JEFFERSON CITY — The Missouri House of Representatives debated and passed multiple bills on Thursday, sending them to the Senate.

Restrictions on sex change hormones

House Bill 2033, sponsored by Rep. Melissa Schmidt, R-Eldridge, passed on a vote of 102-40. This bill removes the sunset provision on restrictions of prescribing sex change hormones to individuals under the age of 18.

The provision currently in place has an expiration date of Aug. 28, 2027. The bill would make the ban permanent.

The bill also states that prescriptions written for the purpose of helping a minor through a gender transition prior to Aug. 28, 2023, will no longer be valid after March 1, 2027.

This means individuals who have prescriptions, even if they were originally grandfathered in, will lose their validity on the 2027 date.

“Eighty-five to 90 percent of children come through symptoms of gender dysphoria after being allowed to simply go through puberty naturally,” Schmidt said.

House Democrats argued that this should be a family matter and that the decision should be left up to parents .

“For the most part, in this body we are not doctors, we are not therapists, and despite what some in this room may think, we are not the parents of every child in the state,” said Rep. Jeff Hales, D-St. Louis.

Divorce protections for pregnant women

House Bill 1908, sponsored by Rep. Cecelie Williams, R-Dittmer, passed unanimously. The bill would prevent courts from denying the right to a divorce based on a woman’s pregnancy status.

“It’s about offering survivors like me the chance to find safety,” Williams said.

Williams is a domestic abuse survivor who faced her own challenges when she attempted to get a divorce. Last year a similar bill sponsored by Williams also passed the House unanimously but stalled in the Senate.

Restrictions on police hiring

House Bill 1866, sponsored by Rep. Lane Roberts, R-Joplin, passed 101-36. The bill would allow the director of public safety to deny the application of a peace officer license or for entrance to a training course for those who are not a U.S. citizen or who have had their peace officer license revoked.

There was a lot of floor talk for this bill, and many representatives took their turns at the microphone to state their opinions.

“If you are not an American citizen, you should not be arresting American citizens on American soil,” said Rep. Bill Hardwick, R-Dixon.

There was also pushback. Rep. Will Jobe, D-Independence, spoke during a news conference after the session adjourned.

He said noncitizens who have served in the military should be eligible for peace officer jobs.

“I thought it was important and a distinction that should have been pretty easy and bipartisan to get across,” Jobe said. “It didn’t turn out that way.”