A Missouri lawmaker lays the groundwork for homeowners to get sinkhole insurance.

Our entire region is at risk for sinkholes because of the porous limestone and Karst formations under the Ozarks.

But most insurance companies exclude sinkholes from coverage.

That's a gap Senate Bill 691 seeks to fill.

Springfield homeowner Mark Hill is still paying for a near disaster that happened one year ago.

"We had a collapse between the two houses which was not a sinkhole, but was an old mine shaft," he said.

When the mine shaft opened up it went well under the corner of his neighbor's house and extended eight feet underneath his house.

"My air conditioning unit fell into the hole," he said.

They didn't know if they could even save the houses.

"The stress of not knowing if you're house was going to be there or not was unbelievable," he said.

The damage cost 100,000 dollars, but the insurance companies didn't pay a dime.

"My agent came the next morning, he just told me you're not covered," Hill said.

Because they say it falls under an earth movement exclusion, which also includes sinkholes.

But that could change if a bill passes that Missouri Senator Jay Wasson proposed.

"If they don't have insurance they lose everything they've invested in their house their whole lives," Wasson told MissouriNet.

Senate Bill 691 would require insurance companies to offer sinkhole coverage.

"It's up to the person whether they want to buy it or not," Wasson said.

Wasson said opponents' main issue is paying for an expert to define the problem.

"Is that just cracking, is that earth movement, is it settling or is it actually a sinkhole problem? If we can get around that issue I think we have a chance to possibly get this done," he said.

It's certainly legislation Mark Hill supports.

"To make the insurance companies live up to their obligations," he said, "I can't understand why anyone would say no to it."

The Department of Natural Resources helped Hill and his neighbor pay for the mine collapse repairs.

But they each ended up paying more than 10,000 dollars to fix the problem.

We spoke with insurance agents who told KOLR-10 they would love to have sinkhole coverage to offer their customers.

Some insurance companies do offer the coverage, but most do not.

However, this is the third time Senator Wasson has proposed this type of bill.

The last two times the measure has failed to reach the governor's desk.