Honoring Missouri’s Veterans and Members of the Armed Forces

The Missouri Legislature strives to give honor where honor is due. One thing everyone can agree on is that honor is due the young women and men who have served in our nation’s armed forces. In the military, these young people gain technical and leadership skills that surpass many of their peers. Therefore, it is only fitting that we provide our veterans with opportunities to transfer their military skills to the college classroom.

Senate Bill 106 (Sen. Brown, R-16), requires public colleges and trade schools to accept credits for equivalent courses that veterans already passed as part of their military training. This act also exempts military members in the medical field from having to renew professional licenses while they are on active duty. These servicemen and women are often updating their medical knowledge through military courses, and, if they are stationed in a combat zone, they are learning under pressure in the classroom of experience.

SB 117 (Kraus, R-8) allows any individual who is separating from the military forces of the United States with an honorable discharge or a general discharge to be considered a resident student for admission and in-state tuition purposes at approved 4-year and 2-year colleges and universities. This is just another way of thanking veterans for their service and giving them more opportunities for their civilian careers.

SB 116 (Kraus, R-8) ensures that military members on active duty have fair access to exercising their right to vote. This act requires the Secretary of State to establish an electronic transmission system for uniformed voters stationed overseas. Through this system, military members may apply and receive voter registration materials and military-overseas ballots.

SB 110 (Brown, R-16), gives active military members more options for visiting their children of whom they don’t have full custody. This act allows a deploying parent to have access to his or her child, and protects the best interests of the child.

SB 186 (Brown, R-16) ensures the unclaimed remains of veterans are interred with the due respect they deserve.

Protecting the Right to Vote for Missourians in the Military

Members of the American Armed Forces stationed abroad bravely risk their lives each day to fight for the rights that we hold so dear, including the right to choose our elected representatives. We can never completely repay these men and women for their sacrifices, but we must at least ensure that they are never deprived of the very rights they defend.

To better serve Missourians deployed abroad, the House recently passed Senate Bill 116, the Uniformed Military and Overseas Voters Act, which will simplify the voting process for military personnel and other Americans living overseas to help guarantee that their votes are counted and their voices are heard.  

Currently, the voting process for those deployed outside the United States is complex and cumbersome. It can take weeks, or even months, for ballots to be mailed back and forth between military bases and the United States, and if deadlines are missed, these votes will not be counted.  Moreover, if forces are transferred to a different base while the forms are in the mail, these men and women may never get a chance to cast their ballots.

Senate Bill 116 makes it easier for those stationed outside of the United States to vote by requiring the Secretary of State to establish a system whereby overseas voters can request registration materials and military-overseas ballots online. Those who are not registered to vote in Missouri will be able to use the federal postcard application to register to vote and request a ballot. This process will apply to national, state, and local elections to make the process as efficient as possible. With a smarter and faster registration process in place, it will be easier for all military personnel to have their voices heard by the country they so valiantly serve.

Veterans Designation on a Driver’s License

SB 470 was signed into law and became effective August 28, 2012.  A provision within the bill enables a veteran to apply to the Department of Revenue to obtain a “veteran designation” on his/her driver’s license (or identification card) upon providing a United States Department of Defense discharge document, known as a DD 214 form, showing a discharge status of “honorable or “general under honorable conditions.”  There is no additional cost to request this “optional” indicator, however, the standard new, renewal or duplicate transaction and license processing fees will apply.  The designation will be posted to the back of the license or document.  It will appear as a symbol with the word “VETERAN” within the banner.  More information about this provision and the various applicable fees can be found at the DOR website: http://dor.mo.gov/faq/drivers/veterans.php#q2 or by contacting them at 301 W. High Street, Room 470, Jefferson City, MO 65105-0200 or via telephone at 573.751.4600.  The Missouri Veterans Commission may be contacted at 205 Jefferson Street, P.O. Box 147, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0147 or via telephone at 573.751.3779 or http://www.mvc.dps.mo.gov/.