Action Alert – Override HB253!

CLICK HERE to support an override of Governor Nixon’s veto of the tax cut bill. 2013 Legislative Review Your Urgent Action Required!

The first regular session of the Missouri 97^th General Assembly came to an end on May 17, 2013.  As usual, there was some good, some bad and some ugly!

Throughout the session United for Missouri’s Future kept members and the general public informed on key issues happening during the legislative session.  United for Missouri provided opportunities for people to contact their legislators and government officials on these key issues.  Nearly 30,000 e-mails were sent during the 2013 legislative session!

Some of the ugly from the session has come in the form of vetoes by Governor Nixon. One of these is his veto of House Bill (HB) 253, the first state income tax cut in almost 100 years! The legislature is one vote away from passing this historic tax cut. CLICK HERE to support an override of Governor Nixon’s veto of the tax cut bill.

Governor Nixon gave several reasons why he vetoed this tax cut for all working Missourians. None of them are worthy of a veto. That is unless you agree with Governor Nixon that the state needs your money more than you and your family! The legislature is one vote away from passing this historic tax cut. CLICK HERE to support an override of Governor Nixon’s veto of the tax cut bill.

The Problem with Missouri’s Income Tax Code:

• It has been nearly 100 years since Missouri taxpayers have seen a reduction in income tax rates.
• Missouri has a budget surplus of over $400 million and some politicians and special interests want to spend that money in Jefferson City instead of returning it to taxpayers.
• Missourians believe returning money to taxpayers when there are surpluses is a good idea. (Top issue ahead of investing in K-12 education, saving for the future or expanding social programs.)
• Surveys consistently show that Missourians think government spending is full of waste. (63% believe that 20% or more of expenditures go to wasteful projects and programs.)
• Missourians are facing higher taxes through federal laws like Obamacare.
• Missouri can’t compete with other states in the Midwest that either don’t tax income or that have recently reduced their income tax rates. 
• MISSOURI RANKS 47th IN ECONOMIC GROWTH OVER THE LAST DECADE.

Oklahoma and Kansas are quickly pulling ahead of Missouri in tax policy and economic growth. Both have cut state income taxes. Both have seen revenue growth.  The Missouri legislature will decide on September 11, 2013 whether we as a state sit on the sideline watching our neighboring states pull ahead or whether we get competitive with the modest steps contained in HB253! The legislature is one vote away from passing this historic tax cut. CLICK HERE to support an override of Governor Nixon’s veto of the tax cut bill.

The naysayers claim that HB253 is an unproven experiment. They either don’t know the facts or are purposefully withholding them.  We do know that when their false predictions fail to come true, they simply revise them and move them further out in the future.  Here are some facts from Kansas:

• Since last year’s major income tax cut, Kansas had more than 15,000 new small business filings, which is the largest number in state history.
  • With further income tax cuts this year, economists at Wichita State University project that Kansas will double its monthly job growth in 2013.
• Since 2011, Kansas unemployment rate has dropped from 7.2 percent to 5.5 percent.
• Missouri’s unemployment has stayed level at 6.6 percent. http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/false-pride_739282.html
• In the past year since the income tax cuts, Kansas jumped from 27th to 11th in total economic climate, while Missouri fell from 7th to 23rd.
• In the first five months of 2013, the Kansas side of Kansas City gained nearly 8,000 new jobs, while Missouri lost 400. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=547772931949484&set=a.534635273263250.1073741826.327534213973358&type=1&theater
• When it comes to construction jobs, the Kansas City Business Journal reports that during the past fiscal year the Kansas side of KC gained 1,400 jobs, while Missouri lost 1,600.
• The Kauffman Foundation’s small business climate ranking  gives Missouri a C and Kansas an A.
• Kansas recently ended the fiscal year with approximately $764.8 million in the bank.
  • In 2011 Kansas was facing a $500 million deficit
• Kansas has gone from the second highest to the second lowest tax burden in the region.
  • This took place by cutting taxes while adding an additional 15,000 private sector jobs since January of 2011.
  • As this last fiscal year just ended, the Kansas Department of Revenue released that the state ended the year with $88.6 million more than the projected estimates and approximately $159.6 million more that the state took in the previous fiscal year.
• All of this with tax cuts occurring.
  • Tax receipts for June 2013 beat monthly projections by more than $25 million.

Governor Nixon has called the move to lower the income tax rates a risky experiment. He is ignorant of the facts and believes the state can spend your money better than you! Kansas is lowering taxes, gaining businesses, gaining jobs and gaining people. CLICK HERE to support an override of Governor Nixon’s veto of the tax cut bill.

The Solution: Lower the Income Tax for All Missourians for the First Time in Nearly 100 Years!

On September 11, our state legislators will vote on whether all Missouri families deserve to lower their income taxes for the first time in nearly 100 years.  Since this vote is likely, and could be close, calling your elected official is very important and timely now.  Please remind them that our state collects more revenue than it needs to spend and that money should be refunded to the taxpayers who earned it.

Passing House Bill 253 this September will help Missouri grow the size of the economy, not the size of government.

Key advantages to this broad based tax reform package include:

• Lower income taxes for all Missourians for the first time in nearly 100 years.
• A responsible approach that utilizes revenue growth to trigger more tax breaks. If the state collects more than it needs, it returns that money back to taxpayers through a reduction in income tax rates.
• No loopholes, no gimmicks, and no lobbyist needed. EVERY Missourian benefits.
• Allows people who have become delinquent on their taxes the chance to get back into compliance with reduced penalties.
• The reduction in state income taxes will help offset looming increases in federal taxes. 

Join with thousands of other Missourians and let your legislators know you support reforming Missouri’s tax policy. CLICK HERE to support an override of Governor Nixon’s veto of the tax cut bill and let your legislator know you can spend your money better than the state can!

Carl Bearden

Executive Director

United for Missouri

Like what United for Missouri’s Future and United for Missouri are doing? Invest in our work by clicking here. We’re supported by our more than 70,000 citizen-activists statewide. Your contribution in any amount will go a long waytoward promoting free-market policies at all levels of government – local, state and federal. Thanks!

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