(From Sen. Jill Carter, R-Granby)Missouri’s property tax system is crushing homeowners. Locally elected officials and county funding face egregious threats from the Missouri State Tax Commission, an unelected bureaucracy.
In Newton County, elected Assessor Cheryle Perkins refused the commission’s arbitrary demand for a 15% across-the-board residential property valuation increase to meet a 90-110% market value threshold. The commission’s response was shocking: threats to withhold county funds, involve the Attorney General, and remove Perkins from her elected position. This heavy-handed assault on local democracy exposes a tax system prioritizing bureaucratic control over fairness and accountability.
Recognizing this crisis, Senate Republicans urged Governor Mike Kehoe to address property tax concerns during the special session, enabling critical reform conversations. Kehoe’s response, extending the call on Wednesday, allowed our communities—schools, superintendents, local stakeholders, and me—to collaborate and drive potential solutions. Through late-night phone calls until 11 p.m. in my office with other senators, our community stakeholders agreed that securing a tax cap for Newton and Jasper Counties was a vital start. This was achieved through lengthy deliberations in a tight timeline. This tax cap, while not a solution due to lack of standardization, sparked sorely needed reform discussions. Last-minute changes derailed the hoped for standardizing reform across all 114 counties, with the bill hitting the Senate floor at 3 a.m. in a rushed process. Yet, robust Senate debates kept tax reform alive, and the House passed the reform, contributing to continued bicameral discussions.
Interim committees, from Lebanon to Macon, are uncovering deeper issues through hearings ending August 27. House hearings revealed the State Ombudsman for Property Assessment and Taxation, mandated by Missouri Revised Statute 138.435, remains unfilled, leaving taxpayers without an advocate to challenge unfair assessments. Platte County officials called the commission’s mandate “unjust,” ignoring data-driven methods and burdening families. Jackson County’s 2023 assessments, exceeding the 15% cap, were rolled back by a court, exposing state overreach. Hearings with Chair Gary Romine and Commissioner Debbi McGinnis highlighted the ombudsman’s absence as a betrayal, risking lawsuits like those in the 1980s.
Most critically, our schools face financial strain from complex funding laws complicating reform, squeezing budgets for classrooms and staff. Carefully navigating these laws through stakeholder discussions ensures local government and services remain robust while protecting taxpayers from bureaucratic overreach. Since the special session, we’ve held more conversations with assessors, collectors, superintendents, and community members to address these laws, ensuring schools and local services aren’t negatively impacted. Conversations across our Senate district and Missouri are laying the foundation for lasting change.
Our community’s feedback has been vital in shaping these solutions. We will continue collaborating with stakeholders and legislators to craft policies shielding communities from unelected bureaucrats’ overreach.. Our communities’ leadership—through our local school leaders, elected county officials, and local voices—is a critical step toward lasting reform for all Missourians.
4 comments:
One thing that I would like to see, in regards to property tax, would be a sunset provision. If property tax were to sunset after 10 years of ownership, it would give a person true ownership of their property instead of renting their property from the government. If that doesn't take place, true property ownership can never occur.
I agree with you, I would take it a little further and say if your house is paid off then there should be no more tax on it!
Also I would say if you are 65 plus there should be no tax.
We have zero accounting for what cities and county officials do what the tax money we do give them? They think homeowners are a piggy bank to hit up anytime they need more money. You are also correct, there is zero accountability with these tax comissions.
We shouldn't have tax on our property, and we're not supposed to have income tax, these parasites are purposely bleeding us dry. The end goal is to have us, the cattle, "owning nothing and being happy".
"But how do we pay 4 shcools"... Here's a better question, what's with the correlation between the taxpayer paying more for education over the last 50 plus years while the education scores have been going down, and kids are clearly less educated today than they were 50-70 years ago?
"whut the, i thot that paying more 4 taxes equalz good edukation , wut happen here ??"
Post a Comment