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SECOND REGULAR SESSION
HOUSE BILL NO. 2276
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBL Y
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENT A TIVE JOBE.
5820H.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 two hundred fifty thousand dollars that is the primary r esidence of a veteran
9 with a disability . When a veteran rent s out pr operty , or a portion of the prop erty , to
10 another person for mor e than six months, it is presum ed to be used for commerci al
11 purposes;
12 (4) "Surviving spouse", the living spouse of a qualified deceased veteran. A
13 qualified deceased veteran is a deceased veteran who:
14 (a) Obtained an exemption under this section prior to his or her death;
15 (b) W as killed in the line of duty at any time prior to the expiration of the
16 application period in effect for the exemption for the tax year in which the exemption is
17 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.
18 (c) Did not obtain an exemption under this section befor e death but who would
19 have qualified for the exemption under this section in the tax year for which the
20 exemption is sought if he or she had survived, and whose spouse has been a res ident of
21 Missouri fr om the time of the veteran's death thr ough the tax year for which the
22 exemption is sought; or
23 (d) Died and whose death was determined to be service-connected but who
24 would not otherwise qualify under paragraphs (a), (b), or (c) of this subdivision, if the
25 spouse:
26 a. Is certified by the United States Department of V eterans Affairs as a reci pient
27 of dependency and indemnity compensation under federal law at any time prior to the
28 expiration of the application period in effect for the exemption for the tax year for which
29 the exemption is sought; and
30 b. Remains eligible for that dependency and indemnity compensation as of
31 January first of the tax year for which the exemption is sought;
32 (5) "V eteran with a disability" or "veteran with a service-connected disability",
33 a Missouri re sident who has served as a member of the Armed For ces of the United
34 States on active duty or state active duty , a member of a state National Guard, or a
35 member of the United States Reserve For ces and who has received an honorable
36 discharge and who:
37 (a) Has a service-connected disability as certified by the United States
38 Department of V eterans Affairs;
39 (b) Is liable for paying pro perty taxes on a qualified re sidence; and
40 (c) Is an owner of record of the qualified res idence that is occupied as his or her
41 principal res idence and for which he or she is liable for the payment of pr operty taxes.
42 3. In addition to all other exemptions authorized under Article X, Section 6 of
43 the Constitution of Missouri or otherwise authorized by law , and as authorized under
44 Article X, Section 6(a) of the Constitution of Missouri, for all tax years beginning on or
45 after January 1, 2027, an annual exemption is granted for pr operty that is used as a
46 qualified r esidence by a veteran with a disability , limited to the amounts set forth as
47 follows:
48 (1) For veterans with a service-connected disability of fifty percen t or mor e but
49 less than seventy per cent, as certified by the United States Department of V eterans
50 Affairs, the annual exemption is two thousand five hundr ed dollars;
51 (2) For veterans with a service-connected disability of seventy per cent or mor e
52 but less than one hundr ed per cent, as certified by the United States Department of
53 V eterans Affairs, the annual exemption is five thousand dollars;
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54 (3) For veterans with a service-connected disability of one hundred per cent, as
55 certified by the United States Department of V eterans Affairs, the annual exemption is
56 equal to one hundred per cent of the tax assessed on the qualified re sidence; and
57 (4) For a taxpayer who is the surviving spouse of a veteran whose death was
58 determined to be service-connected and who is certified by the United States
59 Department of V eterans Affairs as a r ecipient of dependency and indemnity
6 0 compensation under federal law , the annual exemption is equal to one hundr ed
61 per cent of the tax assessed on the qualified resi dence.
62 4. If an exemption is granted under this section and the person awarded the
63 exemption subsequently becomes a res ident of a facility licensed under chapter 198, a
64 Missouri veterans' home as defined under section 42.002, or a facility operated by the
65 United States Department of V eterans Affairs, the exemption shall continue:
66 (1) If the res idence continues to be occupied by the qualifying person's spouse;
67 or
68 (2) If the re sidence r emains unoccupied but is still owned by the person who
69 qualified for the exemption.
70 5. The exemption under this section carries over to the benefit of the veteran's
71 surviving spouse as long as the spouse holds the legal or beneficial title to the qualified
72 r esidence, permanently res ides ther ein, and does not r emarry . If the surviving spouse
73 sells the prop erty , an exemption not to exceed the amount granted fr om the most recent
74 ad valor em tax roll may be transferred to his or her new res idence as long as it is used as
75 his or her primary r esidence and he or she does not r emarry . No exemption shall be
76 allowed for the tax year in which the surviving spouse rem arries.
77 6. The exemption and determination of eligibility under this section applies for
78 tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2027. The claim for an exemption shall not
79 be transferr ed or assigned, except as pr ovided for under this section.
80 7. (1) Except as otherwise pr ovided in this subsection, each taxpayer who has
81 been granted an exemption under this section shall reapp ly on an annual basis. A
82 taxpayer shall apply for the exemption by filing an application during the application
83 period in effect for the county of his or her res idence. The assessor or chief county
84 assessment officer may determine the eligibility of resi dential pr operty to r eceive the
85 exemption pr ovided by this section by application, visual inspection, questionnair e, or
86 other re asonable methods. The determination shall be made in accordance with
87 guidelines established by the commission. If a veteran has a combined service-
88 connected disability rating of one hundred per cent and is deemed to be permanently
89 and totally disabled, as certified by the United States Department of V eterans Affairs,
90 the taxpayer who has been granted an exemption under this section shall no longer be
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91 r equir ed to reap ply for the exemption on an annual basis, and the exemption shall be in
92 effect for as long as the exemption would otherwise be permitted under this section.
93 (2) If the person qualifying for the exemption does not occupy the qualified
94 r esidence as of January first of the tax year , the exemption granted under this section
95 shall be pr orated on a monthly basis. The pror ated exemption shall apply beginning
96 with the first complete month in which the person occupies the qualified re sidence.
97 8. The exemption granted under this section shall not affect the pr ocess of setting
98 the tax rate as requ ired under Article X, Section 22 of the Constitution of Missouri and
99 section 137.073 in any prior , curr ent, or subsequent tax year .
100 9. The commission may pr omulgate all necessary rules and r egulations for the
101 administration of this section. Any rule or portion of a rule, as that term is defined in
102 section 536.010, that is crea ted under the authority delegated in this section shall
103 become effective only if it complies with and is subject to all of the provi sions of chapter
104 536 and, if applicable, section 536.028. This section and chapter 536 are nonseverable
105 and if any of the powers vested with the general assembly pursuant to chapter 536 to
106 r eview , to delay the effective date, or to disappr ove and annul a rule are subsequently
107 held unconstitutional, then the grant of rulemaking authority and any rule pr oposed or
108 adopted after August 28, 2026, shall be invalid and void.
109 10. No rule pr omulgated by the commission shall in any way adversely impact,
110 interrupt, or interfer e with the performance of the r equir ed statutory duties of any
111 county elected official when performing such duties as deemed necessary for the
112 purposes of this section and the distribution of all other real and personal pr operty
113 taxes.
114 1 1. Under section 23.253 of the Missouri sunset act:
115 (1) The pr ovisions of this section shall sunset six years after the effective date of
116 this section unless r eauthorized by an act of the general assembly; and
117 (2) This section shall terminate on January first of the calendar year
118 immediately following the calendar year in which the pr ovisions of this section are
119 sunset.
✔
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