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Read. Follow. Verify.Missouri House Bill 2098 modifies definitions and tax classifications for real property subclasses
Last action · February 11, 2026: Referred: Rules - Administrative(H)Sponsor: Michael Davis
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What This Bill Would Do
House Bill 2098 modifies statutory definitions for residential, agricultural, and commercial real property subclasses, including specific exclusions for golf courses, certain land types, and floating docks. The measure authorizes taxing districts to adjust operating levies to recoup property tax revenue losses resulting from classification changes for residential structures with five or more units, and establishes economic use criteria for vacant or unclassified properties.
Property owners, county assessors, and local taxing districts face updated classification rules that govern how specific parcels of real estate are assessed and taxed under state constitutional provisions.
- House Bill 2098 was introduced during the 2026 Regular Session of the Missouri General Assembly by Representative Michael Davis. context
- Section 137.016 of the Revised Statutes of Missouri (RSMo) governs the classification of real property subclasses pursuant to Article X of the state Constitution. context
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Property owners
Property owners face modified statutory definitions that govern how their land and structures are classified for local property tax assessment.
County assessors
County assessors must evaluate multi-use properties, assess vacant or unclassified land based on economic use criteria, and provide valuation difference data to local taxing districts.
Local taxing districts
Taxing districts receive assessed valuation data and are authorized to adjust operating levies to recoup revenue losses stemming from specific residential property reclassifications.
Key Facts
- Removes golf courses from the definition of residential property under section 137.016.
- Classifies urban and community gardens, noncommercial green spaces such as parks and nature preserves, and certain sawmills as agricultural and horticultural property.
- Excludes floating docks with separately owned and commonly designated portions where no single entity owns more than five individual units from commercial and industrial property.
- Authorizes any taxing district to adjust its operating levy to recoup property tax revenue losses resulting from reclassifying residential structures containing five or more dwelling units, subject to historical tax rate limits.
Show all 8 facts
- Requires the county assessor of each county or city not within a county to provide taxing districts with information regarding assessed valuation differences caused by classification changes.
- Applies reclassifications involving residential structures with five or more dwelling units to assessments made after December 31, 1994.
- Directs county assessors to allocate true value proportions when real property is used for multiple purposes with different classifications.
- Mandates that vacant, unused, or unclassified properties be categorized according to their immediate most suitable economic use based on eight specific statutory factors.
Frequently Asked Questions
What changes are made to residential property classifications?
How are vacant or unclassified properties categorized under the bill?
Can local taxing districts adjust their levies following property reclassifications?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
9 actions- Feb 11, 2026HouseCommitteeReferred: Rules - Administrative(H)
- Feb 2, 2026HouseCommitteeHCS Reported Do Pass (H)
- Jan 29, 2026HouseCommitteeHCS Voted Do Pass (H)
- Jan 29, 2026HouseExecutive Session Completed (H)
- Jan 12, 2026HousePublic Hearing Completed (H)
- Jan 8, 2026HouseCommitteeReferred: Ways and Means(H)
Show 3 earlier actions
- Jan 8, 2026HouseFloorRead Second Time (H)
- Jan 7, 2026HouseIntroducedRead First Time (H)
- Dec 2, 2025HouseIntroducedPrefiled (H)
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Refinement of Real Property Subclasses
The legislation formally expands agricultural property definitions to include urban community gardens and noncommercial green spaces while tightening exclusions on residential and commercial subclasses.
Connected Entities
Sources
house.mo.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance65How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy25Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz20Current news / social attention level
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