HERMANN – Gasconade County government’s General Fund Sales Tax — the primary fuel for delivering services to county residents — edged ever closer this month to another record level of revenue.

County Treasurer Mike Feagan Thursday morning reported to the County Commission that the November reimbursement check from the Missouri Department of Revenue for the General Fund Sales Tax was $111,259 — the third-largest monthly check of this year. This month’s check compares to the $105,734 received last month and the $102,504 received in November of last year.

This month’s amount brings the year-to-date total to $1,152,267. That’s $17,540 ahead of the amount received through the same period last year. The county needs about $73,000 for the General Fund revenue to top last year’s total amount of $1,234,320. If that happens it would mark at least the sixth consecutive year the tax has hit a new level.

What a new record level also might mean is that county government’s already bare-bones property tax rate could be further reduced next year to compensate for the increase in sales tax money.

Meanwhile, the county’s Use Tax — the sales tax applied to purchase made from out-of-state vendors, mostly those made online — could come close to the $600,000 mark this year, a figure county officials would not have guessed when the tax was approved in 2021. Feagan reported that the November Use Tax check was for $51,573, compared to the $48,127 received in October and the $46,662 received in November of last year.

The Use Tax, a portion of which is dedicated to the Gasconade County E-911 Program, has produced $557,233 thus far in 2025. That amount is $26,465 more than the amount received during the same period last year. The 2024 total amount received was $569,199.

During this year, county government’s portion of the Use Tax has been shared with the Road Department and the Sheriff’s Department. Whether that arrangement continues, or to what degree the revenue will be shared, could be taken up by the County Commission during its process of drafting the 2026 operating budget.

Regarding the Sheriff’s Department, the half-cent Law Enforcement Sales Tax (LEST) produced $78,619 for the November check. That compares to the $73,270 received in October and the $71,533 received in November of last year.

The LEST was approved by voters in April of 2022 and last year it produced a total amount of $1,150,086. Of that, the Sheriff’s Department received $862,565 while five municipalities in the county received a share of $287,521. Under the revenue-sharing agreement, the county receives 75 percent and the cities of Owensville, Hermann, Bland, Rosebud and Gasconade receive a 25-percent share.

This month’s LEST check brings the year-to-date total to $798,449 for the county and $266,149 for the five cities for a total amount of $1,064,599.

Here is how much the five cities received in November and their year-to-date totals: Owensville – $12,054, $122,428; Hermann – $9,434, $95,813; Bland – $2,096, $21,292; Rosebud – $1,834, $18,630; Gasconade – $786, $7,984.

Regarding the Gasconade County Road Department, this month’s Motor Fuels Tax check was for $83,218, compared to the $71,880 received in November of last year. The Motor Fuels Tax revenue is allocated to the Road Department.

Through this month, the tax — comprised of state sales tax on fuels, sales taxes on autos and other vehicle-related fees — has produced a total of $856,486. That compares to the $862,084 total amount received in 2024.