Missouri's tax credit program saves taxpayers more than half a million dollars each year, while supporting pregnant women across the state, a report says.
Missouri Maternity Home Tax Credit Program It provides donors with a 70% tax break, giving them the opportunity to reduce their state tax liability if they donate to any eligible agency such as a maternity home or pregnancy resource center. The credit system provides a significant return on investment for both donors and the community, according to the report reviewed by Fox News Digital.
For example, for every $100 contributed, the donor receives $70 in tax credits to apply to their state income tax liability, making their net out-of-pocket donation $30.
In addition, by taking women off the streets and helping them become more self-sufficient, maternity homes reduce the costs of state-run and funded social support systems, the report says.
As a result, the entire community benefits because the state does not need to provide women with resources for shelter, food services, medical treatment and other programs.
“At a minimum, there is an annual community savings or avoided cost of approximately $28,750 per person receiving maternity home services,” the report states. “If the program averages 20 women per year, the impact is $575,000 per year.”
Additionally, “there is an annual societal savings or avoided cost of approximately $74,559 per infant born to mothers receiving maternity home services,” the report states. “During the first 10 years of a child’s life, the impact could amount to savings of up to $869,570 due to the prevention of prematurity and homelessness.”
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Alexandria upon graduation (Alexandria Allen)
The Society of St. Raymond, which provides new and expectant mothers with financial and emotional support, including training and guidance to help them cope with motherhood, has benefited greatly from the tax credit program.
“This is a credit that directly conflicts with what they owe in state income tax,” co-founder Steve Smith said. “The other 30% that they don't get a credit on, they can actually deduct both the state and the federal government.”
As a result, Smith has become an outspoken advocate for the tax credit program, and said he hopes other states will implement similar policies. But he said each state differs in how it applies the tax breaks.
“Missouri was one of the first three states and I know there are at least eight other states that have proposed this and more are being added,” he said.
“It's really a win for the state, it's a win for the donors, it's a win for the agencies because we end up getting more money,” he added. “And in the end, the people who really win are the women and children who are served.”
For example, Alexandria Allen turned her life around with the help of St. Raymond's Society, and the benefit for her and her family spanned generations, helping to break the cycle of poverty, addiction and homelessness.
The report cited a 2017 study that found a chronically homeless person would incur societal costs of about $35,578 annually through the use of shelters, food services, medical treatment and other programs.
But supportive housing reduces this cost by 49.5%, averaging about $12,800 per year in 2017 and saving nearly $4,800 per year for each person receiving support. When adjusted for inflation, the study concluded that in 2023, supportive housing would likely save the government and taxpayers $6,191 per person per year.
When Aline showed up on St. Raymond's Society's doorstep, she was recently sober, homeless, and pregnant. Allen overcame her addiction to heroin and methamphetamine, and with the help of her mentors at St. Raymond's Society, she was able to get back on her feet.
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But it was her harrowing story that led her to St. Raymond. As a child, she was in the foster care system, where she was sexually abused. She began self-medicating, and at the age of 16, she became pregnant with her son. By the time she was 19, she was cooking meth with her mother, who was also an addict.
“I always say heroin took my life away from me because I had a major criminal record,” she said. Fox News Digital. “I've lived my whole life dedicated solely to getting high and getting rid of a drug hangover.”
“But meth kind of stole my soul,” she added. “It makes you completely devoid of empathy, that's the only way to put it.”
Amid addiction problems, she lost custody of her son, and at age 19, while panhandling at Walmart, she met a man who told her he was using drugs.
Allen followed him to his apartment and held her against her will in his home for six months, forcing her to commit crimes in order to obtain drug money.
Alexandria with her daughter. (Alexandria Allen)
“I wasn’t allowed to leave,” she said. “If I tried to leave, he would beat me within an inch of my life.”
In 2012, he tried to kill her, and she woke up in the hospital with a concussion and a broken nose and skull. A few weeks later, she entered rehab, and has remained sober ever since.
Allen credits the St. Raymond Society with helping her get her life back on track. Now she has three children with her husband, whom she met after leaving rehab.
Allen learned about St. Raymond's when she applied for Medicaid to get pregnant because she and her boyfriend, now her husband, were homeless. They immediately welcomed her into the women's home.
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“I was able, for the first time in a hot minute, to shower, wash my clothes, brush my teeth, things that I think people take for granted,” she told Fox News Digital. “Then they asked me to rest for a few days, and then they started doing the whole program there.”
Allen was assigned to a mentor who spoke to her about goal setting, planning, freedom, and purpose. Her goals were to stay sober and regain custody of her son, who was still in foster care.
At St. Raymond's Society, Allen said she learned how to become an adult, including how to cook, clean and take care of herself. She also had a job that provided her with income and a sense of purpose. She regained custody of her son four months after giving birth to her daughter.
Alexandria with her daughter. (Alexandria Allen)
Once she had those basic skills, Allen's teacher encouraged her to get her GED, something she never thought would be possible, since she left school at such a young age.
She successfully earned her GED and while working and navigating as a new mother, earned her bachelor's degree, graduating with a double major in 2019. In 2020, she graduated as valedictorian of the MBA program.
Allen, who now lives in Missouri with her husband and three children, credits St. Raymond largely with her success.
“The love and support of St. Raymond's doesn't stop when you walk out the door. It's truly like family,” Allen said.
