taxes

Two sets of tax credits were passed by Missouri lawmakers Wednesday and sent to Governor Jay Nixon (D).

The Missouri Senate has given first-round approval to a phased-in tax overhaul designed to help the Show-Me State compete with neighboring Kansas, which recently slashed its tax rates. 

Leaders in the Kansas Senate say they'll likely pursue cuts to the budget recommended by Governor Sam Brownback.

The Missouri Senate has passed a wide-ranging tax credit bill that drastically lowers the caps on Historic Preservation and Low Income Housing programs.  It would cap Historic Preservation incentives at $50 million a year, instead of the current $140 million, and Low Income Housing incentives would be capped at $55 million a year, instead of the current $190 million. 

The bill is now in the hands of the Missouri House, where Speaker Tim Jones has indicated that he and other House leaders don’t like the drastic cuts.

Supporters of creating a so-called “Angel Investment” tax credit in Missouri testified in favor of legislation Wednesday before a State Senate committee.

The Missouri Senate spent several hours Tuesday night working on a wide-ranging tax credit bill, which they gave first-round approval to around 3:20 Wednesday morning.  The Senate bill would drastically cut incentives for Historic Preservation and low income housing.

Historic Preservation tax credits would be capped at $45 million  a year, instead of the current $140 million, and low income Housing incentives would be capped at $50 million a year. 

The bill is sponsored by Republican Senator Eric Schmitt of St. Louis County.

The Missouri House has passed legislation that would revive three benevolent tax credit programs that expired last year, but there were a couple of dissenters who had a problem with incentives going to crisis pregnancy centers.

Democrats Judy Morgan of Kansas City and Stacey Newman of St. Louis County cast the only “no” votes.  Newman said the pregnancy centers in question are operated by anti-abortion groups that are spreading false information about the issue.

A Senate Committee has delayed work on Governor Sam Brownback's tax proposal.  A printing mix-up meant the scheduled debate was left off the official Senate calendar, but the committee's chairman says he didn't want to work on the tax plan without letting the public know about it.

The committee was scheduled to debate the bill and offer amendments. In Statehouse lingo, that’s called “working” the bill. Wichita Republican Les Donovan chairs the Senate Tax Committee. He says they’ll benefit from the extra time to prepare.

The Missouri Senate passed two sets of tax credit legislation.  So far this year, the Senate may no longer be the place where tax credits go to die.

It appears that Missouri has lost more than $2 billion in revenue over the past nine years because it does not collect sales taxes on purchases made over the Internet. 

A large tax overhaul takes effect in Kansas now that the New Year has begun, but it may not remain as-is for long.

Despite being rejected by voters last month, there’s a new proposal to raise Missouri’s cigarette tax.

U.S. Representative Mike Pompeo says the fate of a wind energy tax credit could be tied to the so-called fiscal cliff negotiations.

Missouri lawmakers in both chambers are pre-filing bills for next year’s regular session.  Much of the legislation pre-filed in the State Senate so far deals with tax credits.

Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon and the Republican-led General Assembly will face off next week over a bill vetoed earlier this year that would have required Mo. residents to pay sales tax on vehicles purchased out-of-state. 

Downtown Kansas City, Missouri voters approved a special tax to fund a two-mile streetcar route in downtown Kansas City, although fewer than 500 people voted.

The thermometer keeps inching upwards, though its hard to tell if its measuring heat or the rhetoric coming out of Washington. The recent Supreme Court decisions have done little to quell the debates on either side, and with a looming election in five months, no one seems interested in backing down.

Governor Sam Brownback is reconfiguring the size and scope of state government in Kansas with the help of an overwhelmingly conservative Republican legislature.

There will be no November vote in Prairie Village on a proposed sales tax to benefit parks. The City Council has killed the issue on a vote of 6 to 5.

What will it take for Kansas City, Mo. to finally fix its streets and sewer system?  Earlier this year, Mayor Sly James announced a bold plan for improving Kansas City's infrastructure that would involve spending $1 billion over the next 10 years.

The Kansas House has surprised the Senate by bypassing a compromise tax-cut plan while the Senate was preparing to vote on it.

When IRS agents raided the house of rapper Young Buck, they seized all his things: his white leather dining chairs, his watches, his craps table, his tattoo kit. Even his refrigerator. The Nashville artist, who was once part of 50 Cent's G-Unit, owed hundreds of thousands of dollars in back taxes.

His lawyer, Robin Mitchell Joyce, said he thought Young Buck's taxes were being handled by his business manager. They weren't.

Misery loves company. Multitudes are no doubt making the last-minute scramble to finish taxes today. If that's the case for you, perhaps you can take solace in the fact that this tax misery is a long-lived American tradition.

See our earlier entries in this series: What America Sells To The World, What America Does For Work and What America Buys

In 2012, the federal tax return deadline is Tuesday, April 17 — so if you haven't already filed your income tax return, you have about one week left to shop around for different options to finish your taxes, or request an extension.

On this Wednesday's Central Standard, learn about a SXSW-style festival in our own backyard. Hear why the Middle of the Map Festival is drawing exponentially more bands, more people & more attention in its second year.

A daily digest of headlines from KCUR.

At his annual State of the State address on Wednesday night, Kansas Governor Sam Brownback advocated a plan to cut taxes for roughly 1.6 million Kansans. 

He also outlined a plan to change the way Kansas public schools are funded, and called for the Kansas Legislature to fix the Sunflower State's state employee pension plan.

• Liberty Memorial Gets Facelift
• Kansas City Looks At How To Use Closed Schools
• Missouri Lawmakers To Look At Eliminating Income Tax

• Missouri's Health Exchange Tangled In Political Debate

in this episode of Central Standard, a gift that every household needs for 2012  – good tax advice. We'll be join today be Elaine Smith, Enrolled Agent and Master Tax Advisor for H&R Bloch, with tips for wrapping up 2011 right – with advice for your charitable contributions, IRAs, and that receipt and bank statement filing system you’ve been meaning to start.