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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri lawmakers have given final approval to a bill that would renew tax credits for charitable causes but end them for international adoptions.

The legislation sent Wednesday to Gov. Jay Nixon would reinstate tax credits for food pantry donations that expired in 2011 and for donations to pregnancy resource centers and child advocacy centers that expired in 2012.

It also renews tax credits for surviving spouses of deceased public safety officers and for people who improve their homes to be accessible to the disabled.

But the bill halts state tax credits for people who adopt children from other countries or other states. It keeps adoption tax credits in place only for Missouri children with "special needs."

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Missouri Senate has advanced a proposed one cent sales tax to fund state and local transportation projects.

The tax would need approval by Missouri voters and would automatically go to another statewide vote after 10 years. It's expected to generate nearly $8 billion over a decade, with 10 percent dedicated to local transportation needs.

Senators gave the measure first-round approval Wednesday.

The legislation requires the Highways and Transportation Commission to develop a list of projects before the tax goes on the ballot. The commission would prepare an annual status report for the governor and the Legislature.

When the increased sales tax is in effect, Missouri's gas tax would be frozen and existing roads could not be become toll roads.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - Gov. Jay Nixon is opposing a tax overhaul plan backed by the Missouri Senate because it contains a sales tax increase.

Nixon said Thursday that the proposed one-half cent sales tax hike would be especially harmful to seniors and veterans on fixed incomes and also could also hurt working-class parents trying to provide for their children.

The bill given initial approval Wednesday night by the Republican-led Senate also includes a three-quarters of a percentage point decrease in the state income tax for individuals and businesses. That income tax cut would more than offset the sales tax hike, resulting in an estimated $450 million loss in state revenues once both tax changes are fully phased in.

The legislation needs another Senate vote before it can move to the House.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - Missouri's revenues are up nearly 9 percent through the first two-thirds of the state's fiscal year.

Figures released Monday by the state Office of Administration show Missouri's finances have improved mainly because of a decline in tax refunds and an increase in individual income tax collections.

Through February, net general revenues were up 8.7 percent compared with the same period a year earlier. The total includes a 5.5 percent increase in individual income taxes and a 16.5 percent decline in tax refunds. Sales tax collections have remained relatively flat for the fiscal year.

Missouri's 2013 budget year began last July and runs through the end of this June.

Tax collections in February alone were virtually unchanged from February 2012. But for the entire fiscal year, collections were up $394 million.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Missouri lawmakers are seeking to collect taxes from some online and out-of-state retailers in a move that could both bolster the state's finances and aid traditional stores in their competition for customers. Support has been growing in both the House and Senate for legislation that would tighten the requirements for when businesses must collect Missouri taxes on their sales. The legislation targets businesses such as furniture and appliance stores in Kansas and Illinois that deliver their products to Missouri homes. It also targets online retailers who gain significant sales when Internet traffic is routed their way by Missouri-based businesses. A Senate committee heard testimony on the legislation earlier this month, and a similar House bill was referred to a committee this past week. Sponsoring Sen. Mike Parson, R-Bolivar, portrays the measure as "a fairness bill for businesses across the state." The legislation addresses two areas that traditional retail stores contend put them at a disadvantage. One provision would repeal an existing Missouri law that exempts out-of-state business with less than $500,000 of annual sales in Missouri or $12.5 million in sales nationally from being subject to collecting Missouri taxes on their sales. The Missouri Retailers Associations says similar exemptions don't exist in neighboring states such as Kansas and Illinois. As a result, a Missouri furniture or appliance store must collect Kansas or Illinois taxes when it delivers items to customers' homes in those states. But a store in Kansas or Illinois does not have to collect Missouri taxes when it sells and delivers products to Missouri residents, so long as its total sales stays below that annual cap. "They're coming after our retailers but we can't collect from theirs - it's a disadvantage that needs to be fixed," David Overfelt, president of the Missouri Retailers Association, told the House Ways and Means Committee this past week. The situation has existed for quite some time. In 1996, the Illinois Supreme Court ordered a Palmyra, Mo.-based furniture store to pay more than $47,000 of uncollected taxes, interest and penalties for items sold and delivered to Illinois residents from January to October 1989. Another section of the Missouri legislation seeks to levy taxes on online retailers, if they reap at least $10,000 in sales annually from customers routed to their website by Missouri-based businesses. Some of the bill's supporters hope to force companies such as Amazon to start collecting taxes on Missouri sales. But whether the legislation actually would accomplish that is unclear, because the bill contains a provision allowing online retailers to avoid the tax by proving that the affiliated companies did not significantly affect the retailer's market presence in Missouri. Rep. Doug Funderburk, who is sponsoring the House version of the bill, described it as "an attempt to bring some of our sales tax laws in line with today's modern technology." So far, the legislation has not encountered much public opposition from lobbyists. But any time a bill could result in greater tax collections, some lawmakers are hesitant because of the fear that future political opponents could tag them as having backed a tax increase. Funderburk acknowledged that remains an obstacle, but he said the tax revenues lost to Internet sales are having a big effect on local government services. "I think people are finally starting to realize that we're bleeding these revenue streams," said Funderburk, R-St. Charles. "If everybody wants to live in a community that has no services and you pay no taxes, fine and dandy," he said. "But when I go home, I want the street lights to work, I want law enforcement up and ready, I want to know that there's a fire truck down the street that's ready to come put out a fire."