Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe on Tuesday called state lawmakers into a special session to pass a stadium funding plan for the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals after legislators failed to approve the plan in the final hours of the legislative session.
Kehoe, at a press conference inside his state Capitol office, ordered lawmakers to return to Jefferson City on June 2.
The special session will focus on the teams, disaster relief after recent tornadoes and severe weather in St. Louis and eastern Missouri, and state funding for projects that didn’t pass during the regular session, including funding for a new mental health hospital in Kansas City.
“The Kansas City Chiefs and Royals are Missouri’s teams,” Kehoe said.
Kehoe’s proposal would allow Missouri to offer state aid to pay for up to 50% of new or upgraded stadiums for the two teams. If passed, it would mark a major moment for the Kansas City area and signify the state’s first major response to Kansas in the protracted fight over the future of the teams.
This is a developing story and will be updated
The Kansas City Star
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A reporter for The Kansas City Star covering Missouri government and politics, Kacen Bayless is a native of St. Louis, Missouri. He graduated from the University of Missouri with an emphasis in investigative reporting. He previously covered projects and investigations in coastal South Carolina. In 2020, he was awarded South Carolina’s top honor for assertive journalism.