‘Every hearing something new comes up’: Judge expresses frustration in 2023 Jackson County property tax case

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - The bench trial over the 2023 Jackson County property tax assessment is schedule to begin on Tuesday, January 21, despite last-minute motions and waiting for responses.

During a pretrial hearing on Wednesday, Jackson County Circuit Court, Senior Judge Jacqueline Cook expressed frustration ovoer what she called the “drip, drip, drip” aspects of the case.

Cook lamented that in every hearing, something new comes up. The latest is a motion filed two days before the hearing for a dismissal of one part of the lawsuit.

READ ALSO: ‘We need cooperation’: Missouri State Auditor pushes for data on Jackson County assessments

The trial centers on whether the State Tax Commission’s order is lawful. In August, the commission ordered Jackson County to fix some assessments.

The commission determined that the county did not comply with the state law requiring inspections if the assessed value increased by more than 15 percent since the last assessment. It ordered increases be capped at 15 percent for the 2023 and 2024 assessments in most cases.

Jackson County has not complied with the order, so the state sued. The county then filed its own legal challenge,

Meanwhile, attorneys representing taxpayers in a class-action lawsuit claim thousands of Jackson County property owners are still waiting to be heard in court.

READ ALSO: Court battle over Jackson County property taxes far from over

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