SJR 7 is a proposed constitutional amendment that would substantially rewrite Missouri’s tax article by repealing existing constitutional provisions on income tax and sales tax and replacing them with a new framework. It would bar the state from imposing an individual income tax beginning in 2030, cap state income taxes at 3% starting in 2028 before phasing them out, and require the legislature to enact a broad state sales-and-services tax beginning in 2028. The measure also defines a wide range of exemptions from the new sales-and-services tax, including professional services, real property transactions, utilities, health care services, child care, education, agriculture, manufacturing inputs, financial instruments, insurance, transportation-related purchases, and many government- and benefit-program-related transactions.
The resolution would also change how Missouri’s existing constitutional sales taxes are applied by requiring them to use the same tax base as the new statewide sales-and-services tax and by recalculating rates to preserve roughly the same revenue as recent fiscal years. It would limit the combined state and local sales tax burden, set procedures for local tax rate recalculation, and restrict local governments from imposing income taxes except for certain city taxes already in place and renewed by voters. In addition, it would void many existing local exemptions and rate provisions for sales and services, subject to voter-approved exceptions, and create a mechanism for taxpayer and local-government appeals of recalculated rates.
The amendment also revises Missouri’s homestead/property tax relief provisions. Instead of the current constitutional language, it would require a property tax relief credit for eligible homeowners age 65 or older with income at or below $75,000 and homes valued under a specified threshold, when property taxes rise above set limits. The state would reimburse local governments for most of the credit cost, and the legislature would be directed to preserve existing property tax relief for seniors and disabled individuals that had been provided through an income tax credit.
Overall sentiment in the available record is limited because there are no committee transcripts or recorded votes attached to the bill. Based on the text alone, the proposal appears to be a major tax-reform measure aimed at reducing or eliminating individual income taxation while broadening and restructuring sales taxation and preserving some property-tax relief. Because it would significantly alter both state and local tax authority, the measure would likely be consequential for taxpayers, local governments, schools, and businesses, but the provided materials do not show direct support or opposition from legislators or stakeholders.
The main points of contention inherent in the bill are the elimination of income tax, the expansion of sales taxation to a much broader base, and the effect on local taxing authority and revenue stability. Potentially affected groups include homeowners, seniors, disabled individuals, cities with existing earnings taxes, counties and school districts, and industries that are specifically exempted or newly brought into the tax base. The bill’s extensive exemption list and rate-recalculation rules suggest an effort to balance tax simplification with protection for certain sectors and public revenues.
If adopted, SJR 7 would amend the Missouri Constitution, repealing and replacing sections of article X governing taxation. It would eliminate the state’s authority to tax individual income by 2030, restrict local income taxes, create a new constitutional sales-and-services tax structure, and require recalculation of state and local sales tax rates to maintain revenue targets. It would also alter homestead/property tax relief rules and require legislative action to preserve certain senior and disability-related property tax benefits.
No committee discussion or vote history is provided, so there is no recorded legislative sentiment in the supplied materials. From the bill text, the measure reflects a strong reform-oriented approach to taxation, with clear intent to reduce income taxation and restructure sales and property tax relief, but the available record does not show whether lawmakers or stakeholders supported or opposed it.
The most notable areas of contention are likely the phaseout of the individual income tax, the broadening of the sales tax base to services, the impact on local government taxing authority, and the revenue effects on schools and political subdivisions. Another likely issue is the bill’s detailed exemption structure, which favors certain industries and transactions while excluding others, as well as the new property tax relief eligibility rules for seniors and the state reimbursement obligations to local governments.