Lady Justice
SPRINGFIELD — The Missouri Court of Appeals for the Southern District has upheld a Phelps Circuit Court ruling in favor of the Phelps Public Water Supply District #4, rejecting claims by property owners that the District’s sewer charges constituted unauthorized taxes under the Hancock Amendment.
The appellate court also denied Adam and Ida Binghams’ motion for attorney’s fees and expenses related to their appeal.
The case began when the Binghams filed a suit for declaratory judgment challenging property liens placed by the District for unpaid sewer charges.
They argued that the charges were improperly imposed while their property was uninhabitable, a violation of the District’s own User Charge Ordinance.
The circuit court initially ruled in the Binghams’ favor, invalidating the liens, but the Missouri Court of Appeals later vacated that judgment and sent the case back to the lower court to consider an additional claim: whether the sewer charges were unauthorized taxes imposed in violation of the Hancock Amendment.
Upon remand, the Phelps Circuit Court, presided over by Judge William Earl Hickle, determined that the District’s sewer charges did not violate the Hancock Amendment, which prohibits political subdivisions from levying new or increased taxes, licenses, or fees without prior voter approval.
Because of that finding, the court also ruled that the Binghams were not entitled to recover attorney’s fees or expenses.
In this second appeal, the Binghams argued that the circuit court misapplied the law by failing to find the charges to be unauthorized taxes.
They maintained that the District’s sewer fees were not true user fees but taxes requiring voter approval under Article X, Section 22(a) of the Missouri Constitution.
According to the appellate opinion authored by Judge Becky J. West, the circuit court found that the District charges a flat monthly “Sewer Availability Charge” of $51.50 for single-family dwellings or their equivalent.
The District does not provide water service and cannot measure how much an individual property owner uses its sewer service.
However, only properties physically connected to the District’s public sewer line are charged. The District also allows property owners to request disconnection from the system, which, if approved, would stop the charges.
The appellate court noted that the Binghams’ property remained connected to the public sewer line throughout the period in dispute and that they never requested to disconnect.
The judges found this fact critical, determining that the charge was tied to the property’s connection and availability of sewer service rather than being a general tax.
The appellate court also addressed the Binghams’ argument that the District’s use of property liens to collect unpaid sewer charges made the fees more like taxes.
The judges acknowledged prior Missouri Supreme Court cases noting that liens can sometimes resemble taxation, but they found that the liens in this case were authorized by statute and discretionary.
Finding no legal error, the Court of Appeals affirmed the circuit court’s decision and denied the Binghams’ motion for attorney’s fees and expenses.
The opinion was authored by West, with Judges Jeffrey W. Bates and Matthew P. Hamner concurring.
Missouri Court of Appeals Southern District case number: SD38542
