Jackson County will receive approximately $13 million as part of a historic, nationwide opioid settlement with Johnson & Johnson and major opioid distributors. The county filed a civil lawsuit in 2018 against the nation’s leading pharmaceutical companies for their deliberate and deceptive marketing strategies of opioid painkillers, resulting in high overdose and fatality rates throughout Jackson County.
     The case was managed by a team of attorneys from the firms of Williams Dirks Dameron LLC, Simmons Hanley Conroy LLC, Hardwick Law Firm LLC and Boulware Law LLC, under the direction of the Jackson County Counselor’s Office.
     “While the settlement funds will provide us with the opportunity to make real improvements in Jackson County, it is important to remember that these dollars will never come close to repairing the harm done by opioid addiction in our communities,” Jackson County Executive Frank White, Jr. said. 
      “No amount of money will turn back time and fix all the lives that have been irrevocably damaged, all the families that have been broken, nor will it bring back any of the loved ones lost due to a crisis born from the greed of pharmaceutical companies. I am committed to making sure that these dollars are used to repair as much of the damage as we can, while also ensuring that we reduce the pain that continues to happen in Jackson County because of opioid addiction.”
     White has requested that the Jackson County Health Department begin planning for the use of the funds, which under the settlement agreement, will be used to assist with prevention and treatment programs related to the opioid crisis. Possible plans include coordinating with the CORE4 jurisdictions as the County looks for opportunities to maximize opioid education and support to the community.
     “We acknowledge that this settlement will not atone for the immense suffering, loss, and interpersonal harm experienced by many as a result of systemic failures and greed,” Interim Jackson County Health Director Ray Dlugolecki said.
     “The Health Department will work collaboratively with partners and those harmed by this crisis to identify an equitable and strategic investment of these dollars to help save lives, reduce harm, and build capacity for controlling this public health crisis.”
     Settlement funds will be paid over a term of 18 years, with initial payments occurring as early as April 2022. Jackson County’s $13 million allocation is part of a nationwide settlement valued at approximately $26 billion.

     The Jackson County Reapportionment Committee has finalized the County's district map (below). After defeating a proposed map by Republican members of the committee, the committee unanimously passed the compromise map. 
     Jay Haden, Chief Deputy County Counselor, told the County Legislature during their February 22nd meeting the Reapportionment Committee maps were not completed in time to be used for this election cycle. The maps will be effective for the 2026 primary election. The Reapportionment Committee's report is on file with the Clerk of the County Legislature.

2022 Individual Personal Property Declaration postcards will be mailed on January 2022. Please complete the online declaration by March 1, 2022
Declarations not completed before May 1, 2022 may be subject to penalty. This penalty will range from $15 to $105 depending upon the assessed value of your account.
If you have any questions about your Individual Personal Property Declaration or need help completing the declaration online, please contact the Jackson County Assessment Department as soon as possible: Declarations@Jacksongov.org or 816-881-1330

File Personal Property Declarations - Jackson County MO (jacksongov.org)

     Jackson County Executive Frank White, Jr. announced January 13th that he will recommend a public health order requiring universal mask-wearing at K-12 Jackson County public schools. A majority support of the Jackson County Legislature will be required to enact the order, which would take effect on Tuesday, January 18 at the earliest, or upon adoption by the Legislature and signature of the County Executive.
     White said he is making the recommendation in response to the significant surge in COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations due, in part, to the highly-contagious Omicron and Delta variants and stagnant vaccination rates in Eastern Jackson County.
     “We know how valuable in-person learning is for students, but maintaining that practice is becoming increasingly difficult as schools struggle to have enough teachers in the classroom and more children are getting sick at an alarming rate,” White said. “Masking wearing has proven to be an effective way to mitigate the spread of the virus and will help keep students, teachers, staff and visitors safe in school buildings. Our vigilant masking efforts, combined with vaccinations for everyone ages 5 and older, will be key to reducing the risk of COVID-19 spread in schools.”
 
