JEFFERSON CITY — Despite calls by some lawmakers for more state oversight of religious boarding schools, legislative action likely will have to wait until 2023.
A bill filed last week by Rep. , D-Shrewsbury, would require all residential care facilities to get licenses with the state. Unsicker said she filed the bill in the wake of numerous allegations of abuse at Agape Boarding School and the Circle of Hope Girls Ranch.
But Unsicker’s bill has not been scheduled for a hearing during the special session, which was called by Gov. Mike Parson to address an income tax cut and agriculture tax credits. Parson has previously refused to expand the scope of the session to include other issues.
Unsicker told reporters Thursday that she’s tried to talk with Parson about the bill, but he’s been unavailable. She also said she hasn’t received any help or promises from House Speaker , an Arnold Republican who would be in charge of getting the bill to the floor for a vote.
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Vescovo has been outspoken about closing down Agape but has remained silent on Unsicker’s bill. Vescovo last week wrote to U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore of the Western District of Missouri insisting that federal intervention may be the only way to protect students at Agape.
Vescovo’s letter asked the U.S. Attorney to “act immediately†to shut down the school, saying it has been engaged in “organized crime against children.â€
Unsicker said when she spoke with Vescovo about the bill, he told her he’d look at it but made no commitments.
“That’s it,†she said.
“I’m disappointed with the disagreements,†Unsicker told The Kansas City Star. “I think some of the energy to shut down this school is maybe an attempt to save the other schools from having to be regulated.â€
Vescovo started a tweetstorm from lawmakers Wednesday when he used the hashtag “#ShutAgapeDown.â€
“I refuse to turn a blind eye! Let’s call out the corruption that has allowed this organized crime against children to persist,†Vescovo’s tweet said. It included video clips from news reports about abuse allegations at Agape.
House Minority Leader , a Springfield Democrat, replied to Vescovo’s tweet, saying, “This isn’t partisan. It’s past time.†In a text to the Star, Quade said she supported Unsicker’s bill.
Republican lawmakers, including the official account for the House GOP, also voiced support for Vescovo’s call for the school to be shut down.
Unsicker’s bill further builds upon legislation passed in 2021 that gave the Department of Social Services oversight over unlicensed residential care facilities. That oversight includes background checks for employees and gives the attorney general power to shut down facilities that fail to maintain a safe environment for children.
However, the 2021 legislation did not require religious boarding schools to get licensed with the state. Under the new bill, religious boarding schools wouldn’t be allowed to operate without a license. The state’s Children’s Division could also revoke a school’s license if it found the school was allowing abuse.
During a news conference in Jefferson City on Thursday, Unsicker said that the disagreements over her bill likely stem from concerns about whether unlicensed schools and religious schools should be required to get licensed.
“The dispute is whether to license them, and I know these schools do not want to be licensed,†she said. “It needs to be discussed now, and we need to be licensing these schools.â€
Unsicker later told The Star that although her bill faces long odds during the Legislature’s special session, she plans to refile the bill during the next regular session if it doesn’t pass.
“It wasn’t in the governor’s call, but this is the time to bring it up with everything that’s going on — I wanted to bring attention to it,†she said.
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