County should consider tax freeze for seniors
By NewsPress Now
If a large employer is considering an expansion, some sort of tax incentive would be offered. If the Chiefs need updates to their training facility, local officials would move heaven and earth to make it happen. Younger Americans aren’t shy about advocating for student loan forgiveness, pointing out how the cost of higher education has greatly exceeded inflation.
Senior citizens need a break on property tax increases? Sorry boomer, we might not be able to afford that one.
For the second consecutive year, Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer, (R) Parkville, sponsored legislation that seeks to freeze property tax rates for senior citizens. For the second straight year, the measure passed both chambers of the General Assembly and headed to the governor’s desk. This year’s version seeks to fix issues that arose about which senior citizens, aged 62 and older, would be eligible.
The concept of a freeze on property taxes – or more specifically, a tax credit equal to the amount of increased tax liability – found a generally receptive audience in Jefferson City. That same level of enthusiasm was absent at the local level, where a measure authorizing a property tax freeze would require approval from the county commission. In some areas, county officials express squeamishness about the impact on taxing entities, including schools, library districts and local governments that could lose revenue.
It comes as little surprise that Luetkemeyer advanced this legislation. He represents Platte County, which is one of those areas where elderly homeowners were hit particularly hard in the reassessment process.
It also comes as little surprise that some of the first to climb aboard were larger counties – including Jackson, Platte and Clay – where a younger population would offset any significant loss in revenue. Smaller counties took more of a wait-and-see approach.
While this reluctance is understandable, Buchanan County serves as a good example of why Leutkemeyer’s bill addresses a real problem: Older Americans, many of them on fixed incomes, are shouldering a greater proportion of the tax burden.
Last month, the Census Bureau released an update that showed a 6.5% increase in Buchanan County’s elderly population (aged 65 and up) between 2020 and 2023. The elderly population increased in all but one of the nation’s 387 metropolitan areas in the same period.
As the nation grays, Buchanan County and other communities will have to figure out how to fund essential services without pricing senior citizens out of their homes. The time has come to freeze property taxes for elderly citizens.
