A local focus on proposed Amendments

Howell County officeholders urged voters to study carefully four proposed Amendments to Missouri’s Constitution during a forum moderated by Howell County News Wednesday night. 

 

The panel featured Sheriff Matt Roberts, Assessor Daniel Franks, Presiding Commissioner Ralph Riggs and Collector of Revenue Janet Crow and was moderated by News Publisher Amanda Mendez. Mendez opened the discussion by reading each proposed amendment’s ballot language before asking the officials to explain how the proposals might affect Howell County.

 

On Amendment 1, which would renew Missouri’s one-tenth of 1 percent sales and use tax for soil and water conservation, state parks and historic sites, Franks said the measure has a direct financial impact on local landowners. He said the tax brought more than $1 million in matching funds into Howell County during the most recent fiscal year through soil conservation programs.

 

“It is not just to keep the state parks operating,” Franks said, explaining that the funding helps farmers, ranchers and property owners improve soil, prevent erosion and maintain pastures and woodlands. He emphasized that the tax is not new and is separate from the Missouri Department of Conservation’s funding.

 

Franks said failure of the amendment would mean those matching funds could disappear, leaving local producers to cover costs on their own. According to the Missouri Secretary of State’s ballot language, a yes vote would continue the existing tax for 10 years and would not increase or decrease taxes.

 

Amendment 2 drew less local concern. The proposal would require all charter counties, including Jackson County, to elect county assessors and require those assessors to meet training requirements. Franks said the measure would put Jackson County on the same footing as most other Missouri counties but would have “none at all” in direct effect on Howell County, Franks said.

 

The panel spent more time on proposed Amendment 4, which would change the approval standard for citizen-led constitutional amendments by requiring majority approval in each congressional district. Riggs said the proposal would make initiative petitions nearly impossible, arguing that a small share of voters could block a measure even if it passed statewide.

 

Roberts said Missouri may have made Constitutional Amendments “possibly too easy” under the current system, but he agreed that Amendment 4 appeared to move too far in the other direction. Crow said rural counties are often outvoted by large urban areas, but she also called the eight-district requirement “a big overreach.”

 

Franks said if lawmakers want tougher standards for citizen initiatives, the same standards should apply to constitutional amendments referred by the legislature. “Singling one out does not really look good,” he said.

 

Amendment 5, which would require a legislative phase-out of Missouri’s individual income tax tied to revenue growth while authorizing changes to sales and use taxes, generated the strongest warnings from the panel. Riggs described concerns about residents on fixed incomes who may not pay much income tax but could face higher costs if sales taxes were expanded to services such as car repairs or plumbing, leading with a personal story about his own parents. 

 

Crow said the proposal contains too many unknowns because it does not specify where taxes would shift. “If I have a big salary, maybe taking away my Missouri tax helps,” she said. “But if I am a person on limited income, everybody would get taxed.”

 

Franks said schools would be held harmless under the proposal, but cities, the county and South Howell County Ambulance could be affected by local tax adjustments. Roberts said revenue-neutral rollback language could limit future growth for services such as the sheriff’s office as the local economy grows.

 

The forum ended with Franks urging residents to vote and bring others with them. Crow also thanked voters and described improved cooperation among county offices, citing monthly elected-official meetings as one example.

 

“This is a phenomenal right that we have,” Franks said, “and we need to make sure we exercise it every time we have that right.”

 

Find sample ballot for these issues and all other local ballot questions CLICK HERE.

 

Find results of Wednesday night’s exit poll CLICK HERE