A Report by Quentin Wilson
Jefferson City, Missouri
January 13, 2026

My fellow Missourians,

Today, nearby in the same capital City of Jefferson in Missouri, Governor Michael Kehoe is delivering the traditional State of the State address.
However, rather than a full, candid report on Missouri, what results we value most and actual measures of these outcomes and how we compare to other states, you’re going to hear a polished speech, a lot of applause, and I suspect, another round of promises that more tax cuts will solve our problems.
I’m here for something different.

I’m here to offer a model of what I believe a truly independent auditor would report on the State of the State.
Not the political version, but the accountable version.

I’m Quentin Wilson, and after a lifetime of working in or with government, non-profits and private companies, including helping make Missouri the best‑managed state in America, I thought I had escaped the compulsion of running for public office, but I’m running now because what I’m seeing is too serious to ignore.

Missouri has two choices going forward.

We can keep doing what we’ve been doing: more tax cuts that overwhelmingly favor those at the top, shifting the burden to working families, and hoping—again—that this time it will magically create growth. Or we can choose a different path: one that focuses on results, on accountability, and on making government actually work for people.

That’s the leap I’m asking Missourians to take.
And that is why I’m running for State Auditor.
Not as a partisan scorekeeper. Not as a Democrat punishing Republicans or a Republican punishing Democrats.
But as a bulldog, a watchdog for every Missourian, regardless of party.

How Far We’ve Fallen

I’ve seen what good government looks like. In 1999 and 2001, Missouri was ranked America’s best‑managed state. I was part of the team that helped get us there. We were known around the country for measuring government performance, and achieving results for our citizens.

Today, according to the U.S. News & World Report Best States Rankings, Missouri has fallen to 31st overall. This is where we stand now in these same outcome areas:

 43rd in Healthcare
 43rd in Crime and Corrections
 37th in Infrastructure
 31st in Education
 47th in Teacher Pay

That is the real state of our state. And those numbers are not abstract. They show up in people’s lives and in their wallets every single day.

When we rank 43rd in healthcare, it means families putting off needed surgery or stretching prescriptions because they can’t afford the co-pays. It means a parent driving past a closed rural hospital to the next county, burning time and gas they can’t spare. In the end, we pay more for emergency care and hospitalizations that could have been prevented with affordable basic care.

When we’re 47th in teacher pay and 31st in education, it means constant teacher turnover, bigger classes, and more kids who never quite catch up. That doesn’t make education cheaper. It makes it more expensive later—through remediation, lost earnings, and businesses that choose other states with a better‑prepared workforce.

When we’re 37th in infrastructure, families pay in other ways: fewer new jobs, more blown tires and repair bills, longer commutes, deliveries that cost more because trucks crawl over worn‑out roads and aging bridges. Deferred maintenance isn’t a savings; it’s a hidden tax we all pay later with interest.
When we rank 43rd in crime and corrections, it means neighborhoods where people don’t feel safe walking after dark, and a justice system that keeps paying for the same folks to cycle in and out of jail. That’s not just unsafe; it’s expensive, eating up dollars that could go to prevention, treatment, and opportunity.

All of this adds up to one truth: life in Missouri is less affordable than it should be, not because we spend too much, but because we perform too poorly. We are paying more than we need to for worse results than we deserve.

We used to be a model. Now we are becoming a warning.
And this didn’t happen overnight. It happened over 25 years of choices—of neglect, of short‑sighted politics, and of a blind faith that tax cuts alone would save us.

The Failure of the Tax‑Cut-Only Strategy

Let’s talk about that.
Missouri is already among the six lowest‑tax states in America.
If the theory were right, we should be one of the fastest‑growing states in the country.
But over the last 25 years, our economic growth per capita is also the six lowest.

We’ve cut and cut and cut—and we didn’t get the promised growth. Instead, we got something else.
We became more dependent on federal dollars. Today, Missouri relies on Washington more than almost any other state.
For a state that prides itself on being conservative and self‑reliant, we ought to be embarrassed that we can’t stand on our own two feet.
And even when we give money away, we can’t seem to do that right.

