Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

SECOND REGULAR SESSION
                        HOUSE BILL NO. 2650
                               103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY


                               INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE BYRNES.

     6011H.01I                                                                    JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk


                                                AN ACT
     To repeal section 137.115, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof one new section relating to
            personal property taxes, with a contingent effective date.


     Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:

              Section A. Section 137.115, RSMo, is repealed and one new section enacted in lieu
 thereof, to be known as section 137.115, to read as follows:
              137.115. 1. (1) All other laws to the contrary notwithstanding, except as otherwise
 provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection, the assessor or the assessor's deputies in all
 counties of this state including the City of St. Louis shall annually make a list of all real and
 tangible personal property taxable in the assessor's city, county, town or district.
          (2) (a) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (b) of this subdivision,
 subsection 3 of this section, and section 137.078, the assessor shall annually assess all
 personal property at thirty-three and one-third percent of its true value in money as of January
 first of each calendar year.
          (b) A city not within a county or a county may eliminate the assessment and
 taxation of tangible personal property as provided in this paragraph as follows:
          a. A city not within a county or a county may submit a question of whether to
 eliminate personal property taxes on tangible personal property to the qualified voters
 of such city or county at a general election. Such question may include an additional
 question of whether to replace revenues lost from the elimination of personal property
 taxes under this paragraph by reducing the assessment and taxation of tangible
 personal property under this subparagraph and imposing a citywide or countywide
 sales tax:

