Effective 28 Aug 2008

138.390. To classify and equalize property. — 1. The state tax commission shall equalize the valuation of real and tangible personal property among the several counties in the state in the following manner: with the abstracts of all the taxable property in the several counties of the state and the abstracts of the sales of real estate in such counties as returned by the respective county clerks and the assessor of the city of St. Louis, the commission shall classify all real estate situate in cities, towns, and villages, as town lots, and all other real estate as farming lands, and shall classify all tangible personal property as follows: banking corporations, railroad corporations, street railroad corporations, all other corporations, horses, mares and geldings, mules, asses and jennets, neat cattle, sheep, swine, goats, domesticated small animals and all other livestock, poultry, power machinery, farm implements, other tangible personal property.

2. The state tax commission shall equalize the valuation of each class or subclass of property thereof among the respective counties of the state in the following manner:

(1) It shall add to the valuation of each class, subclass, or portion thereof of the property, real or tangible personal, of each county which it believes to be valued below its real value in money such amount or percent as will increase the same in each case to its true value;

(2) It shall deduct from the valuation of each class, subclass, or portion thereof of the property, real or tangible personal, of each county which it believes to be valued above its real value in money such amount or percent as will reduce the same in each case to its true value.

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(RSMo 1939 § 11027, A.L. 1945 p. 1805 § 15, A.L. 1947 V. I p. 548, A.L. 2008 S.B. 711)

Prior revisions: 1929 § 9854; 1919 § 12847

CROSS REFERENCE:

Commission to equalize assessments and hear appeals required, Const. Art. X § 14

(1958) County board of equalization's authority is limited to equalizing valuations of property within its jurisdiction and the tax commission's jurisdiction on appeal is purely derivative. The tax commission's original jurisdiction to equalize valuations as between counties does not give it authority to attempt to equalize assessments of specific property as between one county and property in another on an appeal from a county board of equalization. Foster Bros. Mfg. Co. v. State Tax Comm. of Mo. (Mo.), 319 S.W.2d 590.

(1962) When a taxpayer pursues his administrative remedy and directly appeals a tax commission order, neither a circuit court nor an appellate court has the power to fix the valuation and thus assess specific property. The courts may only determine whether the tax commission could reasonably have made the finding. Peck's Products Company v. Bannister (Mo.), 362 S.W.2d 596.