Tag: Missouri 4th District

Today’s Vote and My Commitment

My opponent just voted for the Rescissions Act of 2025 in the House on July 18, 2025—cutting $7.9 billion in foreign aid and $1.1 billion from public broadcasting (NPR/PBS) for a total of $9 billion. Full vote details (Roll Call Vote 2025203).

I am one of you, born and raised here in rural Missouri, and I will always fight for all Missourians, especially our farm families and small towns.

Expanding Markets for Missouri Farmers

I already have trade-agreement plans in progress to move more of Missouri’s cash crops and livestock to buyers at home and abroad. In 2023, Missouri was the 8th-largest agricultural exporter, shipping $5.6 billion in farm goods overseas (USTR), and our agriculture industry is a $93.7 billion engine that employs nearly 460,000 people (MO Dept of Ag).

With smarter deals, we can grow that number—bringing billions more back into our rural communities.

Tax Relief for Family Farms

I will introduce legislation to remove all federal income tax on family-farm sales of cash crops, garden vegetables, and livestock. Under Article I, Section 8, Congress has the power to levy and adjust taxes, and the 16th Amendment allows income taxes on any source of income. This change keeps more money in local pockets for equipment, seed, and hiring.

To ease local property-tax burdens, I will create a production-based tax credit that farms can apply against their county and municipal property and real estate taxes.

Property Tax Credits for Farm Families

Our farm families feed Missouri—and the world. To support them, I’ll champion legislation for production-based property tax credits. Farms that meet certain output levels can claim credits against their county and local property and real estate taxes.

• Credit Amount: Up to 25% of county/local property tax paid on agricultural land.
• Eligibility: Producing at least 1,000 bushels of grain (or equivalent livestock output) annually.
• Example Benefit: A 200-acre farm paying $60 / acre ($12,000/year) could receive up to $3,000 in credits annually.

These credits deliver immediate relief—keeping farms competitive, family-owned, and thriving.

Improving Rural Health Care

Our district is incredibly lean on health services—all but seven Missouri counties have shortages of primary care providers, and 18 rural hospitals have closed since 2014 (The Beacon News).

• Urgent Care Clinics: Open 5 new offices across MO-4. Startup cost ~$850,000–$1 million each (Experity Health).
• Mobile Clinics: Deploy 10 rotating units with Missouri extension offices, community centers, and churches. Startup ~$150,000–$200,000 each; annual operating ~$275,000 (Chief Healthcare Exec; Mobile Health Map).

Building Infrastructure & Broadband

We’ll repair rural roads and bridges so farmers can get goods to market faster. We’ll also subsidize high-speed internet so families can do primary-care checkups online when clinics aren’t nearby.

MO-4 has ~788,949 people (Census Reporter), about 316,000 households. If 75% (~237,000) need service at $75/month, that runs ~$213 million/year.

Funding the Plan

We’ll pay for these initiatives by:

• Closing the carried-interest loophole and raising the top marginal rate on incomes over $5 million—part of the “Buffett Rule,” which analysts estimate could raise about $36.7 billion per year nationwide (Wikipedia).
• Enacting a 1 percentage-point increase in the corporate income tax rate, which could generate approximately $14 billion per year over the next decade (https://www.crfb.org/blogs/cbos-revenue-savings-options?utm_source=chatgpt.com).
• Redirecting unused federal relief funds and unspent infrastructure monies to jump-start clinic construction and broadband build-out.

Even setting aside 0.5% of that annual revenue—roughly $250 million—would cover the yearly cost of rural health care, broadband subsidies, and infrastructure projects in Missouri’s 4th District.

Rough Cost Estimate for MO-4

All figures approximate; final costs depend on clinic size, subsidy levels, and rollout pace.

Conclusion

Rural Missouri deserved an advocate who lives here, farmed here, and raised horses here. I am one of you, and I will fight every day to:

• Bring billions into our economy through trade-agreement legislation that opens new markets for our cash crops and livestock.
• Cut federal income taxes on family-farm sales and create production-based property tax credits with the Family Farm Tax Relief Act.
• Expand health care across MO-4 by funding new urgent care clinics and rotating mobile units under the Rural Health Care Expansion Act.
• Build modern infrastructure and broadband access with the Rural Infrastructure & Connectivity Act.

Together, we kept Missouri’s heartland strong.