The latest data from the Jackson County Health Department shows:

• The 7-day case rate per 100,000 has reached an all-time pandemic high. The week of January 2, there were 1,101 total new cases per 100,000 people in the past seven days. This case rate is more than 10 times higher than the CDC’s classification of high transmission.
• The percent positive for school-aged children remains extremely high. While the overall percent positivity is 35.5% for the week of January 2, the percent positivity for ages 10-19 are above 40%.
• The 7-day average of daily new cases increased nearly 450% in the Kansas City region from 898 new cases per day on December 6, 2021, to 4,885 new cases per day on January 4, 2022.
• Vaccination coverage remains low in younger populations. With the exception of the newly authorized 5-11 age group, 25-34 year old’s have the lowest vaccination completion percentage at approximately 49%. This age group continuously has among the highest case rates as well, currently holding the highest COVID-19 case rate for December 2021.

      If approved by a majority of the Legislature, the public health order would remain in effect until 6:00 p.m. on February 3, 2022.

     Jackson County announced that it is once again waiving the online convenience and electronic check (ACH) fees for this year’s property tax payments.
     The fees will be waived through December 31, 2021 for those who pay their property taxes online through County’s official portal myJacksonCounty. Residents are strongly encouraged to pay online to avoid long wait times in person due to limited staffing at the downtown County Courthouse and Historic Truman Courthouse in Independence.
     “With the pandemic ongoing, we still have a responsibility to provide a safe way for residents to conduct business with us,” Jackson County Executive Frank White, Jr. said.
      “We know that waiving these fees is an effective way to do that and encourage everyone to take advantage of this opportunity by making their payment using our contactless and easy online system.”
     “We have made the decision to waive the $2.00 convenience fee and $1.25 ACH fee within myJacksonCounty to incentivize our residents to pay online,”  Whitney Miller, Director of Collection said. “myJacksonCounty is an incredibly user friendly and secure way to pay your property taxes, all without having to leave the house. Online credit card payments will still incur a 2.75% fee.”
 
How to pay Jackson County property taxes online:
Visit payments.jacksongov.org
· Create an account or continue as guest
· Link account and search by name, address or property account number
· View and pay your bills
· Print or digitally store your receipts
 
Other contactless payment options:
     Exterior drop boxes for property tax payments are located at the west door of the Jackson County Courthouse in Kansas City (415 E. 12th St.) and at the south door of the Historic Truman Courthouse in Independence (112 W. Lexington).
 
     Taxpayers can also mail their payment to the address on their bill. Payments must be received or USPS postmarked by December 31 to avoid penalty.
 
     As a reminder, all County locations and the online payment vendor’s offices will be closed on December 31, 2021 in observation of the New Year.
 

     Jackson County Executive Frank White, Jr. today issued Executive Order 21-30 announcing the Reapportionment Committee of the County Legislature. In accordance with the Constitutional Home Rule Charter of Jackson County, County Executive White selected three nominees from a slate of six submitted by the Democratic and Republican County Committees.                 
     Each of the appointed committee members represent the six county legislative districts.
 
Mr. Bobbie Hernandez (D) 1st Legislative District
Ms. Shalonn “Kiki” Curls (D) 2nd Legislative District
Mr. Paul Jungmann (R) 3rd Legislative District
Mr. Ralph Munyan (R) 4th Legislative District
Ms. Ruth Pirch (R) 5th Legislative District
Mr. Phil LeVota (D) 6th Legislative District
 
     “Jackson County is growing larger and more diverse,” Jackson County Executive Frank White, Jr. said.
     “In the last 10 years, we have grown faster than major metropolitan areas like Los Angeles, Chicago, St. Louis City and St. Louis County. Additionally, I am proud to say that we are the most diverse County in the State of Missouri. As we work to build a better, more equitable Jackson County, the effort of this committee is critical to ensuring our residents have equal and fair representation for the next 10 years. I appreciate their service and my staff and I stand ready to assist as needed.”
     Following the opportunity to receive input from the public, the committee must issue a report detailing legislative districts that are “compact, of contiguous territory and as nearly of equal population as practicable.” The report shall be filed with the County Executive’s Office, the Clerk of Legislature and the relevant election authorities within 60 days of the Committee’s appointment.
 

