St. Louis Business Journal - by Matt Allen

Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt signed legislation Wednesday that is designed to help protect Missourians from rapidly increasing property taxes.

Senate Bill 711, sponsored by Sen. Michael Gibbons, will help inform Missourians of any tax or assessment increase as soon as possible and give more information on how a reassessment will affect them.

Blunt said in a release that he believes earlier notification and more information will give property owners more time to appeal the assessment and more details to discuss local tax and spending policies with officials.

According to Blunt, the legislation also requires mandatory levy rollbacks, which closes a loophole in a Missouri law that allowed local governments that are imposing a tax below their approved levy to increase their tax rates by more than inflation. The previous law led to a windfall for some local governments, Blunt said in a statement.

"(The bill) allows us to protect taxpayers by ending tax increases caused by reassessments, closing tax increase loopholes, requiring earlier notice and more information, and expanding tax relief for seniors and the disabled," Gibbons said in a statement.

matthewallen@bizjournals.com