Recent Publications

A proposal touted as an elimination of Missouri’s income tax is in reality the introduction of a two-step process that could swap the individual income tax for greatly expanded sales taxes. This switch would increase total taxes for up to 4 out of 5 Missourians and harm our Read More

Updated February 2026View previous version here Governor Kehoe recently announced that Missouri expects a $2 billion general revenue shortfall for fiscal year 2027 (the state budget year that begins July 1st). This shortfall is mostly the result of previously enacted state tax Read More

Missouri policymakers continue to propose the elimination of Missouri’s individual income tax. But evidence from states without income taxes shows that these states are only low tax for the highest earners. Instead, they rely heavily on sales & excise taxes that hit low and Read More

Despite a looming budget cliff, some policymakers are pushing to eliminate the income tax in the 2026 legislative session. Proponents may instead look to replace the income tax with an expanded sales tax. While no detailed plan has been released yet, the sales tax rate would Read More

References Include: Analysis of coverage losses from Missouri Foundation for Health, 2025 Joseph Llobrera, Dottie Rosenbaum, and Catlin Nchako, “Senate Agriculture Committee’s Revised Work Requirement Would Risk Taking Away Food Assistance From More Than 5 Million People: Read More

Medicaid (called MO HealthNet in Missouri) and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) help keep Missourians and their families healthy and fed, so they can work, succeed in school, and contribute to their communities. But recently passed provisions included in the Read More

The recently passed budget reconciliation bill prioritizes tax cuts and expands loopholes for the wealthy and corporations while cutting more than $1 trillion from Medicaid and food assistance – all while adding $3.4 trillion to the national deficit. This legislation leaves Read More

The Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) of 1993 was a critical step forward in supporting families. FMLA provides job protections for millions of workers who need to take time off to bond with a child, care for an aging parent or recover from a serious illness. However, because FMLA Read More

During the 2025 State Legislative Session, lawmakers passed House Bill 594, which exempts capital gains from income tax, making Missouri the only state in the nation that levies an individual income tax that does not also tax capital gains.[i] Capital gains are income generated Read More

Medicaid helps keep Missourians and their families healthy, so they can work, succeed in school, and contribute to their communities. But Congress is considering the biggest cuts to Medicaid in history, resulting in unprecedented reductions in health services for Missourians. The Read More