Property, Utility Taxes Look to Remain The Same in Manchester

Every year, cities across St. Louis County have to set their property tax rates and it's come time to make that decision in Manchester.

Tuesday, Manchester Finance Director Dave Tuberty presented a proposal for the 2011 property tax rates to the board of aldermen and pubic during a public hearing on the issue.

It appears both property and utility tax rates will likely remain the same as 2010.

The city of Manchester is proposing the following tax rates:

• A tax rate of 4.5 cents per $100 assessed valuation on all residential and commercial property.
• A tax rate of 5 cents per $100 of assessed valuation on all personal property.
• A tax rate of 19.3 cents per $100 of assessed valuation on all residential, commercial and personal property tax in the city of Manchester. This tax pays off the outstanding general obligation bonds that were approved by voters when they passed Proposition P in November, 2002. Proposition P authorized the city to borrow $6.5 million to build the new facility.

All three of the proposed tax rates remain the same as they were in 2010. If approved by the board of aldermen, the total 2011 residential and commercial property tax rate will remain 23.8 percent and the personal property tax rate will remain 24.3 percent.

The approved property tax rate will be in effect for the 2011 tax year.

The city must submit its property tax rates to the St. Louis County auditor and the state auditor by October 1.

The city tax rate actually started in 1973 at 53 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, explained Manchester City Clerk Ruth Baker. She tells Patch the highest tax rate was 72 cents per $100 of assessed valuation 1976, 1977 and 1978.

"Gradually it dropped to five cents per $100 assessed valuation in 1998 where it remained at that rate until 2010 at which time it became four-and-a-half-cents on residential and commercial property," Baker said. "But it remained five cents on personal property."

As for 2011, it looks likely the rates will stay the same. There was no public comment in the issue Tuesday night.

The proposed 2011 property tax rate could be voted on at the next board of aldermen meeting on September 19.

Utility Tax Rate

The board of aldermen also discussed the city's utility tax rate Tuesday night.

The ordinance is to simply reaffirm the city's current utility tax rate which was decreased from five percent to four percent in August 2007, Baker explained.

The utility tax applies to services such as natural gas, telecommunications, electricity and water in the city of Manchester.

The city is required by the state to declare it is maintaining the tax rate as an after effect of the Missouri Public Service Commision's recent approval a 7.2 percent rate increase for Ameren UE customers across the state.

"We're just verifying that we're holding our tax rate at four percent," Baker tells Patch. "It will remain four percent even though Ameren has increased their tax rate for service."

Tuesday night was the introduction of both the property tax and utility tax proposals for 2011.  Neither proposal was voted on, but both are set to be voted on at the next board of aldermen meeting on September 19.