Missouri House passes Missouri Manufacturing Jobs Act

The Missouri House passed the Missouri Manufacturing Jobs Act 125-19 Tuesday.

The act could potentially secure thousands of jobs and encourage the creation of new ones, according to a Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry news release.

Under the legislation, Ford Motor Co. will be allowed to keep part of its employee withholding taxes, provided the company exchanges investments it would make to keep its Claycomo plant near Kansas City.

While the act was primarily intended to focus on the Ford plant, it could be applied to other auto manufacturers as well.

“Auto manufacturing is an important part of the economic foundation of our state,” Missouri president and CEO Daniel P. Mehan said in the release. “Our state is one step closer to securing these specific 4,000 jobs in Claycomo, in addition to the thousands of jobs all over Missouri that support this plant and others like it.”

Missouri's data center industry also will be able to benefit from the legislation. The act was amended to allow tax incentives for the industry.