Kehoe to deliver State of the State Address
Jazsmin Halliburton
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)
Governor Mike Kehoe is set to deliver his 2026 State of the State address Tuesday afternoon inside the State Capitol.
At 3 p.m., Kehoe will be addressing the state of his legislative priorities and budget proposal for the 2027 fiscal year.
In Kehoe’s 2025 State of the State address, his listed priorities were public safety, economic development, agriculture, education and government efficiency. For 2026, his focus will be continuing to prioritize those areas, according to a press release from the Governor’s office.
In this year’s State of the State address, Kehoe plans to announce his tax plan and outline his goal to gradually eliminate the state’s income tax. However, to do that, the state would have to expand the sales tax base to include services, according to conservative group Americans For Prosperity.
Democratic lawmakers are already planning to counter Kehoe’s proposal with another plan.
House Minority Floor Leader Ashley Aune (D-Kansas City) said either option will hurt Missourians. State Rep. Mark Boyko (D-Kirkwood) said he intends to file an alternative plan next week that he claims would save most citizens more money. Boyko couldn’t give details of the plan.
Kehoe’s plan to eliminate the state income tax will need to be voter-approved and is expected to be on the ballot this year.
One of Kehoe’s top priorities ahead of his address is public safety, which has been a hot topic since a Homecoming weekend shooting in September that led to the death of Stephen’s College student Aiyanna Williams.
In December, University of Missouri System President Mun Choi met with Kehoe and Missouri’s public safety team to discuss efforts to combat crime in Columbia. However, that meeting only included university representatives, not city officials.
Earlier this month, Kehoe met with Columbia Mayor Barbara Buffaloe, City Manager De’Carlon Seewood, and Police Chief Jill Schlude to discuss public safety.
The city official’s meeting with Kehoe came after a violent start to the year in Columbia.
On Jan 3, a 17-year-old was arrested after police claimed he fired shots inside Dick’s Sporting Goods in the Shoppes at Stadium area, then stole a car and fled on Interstate 70. The following night, a shooting at an apartment complex on Clark Lane left 21-year-old Brianna Hawkins, of Fulton, dead and two others injured.
Buffaloe told ABC 17 News that while the meeting was pre-planned before those incidents took place, both of them came up in their conversation with Kehoe.
City Manager De’Carlon Seewod described the meeting as “short” but productive. No other meetings with Kehoe have been scheduled.
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