KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe addressed Missourians Tuesday, delivering his first State of the State address from Jefferson City.
Kehoe said his administration will focus on strengthening public safety, economic growth and educational opportunities while supporting various industries and communities across Missouri.
He announced proposals to reduce taxes and cut regulations to improve the climate for small businesses.
Kehoe gave a directive to eliminate the individual income tax, too.
“In order to compete with other states, we must focus on reducing taxes and cutting regulations so families keep more of their own money, and so job creators look at our state to expand and hire more hard-working Missourians,” he said. “It won’t be easy. It will take time, but I have directed the Missouri Department of Revenue to work with my staff on a sustainable and comprehensive plan to eliminate the individual income tax once and for all."
Kehoe recently launched the "Safer Missouri" initiative to boost public safety and law enforcement.
He talked about tackling the fentanyl crisis in Missouri, expanding childcare, and increasing education funding for schools, teachers and counseling services to support students’ careers and career technical programs.
To keep kids safe, Kehoe wants a rewrite of regulations in Missouri.
“Today, I will be issuing an executive order charging the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education-Office of Childhood with a complete re-write of the childcare regulations to make them easier to understand and navigate,” he said. “They will also find ways to cut the existing regulations substantially, and I mean substantially, all while keeping kids safe. I expect a plan for this to be completed in months, not years.”
Additionally, Kehoe promised to make more timely payments for childcare providers who partner with the state of Missouri to provide care.
“We know delays in payments from the state have made it difficult for providers to stay open,” Kehoe said. “So, starting in fiscal year 2026, providers will receive payments from the state at the beginning of the month and we will pay on enrollment — just like private pay.”
He said he plans to support school education at a record level with hundreds of millions of dollars, with extra funding for charter schools, teacher salaries and small school grants to support rural districts.
The governor envisions modernizing school funding; as the current Foundation Formula of $300 million a year doesn’t meet the standard anymore, he won’t be funding it.
He further explained an effort to extend the Deal Closing Fund to support economic development. The fund was sponsored by Sen. Mike Bernskoetter and Rep. Jeff Knight.
“Infrastructure and economic development go hand in hand,” Kehoe said. “While there has been significant investment in infrastructure in recent years, including the expansion of I-70 and multiple bridge projects, we are including a reappropriation of last year’s $100 million for rural road improvements in this year’s budget to ensure all those funds are invested in rural infrastructure.”
Kehoe also talked about supporting agriculture, veterans and alternatives to abortion.
Finally, he addressed his plan to take action to defund DEI programs in Missouri while the state creates its own version of a DOGE initiative.
Watch Kehoe's full address below:
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