Income Taxes

Long was one of the first elected officials to publicly support Trump. When most considered Trump’s candidacy a joke, Long touted Trump to foreign leaders and GOP insiders who snickered at the notion that the real estate mogul and reality TV star would be the next president.

Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly said she will sign the bipartisan compromise to cut Kansas income and property taxes, as well as eliminate taxes on Social Security benefits.

Ahead of Tuesday's special legislative session, the deal between Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly and the GOP leaders of the Kansas Senate and House would collapse the personal income tax structure to a two-rate system. Kelly previously vetoed a single-tier flat tax plan, calling it too expensive.

Kansas lawmakers will soon return for a special session to try to reach a tax-cutting agreement with Gov. Laura Kelly. Plus: Solar power is the fastest growing source of electricity in the U.S., but some new solar installations are taking land once used to grow food. Researchers are looking for ways to do both.

Kelly, the second-term Democrat, proposed several tax plans to the Republican-led Legislature during the regular 2024 session. She vetoed three bills passed by the Legislature that would have shed more than $500 million annually in state revenue.

The bill sponsored by Missouri Rep. Travis Smith, R-Dora, would cut the 4% corporate tax rate down to 3% next year, and make another one percentage point cut each year until the tax is eliminated in 2028. It passed the Missouri House on a party-line vote.

The current Secretary of State and Republican gubernatorial hopeful enlisted the help of economists who crafted the 2012 Kansas tax plan, which crashed revenues and was repealed several years later, to prepare a proposal for Missouri tax revisions.

Indigenous grassland once dominated much of Kansas. A new program, backed by corporate beef buyers, is teaming up with ranchers to preserve what's left of the rare ecosystem. Plus: A Missouri representative is working on bipartisan legislation to expand the Child Tax Credit as well as business tax breaks.

The Salem Republican has taken criticism from both parties for his work on the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act. In addition to expanding the Child Tax Credit, the bill includes significant business incentives.

Republicans in the Kansas Senate will need more votes to override a potential veto from Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly.

Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly released her tax proposal on the first day of the 2024 legislative session. While s he has support from a handful of Republican lawmakers, GOP leaders are expected to again pursue a single-rate income tax system.

The 1% income tax for people who work in the city makes up 37% of St. Louis’ general revenue fund and 45% of Kansas City’s. The main question is what that revenue would be replaced with if the earnings tax is phased out.