Missouri Budget

House leadership says the speaker of the House did not follow Democrats’ recommendations for budget conference appointees.

Senate Appropriations Chair Lincoln Hough said after speaking with departments, businesses and vendors, he recommended removing the anti-diversity, equity and inclusion language. The committee still must pass the budget bills before they can make it to the Senate floor.

Instead of speaking on the billions of dollars within the Missouri budget, House Democrats repeatedly spoke out against language added to each bill that prohibits spending on anything associated with diversity, equity and inclusion. That language is expected to be stripped out in the Senate.

The budget is less than Gov. Mike Parson’s initial proposal. However, Democrats and Republicans repeatedly clashed.

Before leaving for spring break, Missouri House Republicans called the first part of this year’s session successful. How much gets done during the second half, however, depends on how well both chambers navigate divisive bills.

Continuing his emphasis on workforce development, Missouri Gov. Mike Parson says his plans to support the state’s infrastructure, education and employees are areas everyone can agree on.

The budget bill that includes grants to pay for teacher raises will only cover the next school year, are optional and require the districts to pay for part of the raise.

The budget includes raising the minimum pay for teachers, fully funding the state’s Medicaid program, including its expansion population, and income tax credits, as well as close to $3 billion in federal funding for projects across the state.

The budget includes millions for both starting and existing teacher salaries and school transportation as well as investments across the state.

The Senate version outspends the budget passed by the House weeks ago by more than $1 billion. Additionally, the Senate has yet to address how to allocate federal funding from the American Rescue Plan Act.