KANSAS CITY, Mo. — During a special meeting on Wednesday evening, Clay County residents voiced frustration over cuts to the county clerk’s office and how appeals to increased property tax assessments are being impacted.
Last year, the budget for the clerk’s office was slashed by the Clay County Commission and led to staff positions being cut.
This year, the staff shortage has led to issues with residents who want to challenge increases to their property tax assessments.
The County Clerk’s office can help residents through the appeals process and neighbors who attended Wednesday’s meeting said change was needed.
“It makes it harder for people to appeal their assessment,” Clay County resident Chris Gerlt said. “It took me almost a week to get into a meeting. Once I had the meeting I still had to wait an hour and a half.”
Presiding Commissioner Jerry Nolte organized Wednesday’s meeting but official quorum was not met after Eastern Commissioner Luann Ridgeway and Western Commissioner Gene Owen did not attend.
The public showed obvious signs of support for Clerk of the Commission Megan Thompson, who made her feelings known to 41 Action News about the ongoing feud with the two commissioners who did not attend.
“This is not the best that our government can be right now,” she said. “We’re going to do our job even if our commission doesn’t want to properly staff my office and give us what we need and the tools necessary.”
Nolte called on the commission to reallocate $41,000 from legal funds to the County Clerk’s office to help pay for more staff.
No quorum on Wednesday meant no results on the matter.
The developments followed months of controversy between the commission and Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway over an audit of the county’s finances.
“We’re in a period now where there’s more turmoil than there has been for a while,” Nolte said. “I think what we need to be doing is setting aside differences and working together on issues like properly funding the clerk’s office and many other issues.”
Following the meeting, Ridgeway sent a statement to 41 Action News and called the meeting a “political stunt.”
The commissioner said the commission supported temporary help on the issue.
After saying the appeals process should conclude by late summer, she said extra permanent full-time staff was not needed.
Ridgeway later went on to take direct aim at alleged issues with Thompson.
“The clerk has overspent her budget more than once, has less duties and is holding taxpayer processes hostage in an attempt to force the commission to give in to her demands for more money,” the statement read. “This issue has been decided in our regular meetings. Furthermore, I informed Nolte in our public commission meeting that I would not be available for today’s meeting.”
With the matter still to be decided, Chris Gerlt said he hopes leaders could make progress moving forward.
“There’s no reason the clerk’s office should be understaffed,” he said. “You can’t benefit the people of the county that pay the taxes and salaries if they’re understaffed.”
