Following are responses to a Q&A sent to candidates by The Salem News prior to the Aug. 6 Primary Election. Candidates appear alphabetically.
Alisa Brookshire, Republican
I’m Alisa Brookshire, daughter of Mike Thompson. I’m 53 years old, born and raised in Dent County and a graduate of Salem High School. I married John Brookshire and have been married for 29 years and have three beautiful daughters Emily, Nicole, and Hannah and operate and live on my husband’s family farm near Anutt. My husband works all over the Midwest laying fiber optic. I’ve worked various jobs over the years including two years in the Assessor’s Office. I am currently employed by Green Forests R-II School as an Instructional Aide.
Q: Why should you be elected?
First, I know what the job pays and at $51,714.01 per year it is more than enough, and I will not be voting to raise my salary every year as has become customary. And I will encourage our legislators to amend the laws that allows this to happen. Second, the amount of county real estate and personal taxes we all pay is predicated first by the assessment values placed upon our properties by the county assessor. Needlessly raising or inaccurately setting assessment rates may result in burdensome tax increases for Dent County taxpayers. With my prior experience working in the assessor’s office I want to make sure all assessments and changes are needed, fair and accurate. Also, neither my husband or I nor any of my immediate family are involved in the real estate sale business and thus I have no conflict of interest of any kind to faithfully exercise the duties of the office of assessor. One last thing, my office will always be open to serve the citizens of Dent County unless the courthouse is closed for a holiday or the county commission has otherwise ordered the courthouse closed due to bad weather or other emergency.
Q: What would you do to improve or change the position you are running for, or duties of the office, that would result in savings or benefits to the taxpayer?
Missouri statue pretty much defines the duties of the assessor. But one thing I want to make sure of is that we make certain all assessments are accurate. Google aerial maps can be misleading, for example a 8 ft X 12 ft roof in an aerial photo might just be a roof over a cattle working chute, NOT a 8 ft X 12 ft shed and should not be assessed as a shed for tax purposes.
Q: What major financial decisions are on the horizon for the office you are running for, and how would you prioritize and pay for those?
I understand the county commission just recently voted to terminate the rural addressing contract with Council for a Healthy Dent County at the Armory and placed this very important function in the hands of the assessor. I’m not certain what the impetus was for the sudden decision, as by all accounts the Council for a Healthy Dent County has done for many years an excellent job administering rural addressing and at what seems a very reasonable cost to the county. I’m willing to take on this additional responsibility but look forward to first if elected, sit down with everybody to iron out what this will cost, and what is needed, etc., to make sure this transition is as smooth as possible. I also plan to work with the state association to convince our legislators to raise the per parcel reimbursement rate to help all counties keep up with the increased costs of operations.
Q: Write about an issue that is or should be a priority to be discussed as we approach the primary election?
I fully support the freezing of our senior property taxes on their homes as provided for in SB 190 and SB756. Our seniors have for all these years paid the sales taxes, income taxes, real estate property taxes, personal property taxes, taxes on their social security taxes, and even taxes on the materials to build their houses that they then get to pay real estate taxes on, etc. At least we can surely freeze those taxes on their homes at current levels and protect them from raising.
Jamie Homeyer, Republican, incumbent
My husband of 44 years, Mike Homeyer and I, brought our commitment to family and community values to Salem in 2003. When we moved, we brought our manufacturing company AW Huber Inc. to Salem. I managed the office of our business until I received my real estate license in 2005. While working in real estate I went back to school and received my Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Southwest Baptist University.
Since becoming a member of the Salem community over twenty years ago, I have held many leadership roles in local organizations. Serving as a board member then as President of the Salem Area Chamber of Commerce; VP then President of the Salem Band Boosters; Secretary, Treasurer, VP and President of the South-Central Board of Realtors; past Sunday School teacher, choir member and current financial secretary for Salem Lutheran Church. From 1978 to 1990 I worked for Southwestern Bell Telephone.
From 1990-1995 I was blessed to be a full-time homemaker, then 1995-2005 office manager of our small business. From 2005-2020 full time Realtor. During those years, I also served on the Board of Equalization at the request of the Dent County commissioners.
I was appointed as assessor Jan. 1, 2020, until the present. My pursuit of re-election as your assessor is fueled by my steadfast commitment to serve this county. I understand the scope of my authority as an assessor. I swore an oath to follow the rules that govern my office set forth by Missouri State Statute 137.
