Debate over Governor Jay Nixon’s veto of an income tax bill was fierce in the Missouri House and the governor prevailed.
The Republican majority was unable to muster the votes to make the $700 million tax cut into law.
The measure would have cut business taxes in half. Personal taxes would have been cut disproportionately.
Clay County Democrat Jon Carpenter called it unfair.
"I should not pay half the rate as some guy working at a fast food restaurant down the road, which is what this bill does," Carpenter said. "It’s not a flat tax. It’s less taxes by 50 percent for individuals like me and partners at law firms and double that rate for everybody else."
The chamber was packed with people eager to support or protest what some called Republican landmark legislation.
Bill supporters had argued Missouri needed business tax cuts to compete with Kansas. They raised 94 votes, 15 shy of the number needed to defeat the veto.
The governor championed the veto in a series of public appearances across the state, describing ways it would damage funding of public schools.
St. Louis businessman Rex Sinquefield sank $4 million into a campaign to defeat the governor’s veto.