Greetings from Jefferson City!

This past week, after a lot of speed bumps, the Senate was able to finally sink its teeth into the budget and pass a responsible investment in our state that was sent back to the Missouri House of Representatives. It was passed by the House and on the governor’s desk ahead of the 6 p.m. deadline on Friday evening.

While I understand that every community has needs and wants when it comes to funding, I believe we have to accept early in the process that there will never be enough money to do everything. This is not easy to accept, but staying in denial only leads to the burden of massive debt, such as we see with our federal budget process.

In my opinion, this budget is not perfect but it is a balanced and responsible use of the funding Missouri has available right now. We were able to use a combination of taxpayer dollars, American Recovery Plan Act (ARPA) funds and a budget surplus to invest in our infrastructure, education and future workforce. We will be able to continue helping our veterans and fight the opioid abuse pandemic.

I will go into further detail on the direct investments to the 16th Senatorial District in coming weeks after the budget is finalized and signed by the governor. I will also be sure to update you on other legislation that passes the General Assembly over these final three days as we complete our work in Jefferson City for this year’s session. It is hard to believe we are almost at the finish line, but while time remains on the clock, I will keep fighting to pass bills that I know are important to the people of our community.

It’s my honor to serve as your senator for the 16th District. If you have questions or need any assistance, please call my office at 573-751-5713 or log onto my webpage at senate.mo.gov/brown for more information.