St. Louis County Assessor: Disabled Prisoner of War Property Tax Exemption

The exemption is the State's; see the Missouri entry. In St. Louis County the application goes to the County Assessor, 41 South Central Avenue, Clayton (314-615-5124 for this exemption). The form. The Assessor's two-page "Disabled POW Real Property Tax Exemption" sheet quotes the constitutional text and asks for three things: a sworn and notarised affirmation that the applicant owns and occupies the property as the primary residence; a letter from the United States Government or VA proving service-connected total disability; and either a DD-214 showing ex-prisoner of war status or a letter from the National Personnel Records Center or VA saying the applicant is a former prisoner of war. The form gives no filing deadline. Where it narrows the Constitution. Article X, section 6 says "a total service-connected disability". The form's explanatory paragraph says the applicant must be a veteran "who became one hundred percent disabled as a result of his or her military service", and the Assessor's FAQ says Missouri allows the exemption only to former prisoners of war who "became one hundred percent disabled". The evidence list itself asks only for proof of "service-connected total disability". A former prisoner of war paid at the total rate on individual unemployability should apply with the VA letter showing the total rating and rely on the constitutional words. The same FAQ says this is the only veteran property tax exemption Missouri allows, which is right: a 100 percent disabled veteran who was not a prisoner of war gets the State circuit breaker credit instead, claimed on the State income tax return rather than from the Assessor.