Passing a Supplemental Budget
The first bill passed by the General Assembly during the 2022 legislative session has now been signed into law.
On Feb. 24, the governor signed House Bill 3014 shortly after both the Missouri Senate and House of Representatives gave it final approval. This $4.6 billion supplemental budget provides funding for a number of state operations through the remainder of the fiscal year, which ends on June 30. An overwhelming majority of the funds come to us from the federal government as part of pandemic response packages. Now, I’m not a fan of the type of spending we’re seeing come out of Washington, D.C., these days. As anyone can tell you, I’m for living within one’s means. But with this funding, we faced the very real possibility that if we didn’t use in a timely manner, we’d lose it to other states. Personally, I think we here in the Show-Me State can come up with ways to spend some of this money and help our residents better than other states, like Illinois, ever could.
House Bill 3014 contains nearly $2 billion to support local public school districts as they work to educate our children during this challenging time. Along similar lines of helping our children, the bill provides $444 million for critical child care services and $219 million for school food programs. It also includes a 5.5% pay increase for our hardworking state employees, in the hopes of improving retention as well as recruitment rates across state departments.
It’s important to note that another major accomplishment of the supplemental is what it does not fund – facilities that provide abortion services. With a $0 allocation, I think we’re sending a message loud and clear that Missourians will not have their tax dollars spent to support abortions. We’re a pro-life state, and I’m glad to see the supplemental budget reflect that fact.
Overall, I’m proud of the hard work done by our Senate Appropriations Committee and others throughout the process to ensure that this supplemental budget spends in a commonsense and conservative manner, while also reflecting Missouri values.
It is an honor to serve our community in the Missouri Senate. If you have any other questions or concerns about your state government, please do not hesitate to contact my office at (573) 751-3678 or by email at dave.schatz@senate.mo.gov — we are honored to serve you.