The extra legislative session has come to a close. Toward the end of summer, the governor asked lawmakers to come back to Jefferson City to take care of two items he felt had not been properly addressed during the regular session, which runs each year from January through the middle of May. In his call for the extra session, he requested permanent changes to the state’s tax code, specifically to reduce the top rate from the current 5.3, plus to eliminate the bottom tax bracket. In addition, he asked the Legislature to extend the sunset on a number of critical agricultural tax incentives to six years, instead of two.

The extra legislative session started on Sept. 14, at which point several pieces of legislation were introduced, both in the Missouri Senate and the Missouri House of Representatives. As I have talked about over the past two weeks, Senate Bills 3 & 5 were a compromise on cutting Missouri income taxes. Now that the governor has signed this measure into law, these tax changes will take effect, starting on Jan. 1, 2023.

The other half of this equation took a big step forward this past week, when the Missouri Senate sent House Bill 3 to the governor’s desk. This legislation extends a number of agricultural incentives, in most cases, into the year 2028. During the regular legislative session, lawmakers had passed a bill to extend these for only two years, which the governor later vetoed. Agriculture is Missouri’s No. 1 industry and brings billions of dollars and thousands of jobs into our state. In passing HB 3, the Missouri General Assembly also sent a clear message that we stand by our farmers and ranchers. The governor has also signed this proposal into law.

Speaking of agriculture, I would like to wish all of our farmers a successful harvest. I know the weather has not cooperated over the past few weeks, and some rain would be most welcome, but our hardworking farmers have been through tough times before. They will endure this rough patch, too.

As always, please feel free to call, email or write with your ideas or concerns. My Capitol office number is (573) 751-1415, my email is dan.hegeman@senate.mo.gov and my mailing address is Room 332, State Capitol Building, Jefferson City, MO 65101.