April 2, 2026 - Associated Industries of Missouri (AIM) president and CEO Ray McCarty testified against HCS HJR 173 & 174, sponsored by Rep. Bishop Davidson (R), and promoted by Governor Mike Kehoe. The bill would allow voters to decide if they want to replace the current individual income tax with expanded and increased sales/use taxes and potentially other gross receipts taxes. AIM's position opposing the bill was developed after weeks of negotiations directly with the bill

Governor Mike Kehoe giving the State of the State Address in January, 2026 March 12, 2026 - Despite objections from Associated Industries of Missouri, the Voice of Missouri Business®, the Missouri House today gave final approval to HCS HJR 173 & 174 , a bill sponsored by Speaker of the House Jon Patterson and Rep. Bishop Davidson that asks voters for permission to increase sales and use tax rates and expand the taxes to services for the purpose of eliminating the individual i

March 9, 2026 - In a legislative alert sent to all elected members of the Missouri House of Representatives today, the Voice of Missouri Business® stood up for all Missouri businesses in opposing the current draft of the tax reform resolution. The text of the legislative alert is repeated in this article: "Associated Industries of Missouri must oppose the tax reform proposal as currently drafted but will continue to negotiate with proponents in an attempt to find language tha

Ray McCarty, president/CEO of AIM, testifies before the House Emerging Issues Committee 1/27/26 January 30, 2026 - At a hearing of the House Emerging Issues Committee on Tuesday, Associated Industries of Missouri president and CEO Ray McCarty testified against HB 2989 (Hardwick) . The bill would legalize gambling devices, called "video lottery terminals" or VLTs, and regulate and tax them. Below are the reasons Associated Industries of Missouri is opposed to this bill. 1. The

Speaker of the House Jon Patterson January 29, 2026 - Governor Mike Kehoe called for an overhaul of the tax system used to fund state government in his State of the State Address. His plan is to eliminate the individual income tax and replace those revenues with an expansion of the sales tax base (taxing transactions that are not taxed today) and an increase in the sales/use tax rate. The plan was filed as HJR 173 (Davidson) and HJR 174 (Speaker Patterson) in the Missouri H

Sen. Jason Bean January 29, 2026 - The Missouri Senate Committee on Agriculture, Food Production and Outdoor Resources today advanced SB 953 (Sen. Jason Bean). The bill contains an AIM-drafted solution to funding woes of the Air Pollution Control Program (APCP) and helps protect program funding in the future. Supported by many organizations , including INFRA, ACEC-MO, Missouri Forest Products Assn., Missouri Agribusiness Assn., Missouri Concrete Association, and the Missouri

By Ray McCarty January 13, 2026 - Governor Mike Kehoe delivered his 2026 State of the State Address this afternoon, highlighting his legislative priorities for the 2026 Legislative Session and budget recommendations for the FY 2027 state budget. Governor Kehoe called for "modernizing Missouri's tax code." In his remarks, he said, "Missouri brings real strengths to the table when recruiting jobs and investment. But when we’re competing against states like Tennessee and Texas,

By Ray McCarty Missouri’s farmers play a vital role in bolstering our state’s economy and its food supply. They help feed families across the state, support thousands of jobs, and serve as the backbone of rural communities. But according to a recent letter to the editor by Blake Hurst, former president of the Missouri Farm Bureau and a third-generation farmer, that foundation is facing a growing threat. In his piece, published in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Hurst outlines c

December 29, 2025 - As lawmakers prepare to return to Jefferson City for the 2026 legislative session, Missouri State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick is urging them to take immediate action to curb the trend of deficit spending before the state's General Revenue Fund is drained to critically low levels and drastic, emergency budget cuts become necessary. Fitzpatrick released a new report of the state's spending trends that shows Missouri's General Revenue Fund balance, which had c