Two state senators are pushing for a temporary sales and use tax that would be used for transportation.
State Senators Mike Kehoe (R-Jefferson City) and Ryan McKenna (D-Crystal City) proposed a temporary one cent sales tax that if approved by Missouri voters, would raise the state sales and use tax by one percent for a period of ten years.
The Senators say the sales tax would be used for transportation purposes. Senator McKenna says that the passage of this bill is personally important to him by ensuring the safety of Missouri roads and keeping them safe. McKenna said he grew up with a friend who lived down the road from his that was killed about 12 years ago, and was killed on a very dangerous stretch of road on Highway MM and W, which he calls “death valley.”
Senator Kehoe says the concept of the bill is to invest in the state’s infrastructure system. “We would ask Missourians to invest a penny in their sales tax for every dollar that they spend to help Missouri’s (infrastructure system) move forward,” he said.
Kehoe says the key component of the bill is a public vote. He says it’s not his job to raise Missourians taxes, it’s his job to tell the people what the problem is, present them with a possible solution, and let the people decide if they want to invest in it.
Kehoe says in the last 20 years the Missouri Department of Transportation has made drastic improvements to keep Missouri roads safer than they have been.
AUDIO: Mary Farucci reports. (1:02)
