Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe (R) signed House Bill 567 (HB 567) on July 10, repealing provisions of Proposition A, which voters approved in 2024. HB 567 repealed the paid sick leave requirements and the provision that tied future minimum wage increases to inflation.
Proposition A is an initiated state statute that was approved by nearly 58% of voters on Nov. 5, 2024. Proposition A increased Missouri’s minimum wage to $15 per hour in 2026, starting at $13.75 per hour in 2025. It also required employers to provide one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked.
The initiative required businesses with 15 or fewer employees to provide at least five paid sick days per year, while those with more than 15 employees had to offer at least seven paid sick days annually. Employees could use this sick leave for their own illnesses or to care for family members.
Gov. Kehoe released a statement following the signing of HB 567 and others saying, “Today, we are protecting the people who make Missouri work—families, job creators, and small business owners—by cutting taxes, rolling back overreach, and eliminating costly mandates.”
Kara Corches, the president and CEO of the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which opposed Proposition A, said, “Missouri employers value their employees and recognize the importance of offering competitive wages and benefits, but one-size-fits-all mandates threaten growth.”
Richard von Glahn, the organizing director of Missouri Jobs With Justice, which is sponsoring a 2026 constitutional initiative to put the minimum wage and paid sick leave requirements in the state constitution, said the repeal of paid sick leave “forces people to choose between their family’s health and their paycheck.” He said, “Missouri voters and voters in other states are pretty sick of seeing our elected officials willingly betraying us. In this sort of environment, no right is safe if it is not in your constitution.”
Voters also approved paid sick leave initiatives in Alaska and Nebraska last November. The Nebraska State Legislature passed and Gov. Jim Pillen (R) signed a bill in June repealing the paid sick leave requirement for businesses with 10 or fewer employees, among other changes. No changes have been adopted in Alaska.
Missouri is one of 11 states that have the initiative power and have no restrictions on when or how legislators can amend or repeal voter-approved initiated statutes. Nebraska requires a two-thirds vote to amend or repeal initiated state statutes. Alaska cannot amend immediately after passage, but can only repeal after two years.
Missouri HB 567 passed in the state House by a vote of 84-62, with 84 Republicans and zero Democrats voting to pass the bill, while 48 Democrats and 14 Republicans voted against the bill. The Missouri State Senate voted 22-11 to pass HB 567, largely along party lines with one Republican joining Democrats in opposition to the bill.
The Missouri State Legislature has amended one other initiated state statute since 2010. Proposition B was passed in 2010 by 52% of voters. It required large-scale dog breeders to meet specific care standards, limited breeders to 50 dogs, and established a misdemeanor crime for puppy mill cruelty violations. It was amended in 2011 by state legislators.
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