Did you know?

• You have to work three months — almost up to the first pitch of the baseball season for the Cardinals and the Royals — before you've paid all federal, state, and local taxes for the year. It's called Tax Freedom Day. In Missouri, its' April 4.


• Here's a good reason for a company to move from Illinois to Missouri: The corporate income tax in Missouri is 6.25%. In Illinois, it's 9.5%! Of course, Nevada and South Dakota have no corporate income tax at all.


• Missouri's top income tax rate is 6%. That's good compared to California, where you pay 9.3% on an income of 46,766. But in Texas and Florida they don't pay ANY state income tax.


• In Missouri, state and local taxes average $3,425 per person. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, that's almost exactly how much the average U.S. consumer spends annually for food to eat at home.


• Missouri has the lowest cigarette tax in the nation at 17 cents per pack. Illinois has a tax of 98 cents per pack. That is an 81-cent difference, or $8.10 per carton. You could see a movie with the money saved if you purchase a carton of cigarettes in Missouri. 


• Missouri’s debt stacks up to $3,416 PER PERSON. In Tennessee, it’s just $922. With the difference ($2494), you could buy a 55-inch HDTV at Best Buy.


• Missouri issues a tax break, the Qualified Beef Tax Credit Program, to people who can make their cattle fatter than an average cow (which is 725 pounds, by the way)!


• The state gave more than $1 million in historic preservation tax credits to Norwood Hills Country Club? That's our money, but unless you're a member, good luck getting a tee time.


• As of 2011, Missouri is on the hook for more than $641 million in unredeemed tax credits. That's enough to buy EVERY child in this state a $499 iPad.