A proposed Missouri law guarding against discrimination and antisemitism in public schools has moved to the next step in the legislative process. HB 937 passed the Higher Education and Workforce Development Committee by a vote of 10-2 on March 13. One committee member voted “present.”

HB 937 was introduced by Rep. George Hruza, R-St. Louis County, on Jan. 16. A hearing by the higher education committee was held on Feb. 25 during which 89 witnesses offered testimony on the language of the bill. Before the bill can be scheduled for debate and a vote on the house floor, it must clear one additional hurdle, passage by the Rules Committee. This is a necessary procedural step for any new legislation.

Hruza, who is Jewish, said the education committee vote was a positive sign.

“It does bode well,” Hruza said. “It’s probably going to be bipartisan. I do have some resistance from some Republicans that still need a little bit of coaxing, and I do have a couple of Democrats that support it.”

The bill, which prohibits antisemitic conduct in Missouri public schools and institutions of higher education, takes on increased significance in the wake of the recent vandalism and antisemitic messages in the Affton School District, Hruza said.

“I sent the article (about Affton) to John Patterson, the house speaker, so he’s on board,” Hruza said. “I believe we have a solid majority in the house. And when it comes to a vote, it’s going to be overwhelmingly bipartisan. The challenge is that some people are tying it somehow into DEI. Jews are not part of any underrepresented minority groups. We’re not a protected class.”

The Feb. 25 hearing, Hruza said, included testimony from one witness who was a high school sophomore in Kirkwood.

“She proved our point because she was harassed by the opponents to the bill as she was giving testimony,” he said. “They were whispering all kinds of nasty stuff at her. She had a look of terror in her eyes and said to her mom, ‘We have to leave now—I don’t feel safe here.’”

As of March 5, HB 937 had attached 12 co-sponsors. Hruza said that was a positive indicator and that he was cautiously optimistic since the bill has some strong champions in the state senate. He said one challenge could be time and prioritization of other proposed legislation on the house calendar. The logistics of lawmaking result in a limited number of bills successfully moving all the way through the legislative process.