Governor of Missouri Mike Parson signed a roughly $50.5 billion budget for the next fiscal year on Friday but eliminated more than 170 items approved by state lawmakers.
The budget Parson signed is about $1 billion less than the $51.7 billion spending plan lawmakers passed last month. Items Parson vetoed included $5 million for a behavioral health center in North Kansas City and $6 million to keep Missouri National Guard troops on the southern border.
Parsons’ revision of the plan, which takes effect Monday, comes after one of the most chaotic budget processes in recent memory, as the Senate grappled with infighting among Republican senators. A roughly 41-hour filibuster by a group of far-right senators left lawmakers unable to act on the budget until just before a May deadline.
The lengthy delay forced budget chairs in the House and Senate to negotiate the plan behind closed doors, a process that was fiercely criticized by lawmakers from both parties.
Parson, in a statement on Friday, was critical of some of the items lawmakers included in the budget. He said he vetoed them to “avoid future budget problems tomorrow.”
“Using the veto pen is not something I enjoy doing, but today these vetoes symbolize the elimination of unnecessary hobby projects and the protection of taxpayer money,” he said.
The Republican governor touted several major infrastructure projects included in the budget, including $1.5 billion to expand broadband in the state and $577.5 million to extend Interstate-44 from St. Louis to Joplin.
However, Parson vetoed an additional $150 million for the I-44 expansion that had been approved by lawmakers.
The Republican governor has also reduced or eliminated several businesses related to the Kansas City area. He cut $5 million from the $15 million lawmakers approved to build a behavioral health facility on the campus of North Kansas City Hospital.
He also cut $150,000 intended to repair an educational STEM facility in Kansas City and $15 million from the $30 million lawmakers approved to build a massive park above I-670. However, Parson said in his veto message that $28.7 million was still budgeted for the project elsewhere.
The budget Parson signed also includes divisive amendments to any budget bill that would require cities that welcome undocumented immigrants to repay all state funds. Missouri law, however, already prohibits cities from welcoming undocumented immigrants.
Although the proposal focuses on Kansas City, Mayor Quinton Lucas has said he has no plans to make the city a haven for illegal immigration. The controversial language comes as Republicans repeatedly distort comments Lucas made about welcoming migrant workers.
Rep. Deb Lavender, a Democrat from Manchester, sharply criticized the budget on Friday, angered by the fact that it left about $1.9 billion unspent.
Lavender specifically criticized Parson for vetoing $2.5 million for people investigating complaints of abuse and neglect in nursing homes, calling it “catastrophic.”
“We have cut funding for mental health coverage, for centers that serve people with disabilities to ensure competent care for our seniors, and for our social services budgets,” she said. “The fiscal year 2025 budget is shameful, and the consequences will be felt by the people of our state for years to come.”