The Assessor has many responsibilities, but the main job of the assessor is to accurately assess the value of property. The assessor does not have the power or authority to raise or lower anyone’s taxes, we only assess value. By staying in compliance with the State Tax Commission, I have not had to raise county values since I took office. Re-electing me would ensure that Dent County is getting the knowledge and experience of someone who knows how to do the job and the dedication of someone who knows how to commit to a job and follow through. I aspire to continue listening and assisting to the needs and concerns of the public and ensuring accurate property assessments for all property owners of Dent County.
Q: Why should you be elected?
I assumed the position of Assessor Jan. 1, 2020, first by the appointment of the Dent County commissioners, second by official appointment by Governor Parson. Then third, in November 2020, I earned the trust of the community by election of the people. From day one I concentrated on learning everything I could from my experienced clerks and from our past Assessor who graciously helped me through my first year. This institutional knowledge was great training.
Since becoming your Assessor, I have been actively engaged in local and statewide committees and associations. I have been a member of a steering committee with the Missouri Association of Counties, receiving my third appointment for 2024/2025. Currently I am a member of the Assessor Designation Committee and I have been voted president of the South-Central Region of Assessors for 2023 and 2024. Over the past 4 1/2 years, by taking advantage of continuing education classes provided by the state assessor’s association and the state tax commission, I have leveraged my prior experiences in office management and real estate knowledge, refining my skills to provide effective, fair and accurate assessments for all citizens, while ensuring that property assessments adhere to state regulations.
My pursuit of re-election as your Assessor is fueled by my steadfast commitment to serve this county. Drawing upon my wealth of knowledge and experience I brought to this position and the knowledge and experience I have learned while serving as your Assessor, I aspire to continue listening and assisting to the needs and concerns of the public and ensuring accurate property assessments for all property owners of Dent County.
I swore an oath to follow the rules governing my office set by Missouri State Statute 137. The assessor does not have the power or authority to raise or lower anyone’s taxes. The main job of the assessor is to accurately assess the value of property. By staying in compliance with the State Tax Commission, I have not had to raise county values since I took office. I understand the scope of my authority as an assessor. Assessors do not set tax rates, nor do they calculate, mail or collect your tax bill. Re-electing me would ensure that Dent County is getting the knowledge of someone who knows how to do the job and the dedication of someone who knows how to commit to a job and follow through.
Q: What would you do to improve or change the position you are running for, or duties of the office, which would result in savings or benefits to the taxpayers?
In my last campaign for Assessor, I promised to always listen and address concerns, provide accountability and cooperation, update technology to ensure accuracy and efficiency, and follow Missouri State Statutes to make sure all assessments are done fairly and accurately for everyone, and I KEPT THOSE PROMISES. I will continue to evaluate what services can be done more efficiently and accurately.
I have done many things that resulted in savings and benefits to the taxpayers: I implemented online assessments for personal property. This service has saved time and costs for taxpayers and made processing much faster. I have implemented software to allow for plat books to be printed here in Salem. This allows my office to earn some income from the sales of those books, which helps to offset the cost of providing that service.
Having Plat Books printed locally also provides business to a local printing company which helps keep money in our community. I always buy local whenever possible. I have also continued to work with our software provider to keep our mapping updated. The public is allowed to view our mapping free of charge, but we also sell subscriptions which offer more options for use, and those subscriptions help to offset the cost of that program. We have updated our assistance to citizens by using online data, whenever possible to avoid them having to make multiple trips to our office. We also take time to reach out to property owners who have sold property to update their mailing addresses if they have not already done so. This is done as a courtesy to them, so they do not miss important mailings from our office or from the collector’s office.
Foremost, my goal to always remember who I work for every day. This office is the office of the citizens of Dent County, and I will always remember that it is their office that I have been given the honor to serve.
Q: What major financial decisions are on the horizon for the office you are running for, and how would you prioritize and pay for those.
The County Commission recently decided to move the Rural Addressing service back to the county. I have agreed to take on this additional responsibility in my office. Bringing this service back to the county from an outside vendor will save the county money, and I am very happy to do what I can to reduce the costs of services for our taxpayers in addition to what I have implemented which is explained in question three.
Q: Write about an issue that is or should be a priority to be discussed as we approach the primary election.
The issue currently being discussed Is Senate Bill 190 which would allow for an ordinance to be passed that would freeze taxes for senior citizens. Everyone wants to help seniors whenever possible, and our county commissioners are discussing options for this ordinance, but there are still many questions to be answered before moving forward. There Is currently a tax credit available to disabled and/or senior citizens which Is called The Missouri Property Tax Credit. I take every opportunity to educate citizens to take advantage of this credit. This tax credit Is based on Income so if an ordinance is passed to freeze taxes for seniors, and they meet the income requirement, they could still apply for the Missouri Tax Credit in addition to the tax freeze.
