Missouri Senate Reaches Chiefs Verdict

The Missouri State Senate met on Thursday and approved a plan that would send over $100 million in tornado relief aid, along with authorizing hundreds of millions of dollars in incentives to persuade the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals to stay in the state, playing in either renovated or brand new stadiums.

This had to happen with a certain sense of urgency, as the Chiefs and Royals both face a deadline at the end of June to accept a secondary stadium offer from Kansas. Meanwhile, residents of St. Louis continue to struggle after a series of May storms and tornadoes caused over $1.6 million in damage to the area.

The plan was advanced in several early morning votes, but only after Governor Mike Kehoe entered a deal with a group of holdout lawmakers. The final agreement included more disaster relief funding, plus the possibility of tax breaks for a select number of homeowners who were already burdened with ever-rising tax bills.

The package also allowed for the allocation of money towards construction projects across Missouri, including a $50 million grant for a nuclear research reactor at the University of Missouri that supports cancer treatment initiatives.

Although there still needs to be approval on the House's side, the fact that it passed the Senate marked major progress, as similar stadium incentives stalled in the Senate last month. Just before numerous tornadoes hit St. Louis as well as other parts of the state, lawmakers ended their work in their normal session.

Along with the $100 million in assistance for St. Louis disaster relief, the plan gives $25 million for emergency housing assistance and a $5,000 income tax deduction to help cover insurance deductibles for people living in areas covered by a presidential disaster declaration request.

Kehoe explained that the package would "help those in crisis, while also making smart decisions that secure opportunity for the future."

"What the teams are doing is playing Kansas and Missouri against each other," said Patrick Tuohey, senior fellow at the Show-Me Institute whose St. Louis headquarters got hit by the tornado.

"When cities and states do this, they hollow out their tax base for the benefit of wealthy billionaire team owners ... they lose the ability to provide public safety, basic services," Tuohey said.

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