In order to get a penny increase in the sales tax in the state of Missouri, it’s going to take a little luck.
Legislators are hoping to find that luck at the polls, but first they must get the measure on the ballot, which will cost more than a few pennies.
The one-cent sales tax increase received bipartisan support in both the Missouri House and Senate earlier this year, but opposing Republicans executed a filibuster to kill the measure.
“A one-cent sales tax is a huge tax increase for Missourians,” Rep. Andrew Koenig said. “That’s something I am going to be opposed to.”
If the referendum makes it on the ballot and passes in November, it could generate huge numbers: $8 billion for transportation projects and 270,000 jobs before it expires in a decade. The move also would suspend the state gas tax and prohibit tolls on Missouri roads.
Missourians, however, have opposed tax increases in the past, even if the money generated would help areas like education. Opponents of the penny spike also do not like the impact it would have on those in poverty. The state sales tax sits at 4.225%, but it is higher than 10% in Jackson County.
As an alternative, Rep. Jon Carpenter has suggested restructuring the state’s tax code and reining in tax credits that cost Missouri more than $600 million last year.
“There’s no doubt we need to increase funding for infrastructure projects,” Carpenter said. “But there are more equitable ways to pay for it that wouldn’t hit low-income folks as hard as a sales tax.”
