The school districts vs. Jackson County over property assessments. Who is right?

I owned two houses in Independence and a business. The taxes after reassesment went down slightly on the two houses but went up approximately 12% on my dental office. It is obvious that the county wants to compensate the lowering of home taxes with an increase in business taxes which already pay a much higher rate. This will then will ultimately affect business growth in Jackson County. This has not been reported in the press.

The folks at the County don't want lower assessments any more than the school districts. Do you people honestly think they want a lower budget? They also count on property taxes to keep running the county services. They have to follow specific rules and regulations they must follow when they do their valuations. These valuations are not necessarily based on the same criteria as appraisers use for home and business appraisals.

We do need good schools as that is what makes or breaks the quality of life in our cities. People choose to purchase property in areas with excellent schools. The school districts will most likely have to ask for levy increases and hope the citizens of their area will value education and will want to keep their property values up (due to living in a desirable area).