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SECOND REGULAR SESSION
HOUSE BILL NO. 2089
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBL Y
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENT A TIVE CROSSLEY .
5353H.01I JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
T o amend chapter 137, RSMo, by adding thereto one new section relating to property tax
exemptions for certain veterans.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Chapter 137, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto one new section, to be
2 known as section 137.109, to read as follows:
137.109. 1. This section shall be known and may be cited as the "Missouri
2 Disabled V eterans Homestead Exemption".
3 2. As used in this section, the following terms mean:
4 (1) "Commission", the state tax commission;
5 (2) "Homestead", the same meaning given to such term under section 135.010;
6 (3) "Qualified res idence", real pr operty used as a homestead, less any portion of
7 that pr operty that is used for commer cial purposes, with an equalized assessed value of
8 less than $250,000 that is the primary res idence of a veteran with a disability . When a
9 veteran rent s out prop erty , or a portion of the pr operty , to another person for mor e than
10 six months, it is pr esumed to be used for commer cial purposes;
11 (4) "Surviving spouse", the living spouse of a qualified deceased veteran. A
12 qualified deceased veteran is a deceased veteran who:
13 (a) Obtained an exemption under this section prior to his or her death;
14 (b) W as killed in the line of duty at any time prior to the expiration of the
15 application period in effect for the exemption for the tax year in which the exemption is
16 sought;
EXPLANA TION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is
intended to be omitted from the law . Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language.
17 (c) Did not obtain an exemption under this section before death but would have
18 qualified for the exemption under this section in the tax year for which the exemption is
19 sought if he or she had survived, and whose spouse has been a res ident of Missouri fr om
20 the time of the veteran's death thr ough the tax year for which the exemption is sought;
21 or
22 (d) Died and whose death was determined to be service-connected but who
23 would not otherwise qualify under paragraphs (a), (b), or (c) of this subdivision, if the
24 spouse:
25 a. Is certified by the United States Department of V eterans Affairs as a reci pient
26 of dependency and indemnity compensation under federal law at any time prior to the
27 expiration of the application period in effect for the exemption for the tax year for which
28 the exemption is sought; and
29 b. Remains eligible for that dependency and indemnity compensation as of
30 January first of the tax year for which the exemption is sought;
31 (5) "V eteran with a disability" or "veteran with a service-connected disability",
32 a Missouri res ident who has served as a member of the Armed For ces of the United
33 States on active duty or state active duty , a member of the Missouri National Guard, or
34 a member of the United States Reserve For ces and who has recei ved an honorable
35 discharge and who:
36 (a) Has a service-connected disability as certified by the United States
37 Department of V eterans Affairs;
38 (b) Is liable for paying pro perty taxes on a qualified re sidence; and
39 (c) Is an owner of record of the qualified res idence that is occupied as his or her
40 principal res idence and for which he or she is liable for the payment of pr operty taxes.
41 3. In addition to all other exemptions authorized under Article X, Section 6 of
42 the Constitution of Missouri or otherwise authorized by law , and as authorized under
43 Article X, Section 6(a) of the Constitution of Missouri, for all tax years beginning on or
44 after January 1, 2027, an annual exemption is granted for pr operty that is used as a
45 qualified r esidence by a veteran with a disability , limited to the amounts set forth as
46 follows:
47 (1) For veterans with a service-connected disability of thirty per cent or mor e but
48 less than fifty per cent, as certified by the United States Department of V eterans Affairs,
49 the annual exemption is two thousand five hundr ed dollars;
50 (2) For veterans with a service-connected disability of fifty percen t or mor e but
51 less than seventy per cent, as certified by the United States Department of V eterans
52 Affairs, the annual exemption is five thousand dollars;
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53 (3) For veterans with a service-connected disability of seventy per cent or mor e,
54 as certified by the United States Department of V eterans Affairs, the annual exemption
55 is equal to one hundr ed per cent of the tax assessed on the qualified resi dence; and
56 (4) For a taxpayer who is the surviving spouse of a veteran whose death was
57 determined to be service-connected and who is certified by the United States
58 Department of V eterans Affairs as a r ecipient of dependency and indemnity
5 9 compensation under federal law , the annual exemption is equal to one hundr ed
60 per cent of the tax assessed on the qualified resi dence.
