You May Have Paid Too Much for Property Taxes

A half a dozen taxing authorities are accused of overcharging taxpayers on their property taxes.

After reviewing 4,854 property tax rates for 2,816 taxing authorities across the state, Missouri Auditor Tom Schweich released an audit report describing how six taxing districts overcharged.

The non-compliant districts, all within St. Louis County, collected $495,742 more than allowed.

The taxing authorities include Kinloch, Pagedale, Elmwood Park Street Light District, Kinloch Fire Protection District, and Pattonville School District.

The state auditor has referred the six taxing authorities to the state attorney general's office. 

Taxing districts fail to file financial reports

Another audit report by Schweich examines the state's 166 transportation development districts.

Sixteen of the special taxing districts failed to file the required financial statements.

Out of the 16, four of the districts are in the St. Louis region:

• First Capital Drive TDD is in St. Charles.
• Olive/Graser TDD is in Creve Coeur.
• 620 Market TDD is in the city of St. Louis. 
• I-44 and Highway 47 TDD is in St Claire in Franklin County.

Schweich recommends that lawmakers consider legislation authorizing collection of fines, which in this case would total $810,500 for all of the 16 transportation development districts across the state.

Missouri spends $1.2 million reintroducing elk

While Ballwin and Town and Country residents protest the , another audit blames the state for spending three times more to reintroduce one-fourth as many elk as planned.

Instead of paying $411,185 to release 150 elk into the state, as budgeted, the Missouri Department of Conservation spent $1.2 million to reintroduce 39 elk, according to the audit report by Schweich.

Economic growth, foreclosures and unemployment

St. Louis dropped in an economic growth ranking.

Out of 200 metropolitan areas across the country, St. Louis fell from 44 last year to 90 this year, according the 2011 Best-Performing Cities report by the Milken Institute, an economic think tank.

St. Louis places 176 in a ranking of cities with serious mortgage delinquencies.

The research report put out each quarter by the National Housing Council and the Center for Housing Policy, along with the Urban Institute, ranks 366 metro areas with the largest share of mortgages by growth in serious delinquencies -- either 90 or more days past due or in foreclosure.

And Missouri received unewelcome unemployment news to end the year.

Among states with the largest increase in weekly unemployment claims, Missouri places fifth.

Initial claims for the week ending Dec. 17 in Missouri increased by 596.

The largest increase in claims for unemployment insurance by state, according to a report by the U.S. Department of Labor, was in California, followed by New York, Washington and then Nevada.

By Brian R. Hook, brhook@missourijournal.com, (314) 482-7944

Hook is editor of Missouri Journal, which tracks the economy across the Show-Me State. For news updates, sign up for a newsletter and follow Missouri Journal on Twitter and Facebook.