Members of the Jefferson County Council reported receiving numerous phone calls, emails and messages on social media from confused constituents regarding the first question on the April 7 ballot.
Councilman Tim Brown (District 6, De Soto) said the ballot question uses the statutory legal terms required within Missouri law, Section 137.1055. If the county were to pose the question in plain language, the county could potentially be accused of trying to sway the vote, he said.
Question 1 asks voters to approve a property tax credit, which is already available to homeowners 62 years or older through the county’s senior real estate property tax credit program.
The ballot language reads: “Shall Jefferson County, Missouri, grant a property tax credit to eligible taxpayers residing in Jefferson County, Missouri, in an amount equal to each eligible taxpayer’s eligible credit amount, to which the real property tax liability on an eligible taxpayer’s homestead shall not be increased above the liability incurred during the initial credit year pursuant to Section 137.1055 of the Missouri Revised Statutes, beginning with the property taxes levied for the 2028 tax year?”
“Many people say it just sounds like a long, run-on sentence that’s intentionally made to confuse people,” Brown said. “Many statutes will prescribe an acceptable ballot language. They did that for the senior tax credit; it gave some sample language and plain language to use. On this one, it doesn’t do that.
“In those instances, we have to look at the statute language and use it exactly as close as we can, because if we don’t, if we try to simplify it, then we run the risk of being accused of trying to sway the vote.”
Missouri lawmakers approved Senate Bill 3 in June 2025. The bill was created in part to put property tax credits, also called “freezes,” in 97 of 114 counties in Missouri.
SB3 identifies 22 counties, including Jefferson County, where residents will be asked to freeze property tax payments at the 2024 rate.
In 75 counties, residents will be asked to vote on a property tax cap of no more than 5 percent or the rate of inflation. This includes Ste. Genevieve, St. Francois, Washington and Cape Girardeau counties.
SB3 identifies 17 counties where a freeze or a cap on property taxes will not be available. These counties have large economic hubs, such as St. Louis, Kansas City and Columbia.
If the measure is approved in the April 7 election, eligible Jefferson County homeowners would receive an annual credit equal to the difference between 2024 and the current tax year. Some call the tax credit a “freeze,” because what they pay in taxes will largely stay unchanged once it’s in effect.
Brown said state lawmakers should make a point of including plain language for ballot measures in their legislation in the future.
“Something to take away from this would be to ensure when our state legislature is demanding things like this on the ballot, that they, too, consider the ballot language,” he said. “That gives us a little more flexibility, and we can still state that we’re following the statute.”
Who is an eligible taxpayer?
SB3 defines an “eligible taxpayer” for the property tax credit as a Missouri resident who is the owner of a homestead.
A homestead is defined as “real property actually occupied by an eligible taxpayer as their primary residence.” The taxpayer is not allowed to claim more than one primary residence.
Finally, an eligible taxpayer is defined as the one responsible for paying real property taxes on his or her primary residence.
What is the eligible credit amount?
In Jefferson County, the credit amount given to the eligible taxpayer cannot exceed the initial credit year, which is 2024. So, what a taxpayer pays in 2024 is what he or she will continue to pay year after year.
However, there are some exceptions that may incrementally raise the property tax owed. The credit would not be affected unless the taxpayer makes new construction or improvements to his or her property; the property is annexed into a new taxing jurisdiction; or if voters approve a new or increased tax, such as for a fire or school district.
Why 2028 start date?
The County Council unanimously approved the ballot question on Jan. 26. According to county documents, the county would begin offering the tax credit in the 2028 tax year, if the measure is approved by voters, giving the county time to plan and implement it.
The question needs a majority of yes votes for passage.