JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – After weeks of waiting for the governor’s budget, Missouri lawmakers learned Tuesday afternoon they would not have to wait much longer.
Gov. Eric Greitens that he will release his budget on Thursday at the Nixa Early Childhood Center instead of delivering a speech to Missouri’s Legislature in Jefferson City.
The governor announced his decision Tuesday afternoon via Facebook post.
“This address in Nixa is a reminder of who we’re fighting for. We’re fighting for the kids in towns and cities across our state who don’t have a lobbyist. Children with special needs, whose parents need jobs to provide for them,” Greitens said in the statement. “Families that need to know that the men and women of law enforcement have the tools and training to protect them. That’s who we’re fighting for every day.”
Greitens has broken away from tradition before in choosing not to release the budget during his State of the State address, but rather saying it would be released in another speech at a later time.
House Minority Leader Gail McCann Beatty, D-Kansas City, released a statement following the Governor’s announcement, saying:
“If our new governor wants to hold a PR event at a local school far from the Capitol, that’s fine. But I would remind him that the Missouri Constitution requires the governor to submit a proposed budget to the General Assembly, not to the children of the Nixa public schools. Since his statement announcing the Nixa event makes no mention of it, I can only assume that at some point he will fulfill his constitutional duty and formally submit a budget plan to lawmakers.”
Greitens is expected to give his budget address at 11:15 a.m.
Benjamin Peters was a reporter for The Missouri Times and Missouri Times Magazine and also produced the #MoLeg Podcast. He joined The Missouri Times in 2016 after working as a sports editor and TV news producer in mid-Missouri. Benjamin is a graduate of Missouri State University in Springfield.
