Governor Delivers Budget Recommendations to Missouri Legislature

This past week the governor delivered his annual State of the State address to the Missouri General Assembly. Along with listing his legislative priorities, the governor also released his official budget recommendations for the upcoming fiscal year that begins July 1.

The governor’s recommended budget of $27.3 billion is $1.2 billion more than what he proposed last year. There are certainly many parts of the budget I can support: the $85 million increase in K-12 education and funding for job creation efforts, to name a few. On the other hand, there are also areas of the governor’s budget that are simply unsustainable, such as his continued call to throw millions more in taxpayer dollars at our social services departments and expand Missouri’s Medicaid program.

Of course the governor’s recommendations are really just the blueprint, the starting point, in the budget process. Now it will be up to the House Budget and Senate Appropriations committees to work through these recommendations and draft a budget for the consideration of the whole General Assembly.

Last year the General Assembly worked diligently to create a reasonable and balanced budget that ensured Missouri would continue to operate within its means. I have no doubt we will proceed with that same level of pragmatism in crafting this year’s budget. I also expect the legislature will again push to finish the budget early, so we’ll have an opportunity to address any unexpected fiscal challenges or potential vetoes before the end of the regular legislative session in May. The budget process is both lengthy and tedious, but deciding how to responsibly allocate our taxpayer dollars is also the greatest responsibility we’re given as legislators. As always, I look forward to being a part of the process.

Please feel free to call, email, or write with your ideas or concerns. My Capitol office number is (573) 751-1415, my email is dan.hegeman@senate.mo.gov and my mailing address is Room 332, State Capitol Building, Jefferson City, MO 65101.