Missouri budget cuts preview a no-income-tax future. Here's what to know | Opinion

Gov. Mike Kehoe vetoed $53 million and froze another $441 million in state spending this week, offering an early look at what Missouri’s finances could look like if voters approve phasing out the state income tax in August.

FULL STORY: Budget gives us a glimpse into Missouri’s no-state-income-tax future | Hudnall

Here are key takeaways from Opinion columnist David Hudnall:

• Kehoe vetoed $53 million outright and froze $441 million in previously approved spending, writing in a release: “State government doesn’t have a revenue problem. We have a spending problem.”
• Missouri’s 2024 repeal of the capital gains tax triggered $141 million in additional tax refunds and contributed to a $162 million decline in income tax collections.
• In August, Missouri voters will decide whether to begin eliminating the state income tax, which currently generates roughly 65% of the state’s general revenue — about $8 billion a year.
• Florida and Texas don’t have state income taxes, but can rely on tourism, oil and gas production and high property taxes. Missouri lacks a comparable revenue engine to replace lost income tax dollars.
• Kehoe’s cuts will delay road work, block a new park in Jefferson County and hit nonprofits and workforce development programs. But if Missouri finishes with a state income tax repeal what it started with the capital gains repeal, these kinds of cuts will grow much deeper.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The full story in the link at top was reported, written and edited entirely by journalists.