YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY
Springfield, MO
YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY
Springfield, MO
Last edited 10:33 a.m., June 29, 2024 [Editor's note: More information on funded projects has been added.]
Gov. Mike Parson on Friday afternoon signed the state's fiscal 2025 budget, including local funding for Interstate 44 work.
The $50.5 billion budget, which includes $14.9 billion in general revenue, has 173 line-item vetoes that total $1 billion, according to a news release from the governor's office. The Missouri General Assembly in May sent a $51.7 billion budget to Parson's desk.
The release points to $577.5 million for I-44 expansion work from St. Louis to Joplin. Additionally, Parson's vetoes include $150 million from the general revenue fund to be transferred to the I-44 improvement fund.
"Today, we signed a conservative and balanced budget that focuses on two priorities that we know lift every Missourian up: workforce development and infrastructure," Parson said in the release. "By making strategic investments, using common sense and spending responsibly, we've maintained our AAA credit rating, achieved the lowest unemployment rate in Missouri history, added 163,000 jobs to our economy and cut income tax burdens by over 20%. We've done it all while making historic investments, like the Improve I-70 project, and leaving $1.9 billion on the bottom line."
Parson's vetoes include:
• $2 million from the budget stabilization fund for a health care facility in Springfield.
• $1.34 million from general revenue for expansion of the Nursing and Allied Health Program at Missouri State University-West Plains.
• $5 million from the budget stabilization fund for a cultural center focusing on the history of the Ozarks in West Plains.
The Alliance for Healthcare Education, a partnership between CoxHealth, Missouri State University, Ozarks Technical Community College and Springfield Public Schools, announced in a news release shortly after the budget was released that Parson included $15 million to support the initiative.
Alliance officials say the funding will be used to finance construction, such as renovating facilities at Cox North, and for educational programs.
“We are grateful for the incredible state support for The Alliance for Healthcare Education,” said Shallina Goodnight, its executive director, in the release. “We have brought together four regional powerhouses in education and health care, and this additional state support will drive us even faster toward our vision.”
Other local funding confirmed by Springfield Business Journal includes $11 million for Victory Mission to provide housing for people who are homeless in Springfield.
"Victory's next step will be to work alongside Missouri's Department of Social Services and continue to work forward to find additional funding. This is an exciting time for Victory and those in the community ready to leave poverty behind," said Jason Hynson, Victory Mission executive director.
Emily Letterman, public relations strategist at MSU, said the university was approved for $47.5 million for renovations and upgrades to STEM buildings and the construction of a building for the Center for Transformational Education for Life, Physical and Health Sciences, as well as $17.5 million for a new Judith Enyeart Reynolds complex.
Nick Nelson, director of the Springfield Art Museum, said the museum is set to receive $10 million in state funding for its expansion and renovation project.
Below expenditures were included in the budget passed in May by the General Assembly. SBJ is seeking confirmation of the full funding of these items, but they do not appear in the governor’s vetoes.
• City of Springfield, $3.4 million for LeCompte Road improvements.
• Greene County Sheriff’s Office, $2 million for construction of a public safety training facility.
• Jordan Valley Community Health Center, $4 million for Program of All-inclusive Care of the Elderly project.
• Ozarks Technical Community College, $46 million for construction of The Center for Workforce and Student Success.
• Springfield-Greene County Health Department, $1 million for Family Connects, a pilot program that offers newborns and mothers at-home visits from registered nurses.
• Springfield Little Theatre, $5 million, in part to fund renovations at the Landers Theatre and the Judith Enyeart Reynolds School of the Performing Arts.
This is a developing story. SBJ will update it as more information is received.
The city of Springfield is poised to grow, and its Forward SGF 20-year comprehensive plan puts annexation as a top priority. But outside of the city, the leaders of Greene County’s rural fire protection districts – agencies that rely on property tax revenue for their funding – are worried.
