By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
A new state representative will take the new 2nd Missouri House District seat after the November 8th General Election.
Political newcomer Mazzie Boyd of Hamilton upset incumbent State Rep. Randy Railsback in the Republican primary. Boyd says she wants to cut taxes.
“One of the things I’m really passionate about is reducing personal property taxes. I think right now, especially in our economy, it is dire that we start reducing taxes for people,” Boyd tells host Barry Birr on the KFEQ Hotline. “Also, when it comes to home-based businesses with child care facilities, we need to make sure that we’re reducing red tape.”
The legislature in special session did cut the top state income tax rate from 5.3% to 4.95%. That top rate could drop lower if state revenue meets certain thresholds.
That tax cut missed the mark, according to Democrat Lois Pontius of Ridgeway.
“That only gives tax breaks to, well, the higher your income, the better the tax break you get there,” Pontius tells Birr during a phone interview on the KFEQ Hotline. “I want to do just the opposite. I want to give the tax breaks to the lower income and the Middle Class and actually make the highest income ones make up for that.”
In the legislation cutting the top income tax rate, the legislature also eliminated the bottom rate. Missouri residents making less than $13,000 will no longer pay state income taxes. Couples making less than $26,000 will be exempt from the state income tax. Also, the first $1,000 earned will no longer be taxed.
Boyd says Missouri needs to improve its schools.
“Good teachers deserve to be paid better. I think that is something that is super important,” Boyd says. “I know a lot of great teachers have felt like they haven’t been heard. But also, at the end of the day, education is about students, it’s about trying to make sure that they have the best education possible.”
As for Pontius, she says she’s worried about the direction of state government under the control of Republicans.
“I’ve been concerned about the direction that Missouri has been going the last several years,” Pontius says. “I remember a time when the Missouri legislature spoke for the people. It was representing the people.”
Pontius also pushes back on the notion that Democrats want to defund the police.
“Now, the Democrats have been accused of wanting to defund the police,” Pontius says. “There were some individual protestors who were yelling, ‘Defund the police,’ but that’s not the stance of the Democrat Party.”
Pontius says Democrats just want police better trained.
Boyd says she backs the police.
“Law enforcement is one of the most important aspects to our community, because they protect us. They protect your brothers, your sisters. They are vital,” according to Boyd. “And it has been so upsetting to see how disrespected they are, day in and day out, and how they aren’t getting paid well.”
Boyd says Missouri needs to demonstrate its support of law enforcement.
Redistricting reshaped the 2nd state representative district. It now covers Worth, Harrison, Grundy, Daviess, and Caldwell Counties, making it one of the largest state representative districts in Missouri.