Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe has called a special session of the state legislature that will review a bill to enable the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs and MLB’s Kansas City Royals to issue bonds up to the annual amount they generate in state tax revenue over 30 years, in turn funding up to half of new or upgraded stadiums.
Front Office Sports reports the special session, which begins June 2, comes at a time when the Chief and Royals have been at odds with Missouri residents over who should pay for their new stadiums. Last year, voters in Jackson County rejected a sales tax initiative to finance a new stadium.
Many legislators are also not supportive of using public funds to pay for a stadium owned by private sector entities, especially in the wake of recent tornado damage around the St. Louis area. State Rep. Darin Chappell, a Republican, complained, “I’ve got constituents trying to pay their rent and feed themselves, and they’re struggling. And I’m going to take their money and give it to billionaires so multimillionaires can play in a prettier place? That’s obscene.”
The Chiefs play at Arrowhead Stadium, which opened in 1972, while the Royals are based at the adjacent Kauffman, which opened in 1973. The teams’ current stadium leases expire in 2031, and they are receiving overtures from neighboring Kansas to relocate out of Missouri.
“If Missouri does not put some sort of offer forward, I think the risk is real that they don’t stay here,” said Kehoe. “If they move out of our state, the significant effect it’s going to have on our state’s economy is massive. This isn’t just about football and baseball. This is about economic development. These are two organizations that have businesses, employees, and a ripple effect on our state’s economy that we do not want to move.”
The special legislative session will also focus on disaster relief funding in the state.
Photo: Arrowhead Stadium, courtesy of Ichabod / Wikimedia Commons
