January Public Affairs Committee Report
By Heath Clarkston
CITY COUNCIL ADOPTS NEW ZONING CODES TO HELP AID FUTURE DEVELOPMENT
On December 15th, the Jefferson City Council adopted two bills related to the city zoning codes to streamline and encourage further residential development in the city limits. Both bills had the full support of the HBA and will hopefully lead to more residential housing and future housing developments soon. The City Council continues to work as a team to spur growth and economic development throughout the city as both bills receive unanimous support.
First, Bill number 2025-55 modifies setbacks, lot sizes, lot width, and density standards for residential and mixed-use zoning to allow a more permissive standard to encourage more options for future construction. This bill should help in the future with many of the in-fill lots throughout the city for potential home sites.
Second, Bill 2025-56 amends the Planned Unit Development Plans section of the zoning code to help streamline the process for approval by the City. The proposal would remove a requirement that the same plans be reviewed twice and streamline into one process and still maintain public input and transparency. This proposal aims to provide more certainty for developers in a multi-step process and allow flexibility by both the city staff and development team.
CITY AND COUNTY LOOKING TO UPDATE BUILDING CODES
Both the Cole County and Jefferson City public works divisions are seeking to update their current building codes next year. The Cole County Commission has appointed a committee to begin working on the update in the months ahead. The County hopes to adopt codes that have been in effect and understood by the building community over the years to ensure a smooth transition for our membership. Recently, Cole County hired Michael Rankin as a building inspector. Mr. Rankin is planning to attend the January HBA General Membership Meeting on January 14th and plans to provide an overview of the county timeline.
The Jefferson City Public Works and Planning Committee is likely to begin their review of code updates in the months ahead. The Chair, First Ward Councilman Randy Hoselton is hoping that updating the current codes can be done in a manner that assists in spurring additional development and lessening the regulatory barriers to entry in our community. The city will be looking at updating their code manuals to better serve the community with safety improvements, but also making sure options are available that do not immediately increase the affordability on new home and commercial construction.
CITY COUNCIL FILINGS BEGIN, SEVERAL INCUMBENTS SEEK REELECTION
On December 9th, the candidate filing opened for the 2026 Jefferson City Municipal Election scheduled for April 7, 2026. At this point, all incumbents have filed for re-election, and we only have one contested race in Ward 1. The filing period ends on December 30th.
The current filings are as follows:
Ward 1: Randy Hoselton (incumbent) v. George Bacon
Ward 2: Mike Lester (incumbent)
Ward 3: Dr. Treaka Young (incumbent)
Ward 4: Chris Lueckel (incumbent)
Ward 5: Mackenzie Job (incumbent)
JEFFERSON CITY PROJECT SELECTED BY MHDC FOR HOUSING TAX CREDITS
At the December 9th Missouri Housing Development Commission meeting, a local developer was selected to receive funding from Federal and State 9% low-income housing tax credits (LIHTC) for a project named “Moreau Valley”. This project was put forth by local developer Bo West and had the support of the Jefferson City Council. In total, this project is set to receive over $4.9 million in tax credits and funding from various federal, state and local sources. The affordable housing development is a 48- unit apartment on Schotthill Woods Drive. This project was partnered alongside the not-for-profit group, Rape and Abuse Crisis Services. The is the second project in two years for the City of Jefferson and the community leaders are continuing to work to find solutions to replace housing lost from the tornado of 2019.
MISSOURI LEGISLATURE RETURNS TO JEFFERSON CITY ON JANUARY 7TH
The Missouri General Assembly began pre-filing legislation on December 1st for the 2026 Missouri Regular Legislative Session, which begins at noon on Wednesday January 7th in Jefferson City. As usual, many bills were pre-filed on the first day, with the House filing 500 House Bills and 25 House Joint Resolutions and the Senate filing 560 Senate Bills and 39 Senate Joint Resolutions on December 1st, the first day of pre-filing, and approximately 1,500 bills and joint resolutions having been filed to date.
With this being the Second Regular Session of the 103rd General Assembly, we expect legislative action to ramp up quickly as both chambers will be operating under rules adopted last session and thecommittees formed last year will remain intact. Generally, the House will refer bills and move them through committees quickly, likely filling up an active floor calendar in the first three weeks of session. On the other hand, multiple factors promise to complicate the Senate’s operation moving into the new session. After the 2025 First Regular Session ended with the use of a procedural maneuver to stop a filibuster and call an immediate vote on bills related to abortion restrictions and employment law, the Governor called the General Assembly back for two Special Sessions over the interim, during which the legislature addressed very polarizing issues such as Congressional Redistricting, Initiative Petition Reform, and Property Taxation. We expect that fractured relationships, hard feelings, and emotional fallout from the end of the Regular Session and Special Sessions will cause the Senate to move slowly during the first few weeks of Session.
Likely Priorities for Leadership in 2026
Although Republican leadership has not yet publicized an agenda of priorities for the 2026 Session, we fully expect the focus of debate to be centered on tax policy at all levels. Governor Mike Kehoe (R) has been publicly pushing a plan to phase out the state income tax. The Governor has not yet provided details of his plan, but we are aware he is working with House and Senate leadership with plans to make a full push this year. Any effort to reduce the state income tax will need a corresponding tax offset, which would likely come from a statewide sales tax on services. If a tax offset is planned, this would subject any legislation to a vote of the people, as voters would need to amend the Constitution to repeal its current prohibition on taxes on services.
Public and private education is also likely to garner significant discussion. A state task force has been meeting since this summer with plans to submit a report in December 2026 with recommendations on modifying the existing school finance system, often referred to as the “school foundation formula.” Another complication to school funding discussions is the public funding of private education scholarships (MO Scholars), which is administered by the State Treasurer. Last Session, the Governor and General Assembly approved $50M in state funds for the private school scholarships, and the State Treasurer is seeking $100M in funding for the next fiscal year.
Lastly, the legislature is expected to tackle the issue of county property taxation, which includes local assessment procedures and tax rates. The House has been holding committee hearings on this topic overthe interim and will have a report on recommendations forthcoming. Many expect the Senate in January to focus on the process and powers of the Missouri State Tax Commission and potentially make statutory changes to the laws governing the Commission’s equalization of taxes.
2026 Missouri Legislative Dates of Interest
January 7, 2026 – First Day of the Legislative Session
January 19, 2026 – No Session (MLK Jr. observance)
March 16-20 – 2026 Legislative Spring Break
April 6, 2026 – No Session (Easter Break)
May 15, 2026 – Last Day of Legislative Session