Parson signs $48B Missouri budget, cuts tax refund program

By SUMMER BALLENTINE
Associated Press

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Missouri Gov. Mike Parson has approved a roughly $48 billion state budget while cutting $500 million for tax refunds. Parson signed the budget Thursday. But he also slashed funding that lawmakers had set aside for tax refunds for middle-income taxpayers. The budget still includes enough money to fully pay for the state’s share of public K-12 busing costs, as well as a program to increase teacher pay to at least $38,000 a year. The budget also pays for expanded access to the Medicaid health care program.