ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – Weather-related postal delays have stalled the processing of hundreds of thousands of tax payments in St. Louis County, officials announced Thursday.

St. Louis County collects around one million personal property and real property tax bills annually. Despite providing a free online payment option, around 400,000 payments are still made by check, many of those which are sent by U.S. mail.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Postal Service acknowledged the possibility of mail delays in the St. Louis region, saying the safety of its employees was a top priority and noting that wintry weather conditions have made deliveries difficult.


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According to a Thursday news release from St. Louis County, the county received no mail last week after a snowstorm brought 8-10 inches for most of the region. The county adds it has only received a couple thousand pieces this week, many of which were still postmarked from December.

The county has only 100,000 mail pieces this year, many postmarked between Dec. 20 and Jan. 3, but it’s apparently less than expected.

St. Louis County says that mail delays, paired with the county’s department of revenue facing staffing shortages, have led to a backlog in processing individual tax payments.

“We know taxpayers are frustrated,” said Tony Smee, Director of the Department of Revenue. “We’re frustrated, the County Executive is frustrated, the County Council is frustrated, and soon, the over 200 taxing jurisdictions we collect and distribute for will be frustrated, because there will certainly be a delay in their normal tax payment distributions.”

According to the news release, the Department of Revenue is working to clear the backlog and hopes to have a majority of tax payments processed by the end of January.

According to the county, no penalties or interest will be due on accounts if their mailed-in payment was postmarked prior to Dec. 31, even if they are processed late. The fees will show up online but will be reversed once processed.

“We appreciate the public’s support and understanding and have talked to so many people that really feel for what we’re up against,” said Smee. “Most have said they plan to pay online this next tax season, and we highly recommend that.”

St. Louis County collects around $2.8 billion from personal and real property tax bills each year for essential services.