     EXPLANATION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is
     intended to be omitted from the law. Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language.
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         b. If a majority of the qualified voters of such city or county:
         (i) Approve the elimination of personal property taxes, such taxes shall be
 reduced as provided in subparagraph c. of this paragraph;
         (ii) Approve the replacement of personal property taxes with the imposition of a
 sales tax, such personal property taxes shall be reduced as provided in subparagraph c.
 of this paragraph and such replacement sales tax shall be imposed at a rate necessary to
 replace the revenues lost by the reduction of personal property taxes;
         (iii) Oppose the elimination of personal property taxes, such tangible personal
 property shall continue to be assessed and taxed as provided under paragraph (a) of this
 subdivision and such replacement sales tax shall not be imposed under this paragraph;
 or
         (iv) Oppose the replacement of personal property taxes with the imposition of a
 sales tax, such replacement sales tax shall not be imposed under this paragraph; and
         c. In a city or county that adopts the elimination of personal property taxes or
 the replacement of personal property taxes with a sales tax under this paragraph,
 tangible personal property shall be eliminated or replaced beginning on January first of
 the calendar year immediately following the adoption of such elimination or
 replacement. The percentage of the true value in money at which tangible personal
 property is subject to assessment under the provisions of this subdivision shall be
 reduced each year for a period of five years. The assessor shall annually assess all
 personal property as of January first of each calendar year at the following percentages:
         (i) For the first calendar year subsequent to adoption, twenty-six and six-tenths
 percent of its true value in money;
         (ii) For the second calendar year subsequent to adoption, nineteen and nine-
 tenths percent of its true value in money;
         (iii) For the third calendar year subsequent to adoption, thirteen and two-tenths
 percent of its true value in money;
         (iv) For the fourth calendar year subsequent to adoption, six and one-half
 percent of its true value in money; and
         (v) For the fifth calendar year subsequent to adoption and all subsequent years,
 except as otherwise provided in subsection 3 of this section and section 137.078, tangible
 personal property shall not be assessed, no tax shall be levied or imposed on tangible
 personal property, and the assessor shall not annually make a list of all tangible
 personal property in the assessor's jurisdiction.
         (3) The assessor shall annually assess all real property, including any new
 construction and improvements to real property, and possessory interests in real property at
 the percent of its true value in money set in subsection 5 of this section. The true value in
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 money of any possessory interest in real property in subclass (3), where such real property is
 on or lies within the ultimate airport boundary as shown by a federal airport layout plan, as
 defined by 14 CFR 151.5, of a commercial airport having a FAR Part 139 certification and
 owned by a political subdivision, shall be the otherwise applicable true value in money of any
 such possessory interest in real property, less the total dollar amount of costs paid by a party,
 other than the political subdivision, towards any new construction or improvements on such
 real property completed after January 1, 2008, and which are included in the above-
 mentioned possessory interest, regardless of the year in which such costs were incurred or
 whether such costs were considered in any prior year. The assessor shall annually assess all
 real property in the following manner: new assessed values shall be determined as of January
 first of each odd-numbered year and shall be entered in the assessor's books; those same
 assessed values shall apply in the following even-numbered year, except for new construction
 and property improvements which shall be valued as though they had been completed as of
 January first of the preceding odd-numbered year. The assessor may call at the office, place
 of doing business, or residence of each person required by this chapter to list property, and
 require the person to make a correct statement of all taxable tangible personal property owned
 by the person or under his or her care, charge or management, taxable in the county.
         (4) On or before January first of each even-numbered year, the assessor shall prepare
 and submit a two-year assessment maintenance plan to the county governing body and the
 state tax commission for their respective approval or modification. The county governing
 body shall approve and forward such plan or its alternative to the plan to the state tax
 commission by February first. If the county governing body fails to forward the plan or its
 alternative to the plan to the state tax commission by February first, the assessor's plan shall
 be considered approved by the county governing body. If the state tax commission fails to
 approve a plan and if the state tax commission and the assessor and the governing body of the
 county involved are unable to resolve the differences, in order to receive state cost-share
 funds outlined in section 137.750, the county or the assessor shall petition the administrative
 hearing commission, by May first, to decide all matters in dispute regarding the assessment
 maintenance plan. Upon agreement of the parties, the matter may be stayed while the parties
 proceed with mediation or arbitration upon terms agreed to by the parties. The final decision
 of the administrative hearing commission shall be subject to judicial review in the circuit
 court of the county involved.
         (5) In the event a valuation of subclass (1) real property within any county with a
 charter form of government, or within a city not within a county, is made by a computer,
 computer-assisted method or a computer program, the burden of proof, supported by clear,
 convincing and cogent evidence to sustain such valuation, shall be on the assessor at any
 hearing or appeal. In any such county, unless the assessor proves otherwise, there shall be a
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 presumption that the assessment was made by a computer, computer-assisted method or a
 computer program. Such evidence shall include, but shall not be limited to, the following:
         [(1)] (a) The findings of the assessor based on an appraisal of the property by
 generally accepted appraisal techniques; and
         [(2)] (b) The purchase prices from sales of at least three comparable properties and
 the address or location thereof. As used in this subdivision, the word "comparable" means
 that:
         [(a)] a. Such sale was closed at a date relevant to the property valuation; and
         [(b)] b. Such properties are not more than one mile from the site of the disputed
 property, except where no similar properties exist within one mile of the disputed property,
 the nearest comparable property shall be used. Such property shall be within five hundred
 square feet in size of the disputed property, and resemble the disputed property in age, floor
 plan, number of rooms, and other relevant characteristics.
         2. Assessors in each county of this state and the City of St. Louis may send personal
 property assessment forms through the mail.
         3. The following items of personal property shall each constitute separate subclasses
 of tangible personal property and shall be assessed and valued for the purposes of taxation at
 the following percentages of their true value in money:
         (1) Grain and other agricultural crops in an unmanufactured condition, one-half of
 one percent;
         (2) Livestock, twelve percent;
         (3) Farm machinery, twelve percent;
         (4) Motor vehicles which are eligible for registration as and are registered as historic
 motor vehicles pursuant to section 301.131 and aircraft which are at least twenty-five years
