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In a 50-minute address to lawmakers Wednesday, Parson called on the GOP-controlled House and Senate to approve $859 million to add lanes on the highway from Wentzville to Warrenton in the ĂÛÑ¿´«Ă½ region, while also widening parts of the thoroughfare in Columbia and suburban Kansas City.

“This is a major pinch point,� said Missouri Department of Transportation Director Patrick McKenna.

A push to widen the east-west artery has been gaining steam for years as heavy truck and car traffic have frustrated motorists and affected the transport of goods.

This year, Parson wants to take advantage of record budget surpluses to get the widening started.

“To those who say we can’t afford it, I say we can’t afford not to. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, and the time is now,� Parson said.

The work on I-70, which may not get underway for at least two more years, was among a number of highlights outlined by Parson as he delivered his penultimate State of the State speech to a packed House chamber.

Along with spending on transportation, Parson urged lawmakers to make funding for schools and child care a top priority.

“Together, we’ve moved billions of dollars in investments across this state. Whether you live in Kansas City or ĂÛÑ¿´«Ă½, call Kennett or Rock Port home, grow corn or cotton, vote left, right, or center, we’ve left no community behind,â€� Parson said. “Missouri is stronger today, and we’re going to continue what we’ve started because this governor isn’t done yet.â€�

The call for a record $50 billion in overall spending in the fiscal year beginning July 1 comes after Parson and lawmakers last year agreed to a cut in the state’s income tax rate against the backdrop of robust, post-pandemic revenue levels.

The rate decrease could cost state coffers an estimated $500 million, but is offset by a surplus of more than $6 billion, much of that thanks to federal pandemic relief aid that has flowed into the state.

While revenue growth in the post-pandemic era is slowing, Parson’s budget chief, Dan Haug, said the state’s financial footing is firm.

“I still think the Missouri economy is strong. This is probably as good of shape as we’ve been in,� Haug said.

Democrats, who are in the minority, signaled that they are mostly on board with the governor’s plan.

House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, D-Springfield, called Parson’s budget plan a “solid proposal.�

“We are very happy with this starting point,� Quade said.

In particular, she said the I-70 proposal is important because of Missouri’s central location in the U.S.

“We are a hub for transportation,� Quade said.

Parson, who has made workforce development and education top priorities, wants to boost a subsidy that helps people afford child care by $78.5 million, bringing total spending on child care to $800 million.

According to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, the number of child care programs has not recovered from pre-pandemic levels, leaving some parents out of the workforce as they care for their kids.

A poll of businesses by the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry showed 78% believe the expense and difficulty in finding child care keeps a significant number of Missourians out of the workforce.

Parson’s budget proposal would fully fund kindergarten-12 education and earmarks full funding for school transportation costs. It also would invest $56 million for pre-school programs.

“Together these supports will help serve more Missouri families by enabling more child care providers to remain in business, start their business, or expand their business,� the governor said.

Parson also wants to make it easier for teachers to participate in a separate program that pays them more if they undergo certain training.

School districts across Missouri have switched to four-day weeks in an effort to boost teacher retention because of the state’s low pay rate for teachers.

During the speech, he pointed to guest Emily Fluckey, a first grade teacher from Meadville R-4 School District located in Linn County.

Fluckey received a $7,000 pay bump after the Legislature moved last year to boost teacher pay to a base level of $38,000 through a state-local grant program.

“She was able to move out of her parents’ house, get married, and begin pursuing a master’s degree. She represents our educators who certainly don’t do it for the money, but do it for our children and the future of our state,� Parson said.

For colleges and universities, Parson wants to increase core funding by 7%, which represents the largest increase in state assistance in 25 years. He also wants to spend $275 million for building projects on the state’s campuses.

Parson also urged lawmakers to sign off on his plan to give 8.7% raises to state workers beginning in March as a way to address a lag in hiring that has left 7,000 open positions amid the state’s 50,000-person workforce.

In addition to the raises, Parson wants to give certain workers in state-run facilities an added $2 per hour for working high-need evening and overnight shifts.

That increase would affect employees at direct care facilities like nursing homes, youth facilities, prisons and mental health hospitals.

The $151 million request would be part of an early budget adjustment.

The spending blueprint also includes money to address staffing shortages in state nursing facilities. Missouri Department of Mental Health Director Valerie Huhn said that could help the state open 40 beds it has closed at the state-operated psychiatric hospital in Fulton because of a lack of nursing assistants.

Other major projects on tap in the budget plan is a $7.2 million juvenile detention facility in ĂÛÑ¿´«Ă½, which will include classrooms, a dormitory, kitchen and administrative offices.

Parson also wants $35 million to improve railroad crossings after an Amtrak passenger train derailed last year in Mendon, killing four people.

Left out of his speech was any mention of specific crime fighting legislation he’d like lawmakers to enact. Democrats have been calling for stricter gun laws after a school shooting in ĂÛÑ¿´«Ă½ last year left a teacher and student dead.

Parson did propose $50 million for school safety grants for Missouri schools to make physical security investments on their campuses, develop safety plans, establish school resource officer programs, and increase active threat trainings.

Parson also is not requesting money for a full opening of the Rock Island Trail, a cross-state pedestrian and bicycling path that would complement the existing Katy Trail State Park.

He asked for money for the trail last year, but was rebuffed by lawmakers.

Also not making the cut was a plan to bolster the number of police officers who patrol the Capitol. The Department of Public Safety had sought the seven additional officers in the wake of the attack on the U.S. Capitol in January 2021.

Jack Suntrup of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.

±·±đ³æ³Ù:̀ưParson’s big spending plan for Missouri wins Democratic praise, Republican concern

Corrects Patrick McKenna’s name, which was incorrect in an earlier version.