Missouri State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick has launched an investigation into how St. Louis County handles property tax appeals, after whistleblowers raised concerns that the system may unfairly favor some homeowners over others and could violate county ordinances. The inquiry centers on a basic but consequential question: does it matter which of the county's two Boards of Equalization reviews your case?
According to firstalert4.com, the audit will look at how appeals are routed between the two boards and examine whether one board resolves appeals in taxpayers’ favor at a significantly higher rate than the other. Fitzpatrick’s office has requested records on the number and types of appeals sent to each board, how those assignments are made, and the outcomes once cases are decided, a point also detailed in the St. Louis Public Radio report on the investigation. The St. Louis County Board of Equalization — the entity responsible for responding to property tax appeals — has until Nov. 6 to turn over the requested documents.
St. Louis County created a second Board of Equalization in 2021 with the goal of speeding up the appeals process, per St. Louis Public Radio’s reporting. Members of both boards are appointed by the St. Louis County executive’s office, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the investigation, the outlet noted. The county reassesses property values every two years, and those valuations directly shape residents’ property tax bills — giving property owners who believe their assessment is inaccurate the ability to challenge it.
Why the Routing Question Matters
Under Missouri law, any person may appeal in writing to a board of equalization over their property’s assessment, specifying exactly what they’re disputing, according to the Missouri Revisor of Statutes. But if whistleblowers are right that one of St. Louis County’s two boards sides with taxpayers more often than the other, the board a homeowner happens to be assigned to could effectively decide the outcome before the case is even heard. Fitzpatrick said the appeals process should protect property owners from unfair and excessive assessed valuations and must comply with both county code and state law, per firstalert4.com’s account.
Missouri’s auditor has broad authority to dig into county government operations. State law allows the auditor to subpoena witnesses, take sworn testimony, and compel the production of records when conducting an audit or investigation, according to the Missouri Revisor of Statutes — a tool Fitzpatrick’s office can use if St. Louis County officials don’t cooperate.
A Pattern Fitzpatrick Has Seen Before
This isn’t the auditor’s first look at how a Missouri county handles property tax appeals. Fitzpatrick released a 2026 audit of Jackson County’s appeals process that found homeowners were put at an unfair disadvantage when challenging their 2023 assessments, according to kctv5.com. That review found 35% of cases examined didn’t receive the seven-day advance hearing notice required under county code, and uncovered hearing officer contracts that offered a $100 bonus for securing 30 signed agreements in a single day. The outlet also reported that Jackson County officials resisted the audit, delaying access to records until Fitzpatrick’s office resorted to subpoenas.
A separate report from kshb.com described the Jackson County findings as revealing ethical and legal issues within that county’s Board of Equalization process, which followed a 2023 assessment cycle that produced average valuation increases of 30% and generated at least 54,000 appeals.
How to Report Concerns
Anyone with information relevant to the St. Louis County investigation can contact the State Auditor’s Whistleblower Hotline at 800-347-8597, per firstalert4.com. Property owners who believe the St. Louis County Assessor has misclassified or undervalued — or overvalued — their property can still pursue an appeal through the Board of Equalization, a process the county outlines on its own government website.
