PLATTE CITY, Mo. — After weeks of negotiations, the Missouri State Tax Commission (STC) and Platte County officials agreed to a property tax assessment increase of 6.835 percent.
That's less than half of what was originally ordered by the STC, a 15% increase.
Longtime Platte County resident, Kathy Place, acknowledged the reduction, but remains concerned about the financial impact.
"I'm happy that, I suppose, they've gotten it down to seven percent, but it's still too much," Place said.
Laura Lowry, another county resident, has similar concerns about the long-term effects of rising property taxes.
"Am I going to be able to swing to pay my taxes? Yes. Is it going to be an inconvenience that they keep increasing? Yes. Is that going to prevent people from moving into our area? Yes," Lowry said.
Platte County Presiding Commissioner Scott Fricker explained that, unlike previous assessment years, residents cannot appeal this rate increase.
"A baseline value has been established for all those people," Fricker said. "And because it's a baseline value, it can't be appealed."
Fricker is now focusing on property tax reform efforts, including potential amendments to state laws and implementing property tax caps.
"A lot of people are not getting raises, and this is on the heels of some massive inflation that is still here, didn't go away," Fricker said.
For Place, the increases have become overwhelming, forcing her to consider difficult decisions about her future in the county.
"I don't want to move, but I don't know what the future holds," she said.
Unless something changes, it may be a sacrifice she has to make.
"This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy."