61 4. If an exemption is granted under this section and the person awarded the
62 exemption subsequently becomes a res ident of a facility licensed under chapter 198, a
63 Missouri veterans' home as defined under section 42.002, or a facility operated by the
64 United States Department of V eterans Affairs, the exemption shall continue:
65 (1) If the res idence continues to be occupied by the qualifying person's spouse;
66 or
67 (2) If the re sidence r emains unoccupied but is still owned by the person who
68 qualified for the exemption.
69 5. The exemption under this section carries over to the benefit of the veteran's
70 surviving spouse as long as the spouse holds the legal or beneficial title to the qualified
71 r esidence, permanently res ides ther ein, and does not r emarry . If the surviving spouse
72 sells the prop erty , an exemption not to exceed the amount granted fr om the most recent
73 ad valor em tax roll may be transferred to his or her new res idence as long as it is used as
74 his or her primary r esidence and he or she does not r emarry . No exemption shall be
75 allowed for the tax year in which the surviving spouse rem arries.
76 6. The exemption and determination of eligibility under this section applies for
77 tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2027. The claim for an exemption shall not
78 be transferr ed or assigned, except as pr ovided for under this section.
79 7. (1) Except as otherwise pr ovided in this subsection, each taxpayer who has
80 been granted an exemption under this section shall reapp ly on an annual basis. A
81 taxpayer shall apply for the exemption by filing an application during the application
82 period in effect for the county of his or her res idence. The assessor or chief county
83 assessment officer may determine the eligibility of resi dential pr operty to r eceive the
84 exemption pr ovided by this section by application, visual inspection, questionnair e, or
85 other re asonable methods. The determination shall be made in accordance with
86 guidelines established by the commission. If a veteran has a combined service-
87 connected disability rating of one hundred per cent and is deemed to be permanently
88 and totally disabled, as certified by the United States Department of V eterans Affairs,
89 the taxpayer who has been granted an exemption under this section shall no longer be
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90 r equir ed to reap ply for the exemption on an annual basis, and the exemption shall be in
91 effect for as long as the exemption would otherwise be permitted under this section.
92 (2) If the person qualifying for the exemption does not occupy the qualified
93 r esidence as of January first of the tax year , the exemption granted under this section
94 shall be pr orated on a monthly basis. The pror ated exemption shall apply beginning
95 with the first complete month in which the person occupies the qualified re sidence.
96 8. The exemption granted under this section shall not affect the pr ocess of setting
97 the tax rate as requ ired under Article X, Section 22 of the Constitution of Missouri and
98 section 137.073 in any prior , curr ent, or subsequent tax year .
99 9. The commission may pr omulgate all necessary rules and r egulations for the
100 administration of this section. Any rule or portion of a rule, as that term is defined in
101 section 536.010, that is crea ted under the authority delegated in this section shall
102 become effective only if it complies with and is subject to all of the provi sions of chapter
103 536 and, if applicable, section 536.028. This section and chapter 536 are nonseverable
104 and if any of the powers vested with the general assembly pursuant to chapter 536 to
105 r eview , to delay the effective date, or to disappr ove and annul a rule are subsequently
106 held unconstitutional, then the grant of rulemaking authority and any rule pr oposed or
107 adopted after August 28, 2026, shall be invalid and void.
108 10. No rule pr omulgated by the commission shall in any way adversely impact,
109 interrupt, or interfer e with the performance of the r equir ed statutory duties of any
110 elected county official when performing such duties as deemed necessary for the
111 purposes of this section and the distribution of all other real and personal pr operty
112 taxes.
113 1 1. Under section 23.253 of the Missouri sunset act:
114 (1) The pr ovisions of this section shall sunset six years after the effective date of
115 this section unless r eauthorized by an act of the general assembly; and
116 (2) This section shall terminate on January first of the calendar year
117 immediately following the calendar year in which the pr ovisions of this section are
118 sunset.
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