Safety for Sports Officials

It took Kansas City Representative Jerome Barnes 4 years– but he finally was able to get a bill out of the Missouri House that addresses the growing problem of sports referee safety.
It sets up guidelines and penalties for serious threats to referees during a school or public game.

A veteran referee himself, Barnes explained to lawmakers that fewer people want to officiate ANY games because of threats from fans.

Barnes, a Democrat, has bipartisan support for the bill that got added to a larger bill that is now in House-Senate negotiations.