Under a tax commission decision approved recently, Missouri farmers who own the most productive crop land may pay higher taxes on their property. Those with less desirable land may get a tax cut.
This website brought to you in part by the following sponsor:
The Missouri State Tax Commission set new productive values for agricultural land. The values are determined by evaluating the potential earnings of the land. The values are used for calculating property taxes.
The state’s farms are divided into eight groups based on land quality. The tax commission raised the value for farms in the four best grades of land; decreased values for three lesser grades; and kept the worst grade the same.
Changes in land values are to take effect Jan. 1, 2011, unless lawmakers reject them. If the new values are rejected by the Legislature, then the existing values would remain in place.
State Tax Commission Chairman Bruce Davis said the new productive values for farms were calculated by examining a 15-year cycle of farm income. That study was completed by an organization based at the University of Missouri-Columbia.
Farm groups, including the Missouri Farm Bureau, have urged lawmakers to block the increase.