State Sen. Rick Brattin (photo courtesy; Tim Bommel; Missouri House Communications)
A State Senator says Missouri taxes the sales of firearms and ammunition at 11%, something he says is too high. Sen. Rick Brattin, R-Harrisonville, is sponsoring a bill that would exempt that sales tax because of how much residents already have to pay to own one.
“I mean we can look at the first amendment and that’s something of a belief, but when we look at the second amendment, it’s a tangible asset that you do have to purchase; you have to exercise more than just other types of rights,” according to Sen. Brattin. “I think it requires much more scrutiny and protection from a government that’s wanting to tax and limit people’s capability to exercise those rights.”
He also is looking to provide a tax credit to local manufacturers for the amount they lose by paying the firearms and ammunition tax to the federal government.
In response to this proposed bill, State Sen. Tracy McCreery, D-Olivette, released a statement to Missourinet on Tuesday calling out the Missouri GOP.
“Firearms are the number one cause of death of children in Missouri. This morning, our nation awoke to news of another mass shooting, with at least three dead college students in Michigan. We should not have to live like this,” said Sen. McCreery. “The MAGA Extremists pushing to make unlimited amounts of ammunition even cheaper will make Missouri’s gun violence problem even worse. How many dead kids will it take before these people value lives more than bullets?”
Brattin said Missouri needs to cut taxes because of how much residents already are paying, but he adds that he cares little about how much this bill will cost the taxpayers.
“I really don’t care what the impact is going to be when it comes to protecting a constitutional right and helping to streamline it, make it more affordable towards the citizens of this state,” said Brattin. “If you look at the budgets of the state, we are bringing in obscene amounts of taxpayer dollars.”
If the House and Senate approve his proposed bill, the proposed exemption would be in effect by August 28. The bill was heard in a Senate public safety committee, but no vote has been taken.
Click here for more information on Senate Bill 131.
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