Welcome to Morgan County, Missouri

Business Personal Property

Commercial or business personal property assessment lists are due to the Assessor's office no later than April 1st of any year. Lists received after this date will be subject to penalty by law.

In 2005, the Missouri General Assembly passed laws* affecting the assessment of business personal property. The intent of the legislation is to bring about uniformity by implementing depreciation schedules in Statute that all assessors must follow.

*HB 461; HB 58; SB 210 (2005 session); all identical changes to RSMo 137.122

Before 1/2/2006

Property classified by type only
(e.g. computer)
Three categories used to list property
Residual depreciation reached after 7 years

On or After 1/2/2006

Property classified by IRS Class Life/Recovery Period (e.g. 3 yr., 5yr., etc.)
Six categories used to list property
Residual depreciation ranges from 4 to 17 years

More detailed information concerning the new changes to business personal property assessments can be found at http://moassessorsassn.org/bpp.htm.

Where can I find the IRS Publication 946?

IRS Publication 946 (.pdf)

What types of business personal property are found in the different recovery periods?

Business Personal Property Recovery Periods (.pdf)

Is there an alphabetical listing of Business Personal Property Groups?

Business Personal Property Groups (.pdf)

Business personal property values are based on the original acquisition cost and year purchased of equipment. Depreciation tables are then applied based on the age of equipment to determine value. Business personal property is assessed at 33 and 1/3% of market value.

We ask that you submit a copy of your IRS fixed asset list; many businesses use their IRS figures, however we check your asset list(s) because there may be items included that are not considered personal property, or may have already been considered as real estate.

Leased Property:

If you lease business personal property (computer equipment, for example) you need to scrutinize your lease documents to make sure who is liable for property taxes.

If you are responsible for the taxes, you need to list the leased property under the appropriate category on your business assessment list.
If the leasing company pays the taxes , they normally will provide our office with a list of property owned and taxable in Morgan County specifying the lessee and location. In this case, you do not list any leased property on your assessment list.
Property that is leased to tax-exempt organizations is taxable property. Business personal property is tax-exempt only when it is owned by the tax-exempt entity.

If you are unsure who pays the property taxes on your leased equipment, you need to deal directly with your leasing company. It is your responsibility to make sure your leased property is listed correctly.