Missouri is one of only a few states to levy tax on food purchased for consumption at home. This week, Representative Jamilah Nasheed (D-St. Louis) introduced a plan to move Missouri closer to eliminating the sales tax on groceries.

House Bill 2190 would phase out the 1% sales tax on food over a period of six years and replace it with a 1% state sales tax on hard liquor and wine. This proposal would bring the sales tax rate from 1.225% per dollar to just under a quarter of a percent — the lowest of the 14 states that currently charge sales tax on food.

“Our working poor are struggling to make ends meet and we should provide them with tax relief where it will matter most,” said Nasheed. “The money Missourians can save from the reduction of this tax will add up with each trip to the grocery store and it will mean a substantial savings to all of us in the long run.”

The state sales tax on food was last lowered from 4.225% during the 1997 legislative session. The monies generated by the sales tax on food currently fund the school district trust fund. This funding would be replaced by the new sales tax on liquor and wine.

Sales taxes are often considered “regressive” taxes because they tax consumers at a fixed rate, disproportionate to their income.