit of the law. Now it's the letter of the law," he said.

Winding up in court also could get more costly.

For example, one new law requires DNA samples to be taken from all felons before they are released from prison. Before, DNA testing was only required of anyone convicted of a violent felony or sex offense. To fund the additional testing, the state will impose a $30 fee on anyone convicted or pleading guilty to a felony and a $15 fee on anyone convicted or pleading guilty to a misdemeanor.

Also, counties can now create funds to help cover law enforcement expenses like training and equipment. Once those funds are created, judges can order certain criminals to pay into them, up to $300 per offense.

Payment into the fund would be at a judge's discretion and could be a condition of probation or a suspended sentence. People convicted of infractions, minor crimes -- misdemeanors with sentences of not more than 15 days in jail or a $300 fine -- or traffic offenses could not be made to pay into the fund.

In other matters, insurance providers generally must start treating mental health coverage the same as physical ailments under another law, and the state Insurance Department says companies have until January to get about 160 policy options into compliance.