 old and which are used solely for noncommercial purposes and are operated less than two
 hundred hours per year or aircraft that are home built from a kit, five percent;
         (5) Poultry, twelve percent;
         (6) Tools and equipment used for pollution control and tools and equipment used in
 retooling for the purpose of introducing new product lines or used for making improvements
 to existing products by any company which is located in a state enterprise zone and which is
 identified by any standard industrial classification number cited in subdivision (7) of section
 135.200, twenty-five percent; and
         (7) Solar panels, racking systems, inverters, and related solar equipment, components,
 materials, and supplies installed in connection with solar photovoltaic energy systems, as
 described in subdivision (46) of subsection 2 of section 144.030, that were constructed and
 producing solar energy prior to August 9, 2022, five percent.
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         4. The person listing the property shall enter a true and correct statement of the
 property, in a printed blank prepared for that purpose. The statement, after being filled out,
 shall be signed and either affirmed or sworn to as provided in section 137.155. The list shall
 then be delivered to the assessor.
         5. (1) All subclasses of real property, as such subclasses are established in Section 4
 (b) of Article X of the Missouri Constitution and defined in section 137.016, shall be assessed
 at the following percentages of true value:
         (a) For real property in subclass (1), nineteen percent;
         (b) For real property in subclass (2), twelve percent; and
         (c) For real property in subclass (3), thirty-two percent.
         (2) A taxpayer may apply to the county assessor, or, if not located within a county,
 then the assessor of such city, for the reclassification of such taxpayer's real property if the use
 or purpose of such real property is changed after such property is assessed under the
 provisions of this chapter. If the assessor determines that such property shall be reclassified,
 he or she shall determine the assessment under this subsection based on the percentage of the
 tax year that such property was classified in each subclassification.
         6. Manufactured homes, as defined in section 700.010, which are actually used as
 dwelling units shall be assessed at the same percentage of true value as residential real
 property for the purpose of taxation. The percentage of assessment of true value for such
 manufactured homes shall be the same as for residential real property. If the county collector
 cannot identify or find the manufactured home when attempting to attach the manufactured
 home for payment of taxes owed by the manufactured home owner, the county collector may
 request the county commission to have the manufactured home removed from the tax books,
 and such request shall be granted within thirty days after the request is made; however, the
 removal from the tax books does not remove the tax lien on the manufactured home if it is
 later identified or found. For purposes of this section, a manufactured home located in a
 manufactured home rental park, rental community or on real estate not owned by the
 manufactured home owner shall be considered personal property. For purposes of this
 section, a manufactured home located on real estate owned by the manufactured home owner
 may be considered real property.
         7. Each manufactured home assessed shall be considered a parcel for the purpose of
 reimbursement pursuant to section 137.750, unless the manufactured home is deemed to be
 real estate as defined in subsection 7 of section 442.015 and assessed as a realty improvement
 to the existing real estate parcel.
         8. Any amount of tax due and owing based on the assessment of a manufactured
 home shall be included on the personal property tax statement of the manufactured home
 owner unless the manufactured home is deemed to be real estate as defined in subsection 7 of
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 section 442.015, in which case the amount of tax due and owing on the assessment of the
 manufactured home as a realty improvement to the existing real estate parcel shall be
 included on the real property tax statement of the real estate owner.
         9. The assessor of each county and each city not within a county shall use a nationally
 recognized automotive trade publication such as the National Automobile Dealers'
 Association Official Used Car Guide, Kelley Blue Book, Edmunds, or other similar
 publication as the recommended guide of information for determining the true value of motor
 vehicles described in such publication. The state tax commission shall select and make
 available to all assessors which publication shall be used. The assessor of each county and
 each city not within a county shall use the trade-in value published in the current October
 issue of the publication selected by the state tax commission. The assessor shall not use a
 value that is greater than the average trade-in value in determining the true value of the motor
 vehicle without performing a physical inspection of the motor vehicle. For vehicles two years
 old or newer from a vehicle's model year, the assessor may use a value other than average
 without performing a physical inspection of the motor vehicle. In the absence of a listing for
 a particular motor vehicle in such publication, the assessor shall use such information or
 publications that, in the assessor's judgment, will fairly estimate the true value in money of
 the motor vehicle. For motor vehicles with a true value of less than fifty thousand dollars as
 of January 1, 2025, the assessor shall not assess such motor vehicle for an amount greater
 than such motor vehicle was assessed in the previous year, provided that such motor vehicle
 was properly assessed in the previous year.
         10. Before the assessor may increase the assessed valuation of any parcel of subclass
 (1) real property by more than fifteen percent since the last assessment, excluding increases
 due to new construction or improvements, the assessor shall conduct a physical inspection of
 such property.
         11. If a physical inspection is required, pursuant to subsection 10 of this section, the
 assessor shall notify the property owner of that fact in writing and shall provide the owner
 clear written notice of the owner's rights relating to the physical inspection. If a physical
 inspection is required, the property owner may request that an interior inspection be
 performed during the physical inspection. The owner shall have no less than thirty days to
 notify the assessor of a request for an interior physical inspection.
         12. A physical inspection, as required by subsection 10 of this section, shall include,
 but not be limited to, an on-site personal observation and review of all exterior portions of the
 land and any buildings and improvements to which the inspector has or may reasonably and
 lawfully gain external access, and shall include an observation and review of the interior of
 any buildings or improvements on the property upon the timely request of the owner pursuant
 to subsection 11 of this section. Mere observation of the property via a drive-by inspection or
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 the like shall not be considered sufficient to constitute a physical inspection as required by
 this section.
         13. A county or city collector may accept credit cards as proper form of payment of
 outstanding property tax or license due. No county or city collector may charge surcharge for
 payment by credit card which exceeds the fee or surcharge charged by the credit card bank,
 processor, or issuer for its service. A county or city collector may accept payment by
 electronic transfers of funds in payment of any tax or license and charge the person making
 such payment a fee equal to the fee charged the county by the bank, processor, or issuer of
 such electronic payment.
         14. Any county or city not within a county in this state may, by an affirmative vote of
 the governing body of such county, opt out of the provisions of this section and sections
 137.073