Missouri Republicans Rethink Tax and Ballot Strategy After Amendments 4 and 5 Fail Statewide
Updated
Updated · stlpr.org · Aug 6
Missouri Republicans Rethink Tax and Ballot Strategy After Amendments 4 and 5 Fail Statewide
3 articles · Updated · stlpr.org · Aug 6
Summary
Missouri Republican House leaders said they will go back to the drawing board after voters rejected both Amendment 4 and Amendment 5 in every county.
Alex Riley, expected to become House speaker in January, said voters backed the goals of tax relief and a higher threshold for constitutional changes but found these proposals too aggressive and full of unanswered questions.
Tax policy now appears more urgent than initiative-petition changes, with Riley and Gov. Mike Kehoe signaling fresh pushes on tax relief while shifting attention toward property and personal property taxes over a major income-tax overhaul.
Ashley Aune, the House Democratic leader, said the defeats show Republicans were out of touch and argued Democrats can use the resounding statewide no to target vulnerable GOP lawmakers through November.
Any new constitutional-amendment proposal may take time: Riley said it took about 15 years of fighting over initiative-petition reform just to get this version onto the ballot.