ST. LOUIS – Mayor Tishaura Jones is vowing to take legal action to stop the proposed state takeover of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department.

Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe has strongly supported a bill that would shift control of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department to a state-appointed board. Meanwhile, Jones feels the plan is unconstitutional.

The bill, House Bill 495, sponsored by State Rep. Brad Christ (R-St. Louis County), would create a five-person board to oversee SLMPD in August. The board would consist of the St. Louis mayor and four commissioners.

Supporters argue that changing control of SLMPD would tackle challenges with crime, public safety and officer retention, while opponents see it as an unnecessary shift away from local governance.

The push comes as the St. Louis police union reports a chronic staffing shortage of about 30%, more than 350 officers below authorized strength.

Jones says the plan also comes with an estimated $40 million price tag for taxpayers. She also feels the proposal lacks a clear strategy to address the ongoing staffing crisis.

“We are making plans to fight for control of our police department, period,” said Jones. “Show me how you’re going to recruit more officers to a field where nationwide every major city is trying to recruit officers to the tune of even offering bonuses of up to $100,00 and they still can’t recruit more officers.”

For more than a century, control of the St. Louis Police was under similar oversight proposed by Rep. Christ: A Board of Police Commissioners consisting of the mayor and a group of commissioners appointed by the governor. 

That Civil War-era arrangement was overturned by voters during the 2012 election, and the City of St. Louis has retained exclusive authority over the department since 2013. 

If the plan is approved, commissioners who qualify for the board must have lived in the City of St. Louis for at least three years and cannot hold any other public office. The governor would have sole discretion over one appointment, while the remaining three would be selected based off recommendations from the mayor’s office, St. Louis Police Officers Association and Ethical Society of Police.

The bill has cleared the Missouri House chamber and is currently in the fiscal oversight stage in the Senate.