Parson pitches tax cut to Democrats amid GOP sniping in Missouri Senate | Politics

JEFFERSON CITY — In a sign he believes Democratic votes may be needed to help push an income tax cut across the finish line, Gov. Mike Parson met Tuesday with members of the minority party in the Senate.

The session, which lasted nearly one hour, marked the latest meeting between Parson and various groups of lawmakers in his summerlong push to convince them to accelerate a planned reduction in state income tax rates during a yet-to-be scheduled special session this fall.

Until Tuesday, however, those meetings have been exclusively with Republicans, who control supermajorities in both the House and Senate.

Senate Minority Leader John Rizzo, D-Independence, said no deals were struck and no promises were made.

“We’re glad to be included in the discussion,” Rizzo said.

Although Democrats have joined Republicans in voting in favor of prior tax cuts and rebates, Rizzo said the latest version comes as state and local government operations are faltering amid a shortfall of workers.

There are long waiting times for Medicaid applicants. School bus routes in St. Louis have been canceled because of a driver shortage. And more school districts, including Rizzo’s hometown district of Independence, are considering four-day school weeks.

“We don’t want to bite our nose off to spite our face,” Rizzo said. “We’re still kind of playing catch-up to stay competitive in those areas.”

Parson has called on lawmakers to return to the Capitol in the coming weeks to reduce the state’s current income tax rate to 4.8%, down from its current 5.4%, saying the state’s flush coffers offer a chance to reduce the tax burden on Missourians.

Income taxes represent the biggest source of revenue for the state at about $10 billion per year.

The lobbying effort comes as the Missouri Senate has been mired in a fight between GOP leaders and a breakaway faction of Republicans who, until Monday, had called themselves the “Conservative Caucus.”

The group turned the Senate into a parliamentary quagmire during the spring legislative session over issues like abortion, transgender athletes, vaccine mandates and other culture war issues.

But on Monday, the leader of the separatists, Sen. Bill Eigel, R-Weldon Spring, said the group was disbanding after four candidates backed by the caucus won in the Aug. 2 primary election.

The projected breakdown of the 34-member Senate when it comes back in January is expected to include 15 senators aligned with GOP leaders, nine from the conservative faction and 10 Democrats.

“Moving forward, there is no need for us to be defensive about passing good legislation — we believe the class of Republican nominees vying to fill open and existing Missouri Senate seats would demand the same results we have been looking for these past four years,” Eigel said in a press release.

“Our hope is that, with a mandate from Republicans that voted in this most recent primary, our Republican colleagues are ready to renew focus on passing conservative Republican policies with the supermajorities in place in Jefferson City,” Eigel said.

Sen. Brian Williams, D-University City, said Parson likely spoke with Democrats because he knows his proposal will have a tricky time getting through the upper chamber.

“The governor is trying to have a conversation and get everyone on the same page,” Williams said. “The divisive factions in the Republican caucus are going to be the determining factor in the outcome of the special session. History has shown us that the Republicans are not very serious about moving our state forward.”

Meanwhile, the governor’s budget office said net general revenue collections for the fiscal year ending June 30 increased 14.6%, from $11.24 billion last year to $12.88 billion this year.

Income tax revenue increased 11.8% for the year, from $8.92 billion last year to $9.97 billion this year.

“Now is time to give back to working Missourians and return some of their hard-earned dollars!” Parson tweeted following a meeting with House Republicans last week.

He is set to continue his lobbying effort on Wednesday when he meets with farm groups at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia to discuss a separate proposal to extend a series of tax breaks designed to benefit agriculture.

In addition to lowering the tax rate, Parson wants to raise the standard deduction to $16,000 for single filers and $32,000 for joint filers.

That would mean a taxpayer who earns $16,000 or less would owe no state income tax. A married couple with a spouse who does not work earning $32,000 or less also would owe no state income tax.

The current standard deduction for single filers is $12,950 and $25,900 for joint filers.

An announcement outlining the schedule for the session is expected early next week.