Look at the recent capital‑gains tax cut. The state miscalculated by hundreds of millions of dollars a year.
That’s money that could have gone to schools, to roads, to healthcare, to public safety.
And where was the State Auditor?
We see no meaningful oversight, no aggressive, independent review on behalf of Missouri taxpayers.

And now, especially with plans by the governor to eliminate the state income tax, the future looks even worse. In the face of disasters without federal support, our state leaders are considering gutting the small safety net we have at a time of great economic insecurity.

We are going through a massive transformation in our economy and we don’t know who be the winners and losers. What about truck drivers? What about tech workers? Will we be able to support Missourians during this time? Provide retraining or health care when they lose employer coverage? We could be coming into a time when Missourians will need that short-term safety net for a quick bounce back. And the tax cuts and mismanagement will gut these programs. We need to make sure these programs are efficient and effective so they can serve their vital purpose.

This is not a math error. This is a governance error. The tax error should be fixed before any new tax policies are even considered.

What the Auditor Should Be

So what is the job of a State Auditor?
You may have heard the current auditor say that his job is basically to tell people when they’re going to run out of money, so they can start planning.
That’s not an auditor. That’s a doomsday clock. And frankly, that sounds more like a budget director’s job than a watchdog’s job.

The real job of the State Auditor is to:

 Protect every tax dollar,
 Find waste and mismanagement before it becomes a crisis,
 Help agencies improve performance, so government works better and costs less.

Right now, we have a part‑time watchdog in a one‑party kennel.
When Republicans audit Republicans in a comfortable, country‑club atmosphere, nobody wants to bark too loudly.
I intend to change that.

My Plan: Three Steps

If I’m elected State Auditor, here’s how we start turning this around.

First – People‑Powered Performance.
The people who know where the problems are are you—citizens, local officials, front‑line workers, teachers, nurses, troopers, social workers.
I will open the doors of the Auditor’s office to you. We will create clear ways for Missourians to identify priorities, to flag waste and failure, and to propose solutions. We’ll go where the problems really are, not just where it’s politically convenient.

Second – Create the Missouri Government Accountability Office, MO‑GAO.
Traditional audits look backward at whether the books balance. That’s important, but it’s not enough. MO‑GAO will look forward. We’ll take on big systems that matter to everyday life—healthcare, childcare, infrastructure, public safety—and apply proven quality and performance principles to them. Our goal will be to save up to a billion dollars a year while actually improving outcomes.

Not austerity. Not “do more with less” generalities.
Real redesign, real accountability, and measurable results that Missourians can see and feel.

Third – Build a Partnership for Performance.
Missouri is full of smart, committed people in our universities, our non-profits, our businesses, and our local governments.
I will bring them together in a Partnership for Performance—a coalition that tracks:

 Outcomes – Are we healthier? Safer? Better educated?
 Citizen satisfaction – Do people feel their government works?
 Costs and benefits – Are we getting good value for every dollar?

When we see programs that deliver results, we’ll expand them. When we see programs that fail, we’ll fix them or end them. We will look for cost-effective economic growth strategies.

That’s what a serious state does. That’s how a top‑ranked state behaves.

Conclusion / The Choice

Right now, Missouri is dangerously close to winning a race to the bottom. We are cutting our way into weakness—weaker schools, weaker healthcare, weaker infrastructure, weaker economic growth strategies, and weaker communities. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

We have been at the top before. We can be there again.
The choice in front of us is simple:

We can keep doubling down on a strategy that has failed—more tax cuts, more gimmicks, more dependence on Washington, and an Auditor who quietly watches it all from the balcony.

Or we can choose a different path—one where the State Auditor is an independent watchdog, a partner for better performance, and a voice for every Missourian, regardless of party.

As your State Auditor, I will remember, every single day, that everybody and every dollar counts.
If you want a Missouri that once again ranks among the best‑managed states in America—if you want a government that works as hard and as honestly as you do—then I ask for your support.

Let’s stop racing to the bottom. Let’s start climbing back to the top.
Thank you.