By Ricky Dana, Candidate for U.S. House – Missouri’s 4th District
On August 28, Missouri became the first state with an income tax to fully exempt capital gains. That means profits from selling stocks, real estate, and cryptocurrency are no longer taxed by the state for 2025 returns. Politicians in Jefferson City are celebrating—but there’s nothing to celebrate when policy rigs the game for the wealthy and leaves everyone else to pick up the tab.
Let’s talk numbers. The fiscal note and independent analyses warn this move could cost our state up to $625 million a year once it’s fully felt. That is money that should be supporting our schools, community hospitals, rural roads and bridges, law enforcement, and broadband—not padding the portfolios of those already at the top. Meanwhile, Missourians on fixed incomes still face taxes on Social Security when household income crosses federal thresholds. It’s sickening: seniors get means-tested and taxed, but millionaires just received a blanket exemption on investment windfalls.
Yes, there were smaller changes in the same law that make sense—ending sales tax on diapers and feminine hygiene products is long overdue and helps families in every county of our district. But let’s be clear: stapling a good provision to a bad one doesn’t turn a giveaway for the rich into “reform.” When you blow a hole in the budget for the benefit of high-income investors, you force cuts later or shift the burden back onto working people. That’s not fiscal responsibility. That’s political theater with a massive price tag.
Some will say this repeal “attracts investment.” If that were true, we’d see hard evidence that capital-gains giveaways pay for themselves. We don’t. What we do see—again and again—is that these policies overwhelmingly benefit the top few percent of earners. In practice, this is a transfer from classrooms, clinics, and county roads to capital markets. That’s wrong for Missouri’s families, and it’s especially wrong for rural communities that have been told to “wait their turn” for decades.
Here’s what common-sense tax fairness looks like: if we offer exemptions or deductions, they should benefit all Missourians—not just the wealthy with lobbyists. Seniors who worked a lifetime shouldn’t be punished for a spouse’s modest income. Family farmers, small business owners, and working households should come first. And any big tax change must include an honest, transparent plan to protect core services—without raiding future budgets or pulling funding away from rural health care and local schools.
Missourians deserve better than slick talking points and budget gimmicks. We deserve a tax code that rewards work, supports families, and strengthens our communities—Marshall to Sedalia, Warsaw to Nevada, Butler to El Dorado Springs. That’s what I’ll fight for.
When I’m elected as your Congressman, I will fight like hell to level the playing field. I’ll push for fair tax policy that protects seniors, supports working families, and ends special-interest carve-outs. It’s time to bring real common sense back to Jefferson City and Washington.
Sources:
Missouri Independent — Missouri becomes first state to repeal capital gains tax (Aug. 27, 2025)
Missouri Department of Revenue — Capital gains exemption news release (Aug. 26, 2025)
Missouri General Assembly — Fiscal Note, SS#2 for HCS for HBs 594 & 508 (June 23, 2025)
KCUR — Missouri is first state to repeal capital gains tax; cost could hit $625M (Aug. 28, 2025)
KCUR — Diapers and period products now tax-free in Missouri (Aug. 28, 2025)