The budget arrived in the Senate and work on it has begun in earnest. The Senate Appropriations Committee worked tirelessly on the budget last week, going through each page one-by-one. This week it came to the Senate floor for the body’s discussion and vote.

Missouri’s constitution requires that the budget pass the Missouri Senate and House of Representatives by the first Friday after the first Monday of May, which is May 8 this year.

Of course, every year, the amount of money the state receives from taxes, federal funds and other sources fluctuates. This requires the entire budget to be reassessed each year. The bills start in the House and – once passed – the Senate has a chance to take a crack at them. This process is full of hard decisions as members must choose between programs to fund with the state’s available funds. This gets even harder as we try to save taxpayer money through cuts, with the goal of keeping more money in your pocket. Ultimately, Missouri will pass a balanced budget that helps Missourians.

This week we passed the bills with some adjustments from the house version, totaling around $48 billion. The bills are now sent back to the House for their approval. If they don’t agree to our version, the next step would be to meet and negotiate in conference committees to find a compromise.

This process will likely take time, but it doesn’t mean it is the only thing that will be worked on. I plan on moving a number of my bills forward and hearing from the House of Representatives on the progress of several of my bills on their side of the process. In fact, my Senate Bill 1553 passed in the Senate and is moving through the House. As a reminder, this bill encourages important industries, involved in harvesting pharmaceutical ingredients, minerals and metals, to come to Missouri through several incentives.

Please feel free to contact my office at 573-751-4302. For information about my committee assignments or sponsored legislation, please visit my official Missouri Senate website at senate. mo.gov/KurtisGregory.