Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon signed a bill into law that renews a half-cent sales tax critical for funding public transportation in Kansas City.

The bill, approved with bipartisan support in the Missouri General Assembly, provides about $35 million in annual funding for the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority. The legislation also permanently locks the tax in place, meaning it will no longer be subject to legislative renewal.

Public transit counts heavily on the sales tax, which makes up more than a third of the KCATA’s annual budget.

“This is such an important piece of legislation for Kansas City,” said KCATA President/CEO Joe Reardon. “This money is the lifeblood needed for connecting people to economic opportunity. It sets in place the foundation for building a seamless transit network tying the metro area together.”

The sales tax has been in place since 1971 when Missouri lawmakers authorized Kansas City and St. Louis to impose up to a one-cent sales tax for transit.

Both cities approved half-cent sales taxes, which were originally supposed to be reviewed by the legislature every two years.

The St. Louis tax was made permanent in 2003, while the Kansas City tax was only extended until the end of this year.