The Texas County Commission listened to a proposal last week regarding the possibility of a vote on a county property tax that would help fund services for senior citizens.
The proposal for putting the idea on a future ballot was delivered by Dorothy Knowles, executive director of the Southwest Missouri Office on Aging (SWMOA), an agency that provides services through 38 senior centers in a 17-county area, including Texas.
If the commission puts the idea before county voters and it’s approved, the result would be a property tax of five cents per $100 of assessed value that would go in a fund for services for county residents over the age of 60.
The fund would be overseen by a seven-member board appointed by commissioners that would have sole authority over how, where and when its money is distributed and used by senior-related programs. There are 46 counties in Missouri where a similar tax has been passed, while a few others have approved a sales tax to fund senior services.
Knowles said a senior citizens services fund (SCSF) property tax in Texas County would generate about $94,425 per year.
In counties where SCSF taxes exist, much of the money goes toward services like home-delivered meals, in-home cleaning and transportation to and from medical appointments. Some counties have even used the money to pay for their senior centers.
“But what I’ve found is that the tax board members are very concerned about seniors,” Knowles said. “They have listened to the people who have passed the tax and see the needs in their area and that’s usually the way they prioritize where the money goes.
“But the bottom line is, the money comes from the county, it stays in the county and it works for people in the county.”
County Clerk Don Troutman said two dates are available this year when the issue could be voted on (Aug. 2 and Nov. 8), but no other state or county elections will occur on those dates. A group looking to land an Ozarks Technical College campus in Texas County may put an issue on the ballot sometime this year.
A special election for the proposed tax would cost $8,000 to $10,000 and Texas County government does not historically opt to fund such elections.
“We don’t pay for elections,” Associate Commissioner John Casey said.
Knowles said the SWMOA also doesn’t typically fund elections, so a senior services tax vote may have to wait until 2012 when other issues are on the ballot and costs can be spread out among the entities.
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One of the biggest obstacles facing many seniors in Texas County is transportation to and from medical appointments. That concern was voiced and discussed at length during the meeting by several senior citizen advocates in attendance, including Bernadine Hohlt of the Houston Senior Center, Angie Nordquist of the Cabool Senior Center and Cindy Haley of the Texas County Food Pantry.
“If they have to go to Springfield, they usually have to wait for a specific day when transportation is available,” Hohlt said. “They usually can’t just go when they want to or need to, they have to wait until there’s a way to get them there.”
“I was working with a man who needed to see an eye doctor in Springfield,” Haley said. “I could not arrange transportation for him because he couldn’t get an appointment on the specific days when the transportation ran. And that’s just one case; transportation is a real serious issue here as far as getting medical treatment if they can’t go locally.”
Knowles reiterated that the SCSF board would decide how much funding would go toward transportation, and all other programs.
“But at least the situation would be improved,” she said.
Associate Commissioner Linda Garrett voiced a concern about putting any property tax up for vote, let alone this one.
“I hate property taxes on ballots,” Garrett said, “because there are more people who don’t own property and a ‘yes’ vote isn’t going to affect them.”
After Troutman suggested getting the tax idea in writing and officially submitting it to the commission, the meeting adjourned with Knowles indicating that she and others supporting the idea would compose and submit such a letter.
“This is something I really believe in,” she said. “Our goal is to keep people independent as long as possible.”
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