On Wednesday, September 14, the Missouri General Assembly returned to Jefferson City for its constitutionally required veto session. The House and Senate quickly gaveled in and immediately recessed the veto session until next week. House and Senate leadership have agreed to delay the conclusion of veto session as they begin debating and potentially passing key details to two major pieces of legislation vetoed by Gov. Mike Parson (R), passed during the 2022 regular legislative session that concluded last May.

The House and Senate both adopted resolutions Wednesday that declare and inform the Governor that they are in an “extraordinary” legislative session, often called “special” session. House and Senate leaders continue to negotiate the Governor’s call which requests the passage of an omnibus agricultural incentives package and a one-time cut to personal income taxes. 

The House and Senate have separated the issues of an income tax cut and agriculture incentives as they both have been filed in separate bills by numerous legislators. The agriculture incentive legislation was filed in both chambers and would extend several existing tax credit programs for an additional six years and create new incentives for the sale of biofuels, establishing urban farms, and the creation of a loan program for family farms’ livestock. House Bill 3 was filed by Rep. Brad Pollitt (R-Sedalia) and is slated for an expedited committee hearing next week in the House Agriculture Policy Committee. Several versions of the agriculture incentive legislation were filed in the Senate, including Senate Bill 4 by Sen. Lincoln Hough (R-Springfield); Senate Bill 8 by Sen. Jason Bean (R-Holcomb); Senate Bill 15 by Sen. Justin Brown (R-Rolla); Senate Bill 17 by Sen. Mike Bernskoetter (R-Jefferson City); and Senate Bill 19 by Sen. Denny Hoskins (R-Warrensburg).

No legislation was filed Wednesday in the Missouri House related to income tax policy. Several bills were filed in the Missouri Senate related to income taxes, corporate income taxes, and tax refunds to Missouri residents. Governor Parson has asked the legislature to pass legislation that would reduce the state’s top income rate from 5.3 percent to 4.8 percent and increase the standardized deduction by $2,000 for single filers and by $4,000 for joint filers. On the first day, the House did not file its version of a tax cut plan, while the Missouri Senate had numerous plans filed that didn’t align with the Governor’s call. Several bills were filed to reduce state income taxes beyond the Governor’s call, while another by Sen. Lincoln Hough (R-Springfield) offered a tax rebate rather than a tax cut. Sen. Hough, who is expected to be the powerful chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee in 2023, offered a $325 rebate to taxpayers earning less than $150,000 annually or $650 for joint filers earning less than $300,000 annually. There continues to be a divide among state lawmakers on the size and scope of the tax cuts and some wish to expand on the Governor’s call, while others worry that a cut would jeopardize future budget years when the economy does not produce the same results as today. 

To some surprise, several other bills were filed today that are outside of the Governor’s call for special session. Although these issues are outside the present scope of the Governor’s resolution, the Governor can add topics in the weeks ahead if they become a priority of his. Other bills of interest filed Wednesday include:

• House Bill 2 by Rep. Ron Hicks (R-Dardenne Prairie) relating to recreational use of marijuana
• House Bill 4 by Rep. Dan Houx (R-Warrensburg) that legalizes sports betting
• Senate Bill 16 by Sen. Mike Bernskoetter (R-Jefferson City) relating to the regulation of anhydrous ammonia
• Senate Bill 20 by Sen. Denny Hoskins (R-Warrensburg) relating to transgender sports athletes
• Senate Bill 21 by Sen. Denny Hoskins (R-Warrensburg) relating to public school curriculum and instruction (critical race theory)

The legislature is scheduled to reconvene on Thursday, September 15, for a technical session to refer legislation to committee and then return next week for committee work and likely floor debate on Wednesday, September 21.

As things are very fluid at this stage of the special session, we will report back when things begin to take shape and more of the details are finalized.