Several Missouri lawmakers introduce legislation aimed at tracking, recording number of undocumented immigrants in state

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) – It took less than an hour of being in office for Missouri’s new Gov. Mike Kehoe to issue some new laws on undocumented immigration.

Next, the legislative branch is introducing bills to increase those efforts.

It’s estimated there are about 70,000 undocumented immigrants in Missouri, according to Pew Research Center. But there’s no avenue for the state to collect accurate numbers. Several pieces of legislation have been introduced in the Missouri General Assembly that aim to make it easier to track how many undocumented immigrants are in Missouri.

St. Louis Republican Representative Jim Murphy is one of several lawmakers sponsoring a bill that aims to collect more information on undocumented immigration. His bill would require private employers and businesses to verify the employment eligibility of every employee who is hired. Currently it’s just public employers who are required to do this.

“They’re taking union jobs, they’re taking American jobs, because they’re being paid under the table,” Murphy said.

Another bill introduced would modify Missouri driver’s licenses to include a symbol that indicates the holder is a U.S. citizen. Since it’s early in the session, bills are still being referred to committees for hearings and have not had much traction or discussion.

Missouri’s new governor, Mike Kehoe, focused on immigration in the executive orders he issued just moments after swearing into office. Kehoe’s executive orders allow for some State Troopers to train with federal law enforcement on finding undocumented immigrants, and requires law enforcement to collect immigration statuses from people accused of crimes.

Independence Democratic Representative Aaron Crossley tells me he’s tired of the discussions on immigration, which he says are not truly productive. He calls Kehoe’s and other Republicans’ efforts to legislate on immigration “political pandering.”

“They’re not lowering the cost of living, they’re not getting our roads paved, they’re not making our schools perform better,” Crossley said.

When asked about the governor’s executive orders, a spokesperson for the Missouri State Highway Patrol said in an email they do not discuss executive orders in detail, but, “will remain focused on carrying out our mission of enforcing laws and providing services to ensure a safe and secure environment for everyone in Missouri.”

Copyright 2025 KMOV. All rights reserved.