JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — After more than two hours of discussion Tuesday afternoon, a piece of legislation crafted to convince the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals to remain in Missouri passed out of a senate committee.
Missouri Senate Bill 3 passed out of the fiscal oversight committee.
An amendment was made to an unrelated issue in the bill, which would allow victims in a federally-declared disaster zone to get a refundable $5,000 tax credit.
With a majority vote of 6 to 3, the bill heads to the Senate floor Wednesday for further debate.
SB 3, also known as the Show Me Sports Investment Act, helps professional sports teams pay off construction bonds with tax dollars generated at the stadiums.
Missouri Sen. Kurtis Gregory (R - District 21), a sponsor behind the bill, joined advocates in trying to make sure Missouri doesn’t lose out to Kansas.
"I’m encouraged by today," Gregory said. "There’s always talks about how we’ll get the magic number and I know lots of people working to try to get this done."
Kansas passed a STAR bond bill last summer in a special session — agreeing to cover up to 70% of construction costs.
Missouri's deal only goes up to 50%.
“The Kansas proposal is better in the respect that we don't need a local vote and would cover up to 70% of construction, but it’s new construction, won't be loudest stadium and won't have the allure of Arrowhead," a Chiefs lobbyist said during Tuesday's committee hearing.
A lobbyist for the Royals agreed, saying during the hearing that Missouri is presenting a "competitive offer."
However, the lobbyist could not confirm whether the team invested in to sites in Missouri as an affiliate of the team invested in a site located in Overland Park.
Missouri Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman (R - District 22)) voted against the bill and questioned state agencies and lobbyists about whether it is enough to compete with Kansas.
"Is it true then that we don’t know if the packages put forth using the new program and existing programs are enough to create parity with what Kansas is offering?" Coleman asked.
Michelle Hataway, director for the Missouri Department of Economic Development, shared they don't know.
She's been a part of discussions with the teams and couldn't share some information due to a legal non-disclosure.
While an overwhelming amount of testimony was in full support of a deal getting passed, there was some disapproval of tax money being used after Jackson County voters rejected an extension of a 3/8th-cent sales tax for the teams last year.
"They voted no because they ran into the same wall that senators you have been running into today — no details," said Patrick Tuohy, senior fellow for the Show Me Institute. "
Kansas' deal has an expiration date of June 30 unless an extension is approved.
It's unclear whether this could be the deal that keeps them in the Show Me State or if the teams will go across the state line.
"I firmly believe if the teams wanted to leave Missouri...really wanted to get out, they would have already done so with the offer on the table from the state of Kansas," Gregory said. "I think them holding off shows they want to remain in Missouri."
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