Missouri Amendment 5 - The National Guard As Its Own Department?

           Missouri Amendment 5 seeks to change the Missouri Constitution to include the following provision:

           “There shall be established a Missouri Department of the National Guard in charge of the adjutant general appointed by and serving at the pleasure of the governor, by and with the advice and consent of the senate, who shall provide for the state militia, uphold the Constitution of the United States, uphold the Constitution of Missouri, protect the constitutional rights and civil liberties of Missourians, and provide other defense and security mechanisms as may be required.”

           The Amendment seeks to move the Missouri National guard out of the department of public safety, where its been since 1972, and make it a stand-alone department, with a general appointed by the governor and approved by the state senate. The department would be within the executive branch of the state government.

The language in the proposed amendment seeks only to create the agency. The language does not give any direction for how the department will operate.

For the full text of the proposed amendment, visit: https://house.mo.gov/billtracking/bills221/hlrbillspdf/5096H.01T.pdf