Wallingford, Parson tout Missouri tax 'competitiveness'

Washington, D.C.-based Tax Foundation, a fiscally conservative think tank critical of tax increases and high taxation, ranks Missouri 10th in the nation in terms of attractive taxation rates for new businesses in a new report.

"Missouri is notable for avoiding disproportionately high taxes on any of the industries we studied," according to an excerpt from Tax Foundation's five-page "Location Matters" report.

Tax Foundation also noted changes made by the General Assembly in the state's individual income tax.

"Legislation adopted in 2014, 2018, and 2021 will ultimately drop the top individual income tax rate to 4.8% from a starting point of 6%," the report noted.

Cape Girardeau's Wayne Wallingford, director of the state's Department of Revenue and a former state lawmaker, applauded the report's results during a Zoom call arranged by Tax Foundation.

"Lower tax rates are associated with more rapid growth while higher rates actually depress income and output," said Wallingford, who headed the financial Ways and Means Committee in the state House before accepting a role in Gov. Mike Parson's Cabinet in late December.

"Working for corporations, I'm very aware the amount of investment depends on the attractiveness of a potential investment and cutting the corporate tax rate is a good place to reform our business climate," he added.

Overall, Missouri leads neighboring states in terms of tax "attractiveness," but the numbers are more ambivalent when looking at specific categories.

"Two neighboring states, Nebraska and Oklahoma, provide more competitive overall tax rates to newly established firms, while four of Missouri's eight border states — Kentucky, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Tennessee — outperform Missouri in rates on 'mature' firms," the report observed.

"Missouri right now is No. 1 for on-the-job training and every business wants to know what a state is doing there," said Parson, echoing some of the same information he released during his Jan. 19 State of the State address.

"We're third in the U.S. for apprenticeships and for business tax index -- far outranking the states surrounding us. We're top ten for site selection. We're in the middle of the United States and location is important. There's not a better place in the U.S. to start a business," he added.