In a landslide vote last Friday of 139-2, the Missouri House approved revisions to a law barring teachers from chatting exclusively with students via Internet sites.
Lawmakers repealed the provision of Senate Bill 54, commonly known as the Amy Hestir Student Protection Act, which prohibited teachers from using websites that allowed “exclusive access” with current or past students under the age of 18.
The repeal replaces the electronic communication provision and with a mandate that school districts develop their own social media policy by March 1. The Senate passed the bill 33-0 earlier this month.
Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem blocked the original law from going into effect last month on the basis that it infringed on free speech rights, Rep. Mary Still, D-Columbia, said.
“I voted for the repeal because there was an oversight in the original legislation that needed to be fixed,” Still said. “We fixed it by giving the issue back to local school districts.”
MSTA had filed a lawsuit against the state of Missouri in early August over the constitutionality of SB54.
“The original language (of the bill) was unclear as to what a teacher could or couldn’t do on social media sites,” Missouri State Teachers Association spokesman Todd Fuller said. “The new language of the bill puts the issue into the hands of the districts and allows them to pick a policy that best serves them.”
Rep. Jay Barnes, R-Jefferson City, said the new bill would make litigation against the school districts more likely, as well as potentially violate teachers’ First Amendment rights. Barnes was one of two votes against the revisions.
“This so-called fix forces school districts to adopt policies that could be unconstitutional,” Barnes said. “I don’t want to make school districts adopt a policy that would be setting them up for failure. I think the First Amendment is of vital importance and if I have to be the stick in the mud standing up for it, I will be.”
Both Still and Barnes said they believed Gov. Jay Nixon will sign the bill into effect.
Still said districts will be able to choose from a variety of policy options if the bill is passed.
“Some districts will get it right, some will not,” Still said. “There will be lots of help and guidance through the MSTA.”
Fuller said while MSTA has been working to put together important elements of the sample policy, nothing is set yet.
“We have been talking to some districts over the past few months and have found that their policies are too strict,” Fuller said. “We want to be flexible enough to change, as technology is constantly changing.”
The MSTA is keeping their lawsuit intact until the repeal is signed into law.
“We are awaiting the Governor’s decision,” Fuller said. “We won’t stop our suit until we know the language of the bill is truly changed.”
Missouri School Boards Association spokesman Brent Ghan said MSBA will also provide samples of communication policy to districts, but that they are not convinced Nixon will sign the new bill.
“The bill is not a done deal and there is some question about whether or not Governor Nixon will sign it,” Ghan said. “The governor simply called for the repeal of the provision and this language change goes beyond that.”
Nixon called for the repeal of the online communications law in a special legislative session soon after Beetem’s decision to block the bill. The state constitution gives the governor the authority to determine matters discussed during a special session, but, the governor cannot direct how lawmakers address those matters.
Nixon is not the first governor to try to exercise this level of control over a special session, said Bill Horner, MU director of undergraduate studies for political science.
“Executive branches and legislatures struggle for power,” Horner said. “It’s what they do and it is an age-old story.”
Missouri House Communications Office Director Trevor Fox said there was not an estimated time for when Nixon will make a decision.
