Circuit court improperly dismissed suit against school district

To avoid allegedly unapproved taxes, a taxpayer has two options for remedy. He or she can either file an injunctive action before tax collection, or can seek a refund.

Under Section 139.031 RSMo. 2000, to seek a refund, the taxpayer must first pay the taxes under protest, and then file an action for a refund within 90 days of payment.

Taxpayers in Morgan County chose the second option, and filed their claims for refunds on their 2001 property taxes. The action was filed January 2002, within the prescribed 90 days.

The tax protested was a levy of $2.75 for every $100 of assessed property valuation by the Morgan County R-II School District. The taxpayers argued the tax was assessed without voter approval, and that the levy provided a windfall for the school, which was against provisions set out in Article X Section 22(a) of the Missouri State Constitution.

The circuit court granted the school district's motion to dismiss the case, which was found to have been in error by the Missouri Court of Appeals for the Western District. The case was dismissed for failure to state a claim. While the appellate court noted the plaintiffs' arguments could have been better stated, it found its claims were sufficient.

The school district argued the taxpayers' claims were too general, and more detailed information was necessary, such as a statement of what the maximum levy allowed by law. The appellate court found this was unnecessary, and that plaintiffs must only plead ultimate facts for their claim to be sufficient.

In dismissing the case, the circuit court seemed to have decided the case on its merits, which was found to be an improper base for dismissal.

In her decision to dismiss the case, Judge Mary Dickerson stated, "Plaintiffs in their petition refer to the provisions of [Article X section 11(b) of the Missouri Constitution] which the voters of Missouri approved at the general election in 1998 ... By reason of the adoption of [section 11(b)], the voters of Missouri authorized the Morgan County R-II School District to adopt an operating tax levy of up to $2.75 per $100 of assessed valuation, without voter approval. Because [section 11(b)] authorized the school district to adopt an operating tax levy of up to $2.75 without voter approval, the plaintiffs are not entitled to the relief which they seek in their petition."

"In reaching this conclusion, the circuit court necessarily resolved the controversy on its merits," Judge Paul Spinden wrote for the Court of Appeals. "It dismissed the petition, not because it did not aver facts that, if proven, stated a cause of action, but because section 11(b) 'authorized the school district to adopt an operating tax levy of up to $2.75 without voter approval.' Thus, in justifying the dismissal, the circuit court reached the merits of the issue and made what appears to be the declaration that it, in the same sentence, ruled that the taxpayers could not have."

The case was remanded after the appellate court found the circuit court had improperly dismissed it on four of the taxpayers' five points.

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