SB1138 • 2026

Exempts certain professions from income tax

Children Education Labor Taxes

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Gregory (15), David; House handler: N/A
Last action: 2026-01-15
Official status: Second Read and Referred S Economic and Workforce Development Committee
Effective date: 2026-08-28

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

Exempts certain professions from income tax

The following summaries of this bill are available: Print All Summaries Introduced Print SB 1138 - This act establishes the "Retaining MO Workers Act".

What This Bill Does

The following summaries of this bill are available: Print All Summaries Introduced Print SB 1138 - This act establishes the "Retaining MO Workers Act".
For all tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2027, this act provides that the first $100,000 of income shall be subtracted from a taxpayer's federal adjusted gross income if the taxpayer is employed as any of the following: 1) a first responder, 2) a nurse, 3) a teacher, 4) a veteran of any branch of the Armed Forces of the United States, 5) any state or federal employee, excluding elected officials, 6) a laborer, 7) a commercial truck driver, 8) a nursing home employee, 9) a child care provider, or 10) a lineworker, as such terms are defined in the act.
This act is substantially similar to SCS/SB 650 (2025).
JOSH NORBERG

Limits and Unknowns

This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

2026-01-15 S189
Second Read and Referred S Economic and Workforce Development Committee
2026-01-07 S64
S First Read
2025-12-01 Missouri House of Representatives and Missouri Senate
Prefiled

Official Summary Text

The following summaries of this bill are available:

Print All Summaries

Introduced

Print

SB 1138 - This act establishes the "Retaining MO Workers Act".

For all tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2027, this act provides that the first $100,000 of income shall be subtracted from a taxpayer's federal adjusted gross income if the taxpayer is employed as any of the following: 1) a first responder, 2) a nurse, 3) a teacher, 4) a veteran of any branch of the Armed Forces of the United States, 5) any state or federal employee, excluding elected officials, 6) a laborer, 7) a commercial truck driver, 8) a nursing home employee, 9) a child care provider, or 10) a lineworker, as such terms are defined in the act.

This act is substantially similar to SCS/SB 650 (2025).
JOSH NORBERG

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

SECOND REGULAR SESSION
SENATE BILL NO. 1138
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR GREGORY (15).
4862S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
AN ACT
To amend chapter 143, RSMo, by adding thereto one new section relating to an income tax
deduction for certain professions.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Chapter 143, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto 1
one new section, to be known as section 143.126, to read as 2
follows:3
143.126. 1. The provisions of this section shall be 1
known and may be cited as the "Retaining MO Workers Act". 2
2. For the purposes of this section, the following 3
terms shall mean: 4
(1) "Child care provider", a child care provider as 5
defined in section 210.201 that is licensed pursuant to 6
section 210.221, or that is unlicensed and that is 7
registered with the department of elementary and secondary 8
education; 9
(2) "First responder", any of the following: 10
(a) A peace officer or member of the patrol, as 11
defined in section 43.010; 12
(b) A federal law enforcement officer, as defined in 13
34 U.S.C. Section 50301; 14
(c) A paid firefighter; or 15
(d) A paramedic or emergency medical technician; 16
SB 1138 2
(3) "Laborer", any person employed in any of the 17
following North American Industry Classification System 18
(NAICS) sectors: 19
(a) NAICS sector 22; 20
(b) NAICS sector 31-33; 21
(c) NAICS sector 48-49; 22
(d) NAICS industry group 8111; 23
(e) NAICS industry group 8113; 24
(f) NAICS U.S. industry 813930; 25
(4) "Lineworker", a person who installs, maintains, 26
and repairs electrical power lines and related equipment; 27
(5) "Nurse", any person, excluding any physician, 28
required to be licensed pursuant to chapter 335; 29
(6) "Nursing home employee", any person, excluding 30
physicians, employed at a facility, as such term is defined 31
in section 198.006; 32
(7) "Qualifying employee", any person employed as any 33
of the following: 34
(a) A first responder; 35
(b) A nurse; 36
(c) A teacher; 37
(d) Any veteran of any branch of the Armed Forces of 38
the United States; 39
(e) Any employee of any department or agency of the 40
state or the United States government, excluding elected 41
officials; 42
(f) A laborer; 43
(g) Any person employed as a driver of a commercial 44
motor vehicle, as such terms are defined in section 302.700; 45
(h) A nursing home employee; 46
(i) A child care provider; or 47
(j) A lineworker; 48
SB 1138 3
(8) "Teacher", a teacher employed at any of the 49
following: 50
(a) Any public school, as defined in section 160.011; 51
(b) Any private school, as defined in section 166.700; 52
(c) Any public or private institution of higher 53
education. 54
3. For all tax years beginning on or after January 1, 55
2027, to the extent included in federal adjusted gross 56
income, the first one hundred thousand dollars of a 57
taxpayer's income earned as a qualifying employee shall be 58
subtracted from the taxpayer's federal adjusted gross 59
income. Income earned not as a qualifying employee shall 60
not be subtracted pursuant to this section. 61
✓