To the editor:

It may be time for St. Louis County voters to reconsider a use tax.

With the impact on revenue that the Senior property tax freeze program will have on St. Louis County’s already challenged budget, voters may need to reconsider a county-wide use tax after a similar proposal failed at the ballot box in 2022.

This past July 23, the County Council revised St. Louis County’s Senior property tax freeze program to align with Senate Bill 756, the state law Governor Parson signed on July 9 to lower the age of eligibility from 67 to 62 and remove the $550,000 cap on eligible home values. These changes to St. Louis County’s program are poised to significantly decrease the county’s revenue without establishing an appropriate and adequate offset.

Last December, St. Louis County Councilwoman Lisa Clancy proposed asking voters to decide on implementing a use tax. If passed, St. Louis County would join the state and the 2,400 county-level taxing districts across Missouri that utilize a use tax.

Taxes are not inherently wrong. The rightfully publicized misuse of taxpayer dollars often leads to villainizing taxes as funding waste and mismanagement. However, when administered effectively and efficiently, a wholistic approach to taxation can accommodate targeted relief, like the Senior property tax freeze program, while employing a familiar revenue source, such as a use tax, to meaningfully fund municipal services that are valued by the public.

Peter Gariepy
Richmond Heights