A Judge Has Preliminarily Approved the Jackson County Property Tax Settlement: Notices to More Than 207,000 Owners Are Due by October 19, Former Owners Must Claim by December 3, and the Final Hearing Is November 23 — but Class Counsel Says $250 Million and the County Says About $175 Million

On October 1 we reported that the Jackson County property tax settlement had been announced but not signed by a judge. That has changed. According to KCTV5, an order entered on Tuesday, October 6, 2026 gave the settlement preliminary approval and “ordered that more than 207,000 Jackson County taxpayers be notified about the suit by Oct. 19, 2026.” KSHB describes it as an amended order: a first order was filed on September 25 with an October 1 notice deadline, but the administrator “advised that the requirements couldn’t be met by the deadlines outlined in the original order, and an extension was requested and later granted.”

Preliminary approval is not final approval. It means the judge found the deal good enough to send to the class; the decision whether to approve it comes after the fairness and final approval hearing on November 23, 2026, at 9:30 a.m. The court also appointed Analytics Consulting LLC — already the class administrator — as Notice and Settlement Administrator, handling objections, exclusions, payments and the settlement website, and retired Jackson County Judge Dale Youngs as administrator of the Special Circumstances Fund. The county must hand in an implementation plan within 30 days of the amended order’s entry, which by our count is early November.

The order itself does not state a total or any individual amount, KCTV5 reported. What has been described publicly:

• You still own the home: credits on your property tax bills over the next three years. County Executive Phil LeVota said on September 29 that most affected owners need to do nothing — if the residential property was assessed more than 15% over in 2023 or 2024, the credit comes automatically. He also said the lookup figure is an estimate and that “your final tax credit will be on your bill and your bill is coming in November.”
• You sold and moved: it depends on where you went, and you have to come forward. LeVota said on September 29 that owners who moved but stayed in Jackson County get credits on the bill for their current property, while those who moved to a different county get refunds. The county has no current contact information for movers, so the responsibility is theirs. The Kansas City Star reported that former owners “will also receive cash refunds if they file a timely appeal,” and the court’s deadline for former-owner claims is December 3, 2026.
• You paid a lawyer or appraiser to fight the assessment: reimbursement from a $6 million Special Circumstances Fund, with invoices or receipts, also by December 3, 2026.

The settlement has grown since it was first announced. According to the Star’s September 30 report, the agreement “initially called for reimbursing homeowners for overcharges in 2023, now also includes reimbursements for 2024.” The county also agreed to pay up to $4 million toward the class’s attorney fees; any fee award still needs court approval, and the official FAQ says class members do not personally pay class counsel.

The dates below come from the amended order as reported by KCTV5 and KSHB on October 8, 2026:

• October 19, 2026 — deadline for Analytics Consulting LLC to mail notices to more than 207,000 taxpayers.
• November 18, 2026 — exclusion requests must be mailed and postmarked by this date; written objections from class members who stay in are due postmarked by the same date. Per the amended order, “Claims certified under Rule 52.08(b)(2) for class wide declaratory and injunctive relief are not subject to exclusion.”
• November 23, 2026, 9:30 a.m. — fairness and final approval hearing.
• December 3, 2026 — former-owner claims and Special Circumstances Fund claims must be submitted or postmarked.

One detail worth knowing if you moved: on September 29 LeVota described a 45-day window from receipt of the notice. The court has now set a fixed date instead, and December 3 is exactly 45 days after the October 19 mailing deadline, by our arithmetic. If your notice arrives late, the date on the order is the one that counts.

As of October 14, 2026, the official class website, jacksoncountypropertytaxclassaction.com, had not posted the settlement notice, a claim form or either order. Its Important Dates page still listed the July 10, 2026 exclusion deadline from the certification stage as “upcoming” and a bench trial in November or December 2026, and its Case Documents page still marked every document “Coming Soon,” pointing to the full court file on Missouri CaseNet under 2416-CV25478. Until the notice arrives, the practical step for former owners is to make sure the administrator has a current mailing address.

The settlement notice comes from the court-appointed administrator, not from the county tax office. In June, the earlier certification notice went to approximately 207,800 homeowners by mail or email, KCTV5 reported; the new notice goes out under the same administrator. The verified contact points:

• Administrator: Wheeler v. Beatty, c/o Analytics Consulting LLC, PO Box 2010, Chanhassen, MN 55317-2010, telephone 888-969-3783.
• Class counsel: Humphrey, Farrington & McClain, P.C., JacksonCoPropertyTaxLawsuit@hfmlegal.com.
• County credit questions: taxquestions@jacksongov.org; estimated credits at JCGIS.Jacksongov.org/propertyinfo and JacksonMOcredit.Devnetwedge.com.

The official site asks people not to call the court or the county with questions about the lawsuit. Nobody needs to pay a fee to receive a credit or a refund, and current owners do not need to file anything. A message that asks for a payment, a bank login or a Social Security number to “release” your credit is a reason to stop and call the administrator at the number above.

No settlement fund has been deposited; the value depends on how many credits and refunds are issued. The Kansas City Star reported on September 30 that Oxley said the settlement “could amount to $250 million,” while LeVota said the county “estimates the settlement would be worth about $175 million,” and that “the final amount will be determined by the repayment process.” Oxley’s position: “This isn’t a discounted settlement. It’s the whole overpayment.” That is class counsel’s characterization; the court rules on fairness on November 23. The stakes for the county were higher: a former county legislator warned at a June forum that the lawsuit could cost up to $1 billion in payouts. LeVota’s reason for wanting a court order, per the Star: a new executive or legislature “can’t come in and change it.”

Is Missouri going to freeze property taxes for seniors? That is a separate program, and the settlement does not change it. Jackson County already runs a Senior Property Tax Credit Program under Missouri statute 137.1050: owners aged 62 or older who live in the home as their primary residence can have their property taxes frozen at the bill amount from the year they apply and qualify. The county page gives two different application dates (August 31 and December 31), so confirm with the Collection Department at 816-881-3232 before relying on either.

The class itself is limited to residential owners who paid taxes on a 2023 assessed valuation that rose more than 15%, excluding increases due solely to new construction or improvements; commercial, agricultural and industrial property is not included. The class was certified on April 2, 2026.