One aftermath of most of the nation's recent mass shooting events has been renewed debates over gun control - including whether more (or fewer) restrictions are needed on people's ability to acquire weapons.
As of Thursday afternoon, state lawmakers had pre-filed a dozen bills that would affect weapons sales or use.
And one day after the Dec. 2 San Bernardino, California, attack that killed 14 and wounded 21, the U.S. Senate rejected rival proposals that could have made it harder for suspected terrorists to purchase firearms.
Senators first killed a plan by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, that would have let the government delay firearms sales to suspected terrorists for up to 72 hours - with the transaction halted permanently during that waiting period, if federal officials could persuade a judge to do so. The vote was 55-44, but it needed 60 votes to pass.
Missouri Republican Roy Blunt voted for it, and Democrat Claire McCaskill voted against.
The U.S. Senate then voted 45-54, rejecting California Democrat Dianne Feinstein's proposal to let the government bar gun sales to suspected terrorists.
McCaskill voted for that proposal, while Blunt voted no.
McCaskill, in a news release issued by her campaign office last Tuesday, urged Missourians to tell Congress "to take immediate action against gun violence. It's absurd that suspected terrorists - individuals deemed dangerous enough that we won't let them fly on planes - can buy guns; that the dangerously mentally ill can walk into a store and buy ammunition; that anyone can buy a firearm without undergoing an effective background check.
"It's horrific when, after all the tragedy we've witnessed, elected officials still cower to the NRA and powerful gun lobby and refuse to move forward on literally lifesaving, commonsense gun safety legislation that has the broad support of Americans of all stripes."
McCaskill said: "There's nothing controversial about saving lives."
For its part, the National Rifle Association said on its website that the Senate had "held the line on Second Amendment rights."
In a news release from the NRA's Institute for Legislative Action, the organization said: "In the days leading to the vote, gun prohibitionists and their allies in the media had whipped themselves up to a veritable frenzy. The pressure they brought to bear on the Senate was intense.
"Nevertheless, cooler heads prevailed, backed by sound research and empirical evidence."
Blunt mostly has been quiet about the issue recently.
But in April 2013, Missouri's junior senator - who is running for re-election next year - said in a news release: "We must do everything we can to prevent tragedies like those that took place in Newtown (Connecticut), Aurora (Colorado), or Tucson (Arizona), without restricting the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens."
Blunt, instead, has been focused on mental health issues, and - along with Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Michigan - has sponsored the Excellence in Mental Health Act to "address our nation's fragmented mental health system" as one way to help prevent mass shootings and other violent acts.
"Millions of Americans suffer from diagnosable disorders, but too often, we miss the warning signs before a mental health crisis results in violence," he said then. "We must have a national discussion about improving the ways that we identify and care for people with mental illness.
"We also must educate and empower members of the community to share information and intervene before someone does something that tragically impacts their lives and the lives of others."
State proposals for 2016
When Missouri lawmakers return Jan. 6 for the 2016 General Assembly, they will be asked to consider at least a dozen bills to change current state laws involving weapons.
State Sens. Bob Dixon, R-Springfield, and Brian Munzlinger, R-Williamstown, both have proposed removing the current bans on concealed weapons on the state's college and university campuses.
Dixon's bill proposes an outright cancellation of the current ban.
On his Facebook page, Dixon asked: "If "Gun-Free Zones' worked, why wouldn't we just create "Crime-Free Zones?'"
Munzlinger's bill would allow campus officials to opt out of the proposed change by allowing school officials to apply to the state Public Safety department for an exemption to the proposed rule.
Munzlinger's bill would require the department to grant an institution's exemption request if the institution can demonstrate:
• The permanent placement of security personnel and electronic weapons screening devices at each entrance to any building on the property.
• A requirement that security personnel screen each person entering the building for weapons.
• A requirement that any weapons found be held by security personnel while the person is in the building.
State Sen. Bob Onder, R-Lake St. Louis, would cancel the current prohibition on carrying licensed concealed weapons on any public transportation system, except for Amtrak or its transportation partners.
State Sen. Jamilah Nasheed, D-St. Louis, has re-introduced her proposal requiring a firearm owner to report the loss or theft of the firearm, to the local law enforcement agency where the theft occurred, within 72 hours of discovering the loss or theft.
State Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal, D-University City, has pre-filed companion bills creating the crimes of failing to stop illegal firearms and illegal weapons possession, the parent or guardian of a child under 18 knows the child possesses a firearm or weapon in violation of the law, and fails to stop the possession or report it to law enforcement.
Both proposed offenses are a Class A misdemeanor - unless death or injury results, in which case the crime becomes a felony.
In the House, state Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Springfield, wants to allow any person to carry a concealed firearm anywhere that isn't expressly prohibited by law.
State Rep. Galen Higdon, R-St. Joseph, would add National Guard members to the list of people allowed to carry concealed weapons at any time.
State Rep. Justin Hill, R-Lake St. Louis, would change state law so firearms owners may transport or store their firearms in locked, privately-owned vehicles.
And state Rep. Stacey Newman, D-St. Louis County, has pre-filed three bills to:
• Establish "gun violence restraining orders" and "gun violence seizure warrants" and also prohibit some people involved in domestic violence from possessing a firearm.
• Require all sales or transfers of firearms be processed through a licensed firearms dealer, who will conduct a background check and create a record of each sale. Her bill also says the General Assembly "believes this law will protect public safety by helping to keep guns out of the hands of felons, domestic abusers, the mentally ill, and other prohibited persons, and by aiding law enforcement efforts to solve gun crimes."
• Require firearms purchasers to undergo background checks, sign forms, get parental consent and be provided with specific information required by the state - all similar to the process Missouri requires when someone wants to have an abortion.