(The Center Square) – During the first three days to file bills for Missouri's 2023 legislative session, approximately 10% deal with taxation in some form.
Almost 700 pieces of legislation were introduced since pre-filing of bills began Dec. 1. More than 350 bills were filed in the House of Representatives and 330 in the Senate. With state tax revenues increasing and an approximate surplus of $6 billion, 72 bills deal with some sort of taxation. Senators and those elected to the chamber in November filed 38 bills changing taxation and 34 bills in the House include tax actions.
Fifteen bills filed to date deal with property taxes. Seven bills in the House would reduce the amount of property taxes for senior citizens, disabled persons and disabled persons.
House Joint Resolution 17 proposes freezing property tax assessments for senior citizens. Sen. Rick Brattin, R-Harrisonville, is seeking a constitutional amendment to replace the property tax on real property with a sales tax with SJR18. If placed on the ballot and approved by voters, counties and other political subdivisions would be prohibited from levying or collecting a tax on real property. The amendment would require a county to impose a sales tax on the sale of property at a rate equal to the total combined rate of state and local sales taxes in effect where the property is located.
For the third consecutive year, a bill was filed to eliminate the state’s corporate income tax. Sen. Denny Hoskins, R-Warrensburg, and sponsor of SB93, seeks to reduce the corporate income tax of 4% by 1% starting with the 2024 tax year until no tax would be imposed on corporations in 2027.
Four bills in the House authorize a sales tax exemption for the purchase of diapers and feminine hygiene products. Two bills in the Senate eliminated the sales tax on those products and one reduces the sales tax rate.
The House and the Senate have bills to eliminate the sales tax on food. HB 260, sponsored by Rep. Christ Sander, R-Lone Jack, would exempt from sales and use tax any retail sales of food. SB 161, sponsored by Sen.-elect Mary Elizabeth Coleman, R-Arnold, also eliminates the 1% tax on retail sales of food. In another bill dealing with sales tax, Brattin filed SB 131 to eliminate all state and local sales taxes on all sales of firearms and ammunition.
A bill filed by Sen. Bill Eigel, R-Weldon Springs, would reduce the top income state tax rate. SB 176 would reduce the top rate of income tax in 0.1% increments when net general revenue collections in the previous fiscal year meet a benchmark.
Eigel and Sen. Mike Moon, R-Ash Grove, both filed bills to repeal taxes on motor fuel. Several attempts to repeal the fuel tax, passed by the legislature and signed into law in 2021, failed to move forward in the legislative process last year.
Rep. Dean Van Schoiack, R-Savannah, filed a bill removing the limit on the amount of city sales tax proposals submitted to voters. Currently, no city shall submit to voters any proposal that results in a combined rate of sales taxes exceeding 2%.
