Since the Hancock Amendment has placed a limit on the collection of state revenue, court battles have emerged to challenge the amount of money the state has been over-collecting and the mechanism by which taxpayers will be refunded. The Missouri Association for Social Welfare, the Reform Organization of Welfare and two private citizens are fighting the way money will be returned under the Hancock Amendment. But only the refunds would be go only to those persons and corporations who paid income taxes. The suit charges that approach discriminates against the lower income. Only those who pay income taxes are rewarded a refund.
Poor people pay taxes too.
Jill Shinn, a resident of Kahoka, is one of the two private citizens who are a plaintiffs in the suit. Shinn collects Social Security and does not pay income taxes. She feels neglected by the Hancock Amendment. I don't feel that it's fair. Late last year, the Cole County Circuit Court ruled in the state's favor to pay the refunds.