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Aug. 12, 2024 |  By: Allison Kite - Missouri Independent

Jackson County claims property tax order was meant to shield Missouri AG from deposition

andrew bailey

By Allison Kite - Missouri Independent

Jackson County officials said Monday they are evaluating potential legal challenges to an order by the State Tax Commission they argue was only issued to cover for Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey.

The Missouri State Tax Commission last week ordered the county to roll back most of its 2023 property valuations, finding that they had been performed illegally, resulting in huge increases in property values.

“It’s unconstitutional. It’s unprecedented. And it has no evidence to even prove it,” County Counselor Bryan Covinsky said at a press conference in Kansas City about the commission’s order.

Covinsky said the county will work with school districts and other taxing jurisdictions to find the best path forward to overturn the order.

The commission’s order came eight months into a lawsuit against Jackson County filed by Bailey, who accused officials of failing to follow proper procedures when it assessed property values last year. According to Bailey’s lawsuit, the county saw an average 30% jump in property values. Bailey claims the county failed to offer physical inspections to property owners facing a value increase of 15% or more. 

But with only one day of trial left in Bailey’s case against the county, the commission ordered the assessments rolled back and Bailey asked for the case to be dismissed. 

Both the order and the motion to dismiss came a day before Bailey was expected to sit for a deposition regarding his contact with Sean Smith, a Jackson County official, which appeared to violate legal ethics rules. They also came a day after Bailey won the GOP primary for a full term as attorney general.

The judge in the case granted Bailey’s motion to dismiss on Thursday, ending the possibility that Bailey would be questioned under oath in the case. 

Covinsky and County Executive Frank White Jr., claimed Bailey’s office was losing and knew it. 

“Attorney General Bailey dismissed a case that he himself called the most important in the history of his office,” White said. “Let’s not forget, Attorney General Bailey dismissed the lawsuit the day after his election because he was afraid to answer questions under oath.” 

Assistant Attorney General Jay Atkins said in an email that the goal of Bailey’s lawsuit was to provide relief to Jackson County taxpayers.

“The tax commission’s order does just that,” Atkins said. “(Attorney) General Bailey was proud to stand with the state tax commission as we worked together to hold Jackson County accountable and bring taxpayers the relief they deserve. We look forward to defending the state tax commission’s lawful order.” 

The commission could not immediately be reached for comment. 

In a legal memo to White, Covinsky recommended the county keep operating as they were before the tax commission order “unless and until such time that a court of competent jurisdiction orders otherwise.” He argued “no government entity is required to comply with an unlawful order.” 

Both Bailey and one of his deputies met with Smith while the litigation was ongoing in apparent violation of Missouri Supreme Court rules, which prohibit attorneys from communicating about a lawsuit with individuals represented in the case by another attorney without the consent of the other lawyer. 

Bailey and Smith maintained the meeting was nothing more than a campaign event.

But his deputy, Travis Woods, also spoke with Smith without permission. The judge found Woods in violation of the rules of conduct and Bailey was ordered to sit for the deposition as a form of sanction.

Now, Jackson County and taxing jurisdictions in the county — including school and fire districts and law enforcement — face a budget quandary. 

The State Tax Commission order instructs Jackson County to roll back property assessments that had increased more than 15% since its last assessment.

Rather than provide refunds to homeowners who saw a large increase in property value, officials said, the order will simply redistribute who pays the most. County Assessor Gail McCann Beatty said poorer communities could wind up paying disproportionately high tax bills compared to enormous, stately homes in the city’s Country Club District.

That’s because of a provision of the Missouri Constitution that caps revenue increases for local governments. The Hancock Amendment instructs local governments to adjust their property tax rates to avoid a windfall. When property values rise, the tax rate falls. 

If assessments are rolled back, taxing jurisdictions will raise their rates to provide funds for schools, firefighting and other services, Jackson County officials said. But they face an Oct. 1 deadline to do so, creating a scramble for the county and taxing districts to determine how to move forward.

“If they don’t get it through property values, they’re going to get it through property tax rates. They’re going to adjust it up,” said County Administrator Troy Schulte, “so I don’t see a scenario where taxpayers don’t get hit significantly.”