Springfield News-Leader, April 20
Lawmakers should agree on these 3 tax changes
As legislators work through constructing the next state budget - something that’s harder for everyone to focus on these days - there will be plenty of debate about which institutions need more funding, which programs are bloated and inefficient, and what to do about tax rates.
“Look at North Carolina, tax cuts are great!”
“Look at Kansas, tax cuts are terrible!”
Obviously, it’s more complicated than that. Legislators should look for ways to let businesses grow without sending the state down a dangerous path of financial instability.
We haven’t always taken the smartest steps in that regard. Recent and future tax breaks have budget wonks worried about our long-term health, concerned that we won’t be able to maintain our roads, care for folks with disabilities or provide workforce training.
Some of those experts at the Missouri Budget Project, a nonprofit organization that uses research and analysis to champion smart public policy, have suggested a few keys to focus on this year. We believe they’ve identified solutions the parties can agree on before they get into the trenches for those other budget debates.
One of those issues is something we’ve written about often. In the past, we’ve called it streamlining sales tax. It’s also referred to as the Marketplace Fairness Act. Basically, it forces online retailers to play by the same rules as brick and mortar businesses by creating an efficient way to collect sales tax on internet purchases.
While many think of this as a new tax, that’s not really the case. Sales taxes are already owed on internet purchases. We’re not naïve. We know forcing online retailers to pay sales tax means they’ll likely raise prices to compensate, but that simply puts them on the same footing as business owners in our community, who’ve been at an unfair disadvantage. Online retailers may compete by offering convenience, but they shouldn’t be able to compete by offering cheaper prices because they’ve found a policy loophole.
This is an issue that’s received broad support from both sides of the aisle. We just need to do the complicated work of fixing the tax code.
The second fix is about giving hard-working Missourians a break by creating a state Earned Income Tax Credit.
Currently, Missourians who are working but not bringing home much income are forced to pay a greater share to the government. Families that make less than $33,000 a year pay between 9.4 and 9.5 percent of their income in state and local taxes. Meanwhile, families that make between $85,000 and $159,000 pay 7.6 percent. The top earners, those who make more than $407,000 per year, pay just 5.5 percent of their income to state and local taxes.
An Earned Income Tax Credit doesn’t seek to flip those percentages, it just offers a way to ease the burden on folks who aren’t making as much and may already be struggling to get by.
The idea is simple: put a little money back in the hands of hard-working families who need it. The federal version of this credit has shown the families put that money back into their communities, which provides long-term benefits for all of us.
The final piece focuses on an outdated policy that made sense many years ago, but now serves as a pointless tax break. Retailers are allowed to keep 2 percent of the sales taxes they collect each year simply for filing their taxes on time. Wouldn’t it be nice if you and I got such a deal?
When the policy was created, businesses were forced to manually calculate and remit sales taxes, but technology has made the process much easier (and less expensive) for businesses.
While most states have either eliminated or severely reduced their discounts, Missouri’s has stayed the same, making us the second most generous in the nation. It cost us $114 million in 2016. It’s expensive and unnecessary, and Missouri can’t afford to hand out pointless tax breaks.
The Kansas City Star, April 20
Here’s why lawmakers should legalize medical marijuana in Missouri
State Rep. Jim Neely’s bill that would legalize medical marijuana in a smokeless form for Missourians with terminal illnesses has been criticized as too restrictive and narrow.
But the measure could jump-start the push to make Missouri the 30th state to allow medical marijuana.
More than 20 lawmakers, including three Democrats, have signed on as co-sponsors of the bill. It passed out of committee this week and awaits consideration in the full House.
The legislation would permit the use of hemp extract for terminally ill patients. The state’s current “Right to Try” law allows patients with terminal illnesses to try experimental drugs without approval from the Food and Drug Administration. It doesn’t include marijuana.
Attitudes toward medical marijuana have shifted nationwide. Not only have 29 states legalized it, nine states and Washington, D.C., also have legalized marijuana for recreational use.
“Marijuana’s everywhere anyway,” Neely, a Republican from Cameron, said. “We’ve got to find a better way of dealing with it.”
Neely sponsored a similar bill last year that was approved by a committee before being killed in the House.
The latest proposal doesn’t offer an extensive list of treatable diseases. Still, it’s a better alternative than three petition initiatives aimed at placing the issue before voters in November.
Two of the three would amend Missouri’s Constitution if passed. The third is simply a statutory amendment.
If both petitions proposing constitutional amendments gain approval, only the one with the most votes would become law. All involved would likely end up in court.
Another obstacle to consider: A constitutional amendment would restrict lawmakers’ ability to expand or revise the measure. Legislation to legalize, tax and regulate medical marijuana is the best option.
Missouri lawmakers don’t need to re-invent the wheel. Arkansas voted in 2016 to legalize medical marijuana for 17 conditions, created a medical work commission and allocated tax revenue to technical institutes, vocational schools, workforce training and the state’s general fund.
Marijuana dispensaries and cultivation facilities, which voters can ban in their municipalities, are regulated. Legislators can amend sections of the measure as well.
Missouri lawmakers also could consider aspects of Illinois’ program, which is still in its pilot phase. Patients can receive cannabis-related treatment if they’ve been diagnosed with at least one of 41 conditions.
Dispensaries have collected about $123.6 million in retail sales the last three years. What cash-strapped state wouldn’t want to deposit taxes from those sales into their coffers?
Medical marijuana remains a divisive topic in Missouri. Supporters say access to medical marijuana reduces opioid use and death from opioid use.
Critics fear it will bring Missouri closer to legalizing weed for recreational purposes. But the state is still a long way from seriously considering that possibility.
For now, lawmakers should take one small step to provide relief to those with terminal illnesses.
Southeast Missourian, April 17
Lichtenegger pro-life bill a good step toward respecting life
The Missouri House of Representatives passed an important pro-life bill recently, authored by state Rep. Donna Lichtenegger.
Mark Bliss reported for the Southeast Missourian this would ban most abortions after a fetus is 20 weeks old. The goal behind the bill is to prevent abortions at the earliest time medical experts believe a child can feel pain.
Another Southeast Missouri lawmaker, state Sen. Wayne Wallingford, is taking the legislation to the Senate where he believes it has a good chance to move forward to the governor’s desk.
This type of legislation is not new. According to the Associated Press, there were 18 states with laws at the end of 2017 that ban most abortions at 20 weeks.
Missouri’s current law bans most abortions at 22 weeks.
U.S. Sen. Mike Lee of Utah wrote a column for The Daily Signal in January when the federal government considered, but failed to pass, legislation to ban most abortions at 20 weeks.
“At 20 weeks past conception, a baby can sleep and wake in the womb,” wrote Lee. “She can suck her thumb, make faces and see light filtering in through the womb.”
Abortion survivor Gianna Jessen spoke at the Cape County Lincoln Day this month about her story of surviving a failed saline abortion. Jessen was told by a physician that at the time she survived the abortion (seven-and-a-half months) she experienced the most pain possible.
We believe it’s important to respect life, and banning most abortions at 20 weeks is a common sense measure.
Thanks to Lichtenegger for her efforts. It’s now time for the Missouri Senate to pass this bill.
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