Jackson County Public Works Environmental Health Division inspects all restaurants, grocery stores, schools, mobile food and temporary food establishments in the City of Grain Valley. The following violations were reported in the last 30 days:
 
El Tequilazo Cocina Y Cantina LLC
522 S Main Street
Multiple spray bottles were not labeled with the name of chemical inside.
Corrected On:10/26/2021
Inside the ice machine had accumulation of black build up. Corrected On:10/26/2021
Observed ice buildup around the opening of the reach in freezer. Observed ice buildup in the back of the reach in cooler. Correct By:12/25/2021
Knives were observed stored in the crevice between the prep table and shelf. Knives were cleaned and sanitized and placed on clean portion of table. Observed bowls stored in several containers of spices, sugar, and flour. Corrected On:10/26/2021
Observed dishes stored in hand washing sink next to dish washer. Corrected On:10/26/2021
Observed several containers of food stored in the walk in cooler not covered.
Correct By:12/25/2021
No paper towels available at the hand washing sink.
Correct By:12/25/2021
Prepared food containers in walk in cooler were not dated with discard date. Corrected On:10/26/2021
Observed raw chicken stored above raw shrimp in the reach in cooler. Chicken was moved to the bottom of the shelf. Corrected On:10/26/2021
 
Price Chopper #325 -Kitchen /Deli/Salad Bar
1191 NE. McQuerry Rd.
Noticed a lot of fruit flies in the kitchen sink area. Correct By:12/25/2021 
Noticed that the smoke meats in the hot case did not have sell by dates on the packages. Corrected On:10/26/2021
Noticed empolyee jacket on package food. Corrected On:10/26/2021
Noticed that sanitizer buckets on the prep table near food. Corrected On:10/26/2021
 
Mactan Asian Market
1438 SW Eagles Parkway
Observed several cases of food stored on the floor in the back storage area and on the floor in the service area. Correct By:12/25/2021
​
El Maguey Mexican Restaurant
102 Buckner-Tarsney Rd.
Observed aluminum covering shelving in the reach in cooler and on the shelf in the beverage station. Cardboard was observed being used to cover shelving by the back door. Correct By:12/27/2021
Observed reach in cooler in the beverage area with accumulation of ice buildup.
Correct By:12/27/2021
Under the cook top had accumulation of debris. Gaskets to the reach in prep table had accumulation of buildup and debris. Beer cooler shelving had accumulation of black build up. Correct By:12/27/2021
Observed two jugs of chocolate milk past discard date 10/24/2021. Corrected On:10/28/2021
Observed no temperature measuring device located in the tall reach in cooler by the beverage area. Correct By:12/27/2021
Observed gaskets to the tall reach in cooler with torn and broken gaskets.
Correct By:12/27/2021
 
McDonald’s
712 N Main
Observed liquid build up on the frappe machine nozzle. (cleaned and sanitized)
Corrected On:10/28/2021
No temperature measuring device in the reach in cooler next to the egg cooker.  No temperature measuring device in the prep reach in cooler next to the oven.
Correct By:12/27/2021
Observed liquid spills/debris in the cabinet under the drink station in lobby. (next to the old ketchup dispenser) Observed liquid spill/debris in the cabinet under the frozen drink station. Correct By:12/27/2021
 
Shifting Gears Bar & Grill
511 Main Street
No violations recorded.
 
Country Oak Village
101 Cross Creek Dr
No violations recorded.
 
Valley Nutrition
201 N Main
Temperature measuring device was missing from reach in cooler. Correct By: 1/1/2022
 
Iron Kettle Brewing
508 N Main
Observed an unlabeled chemical bottle, chemical bottle was labeled. Corrected On:11/4/2021. The dish machine in the bar area has a black colored buildup.
Correct By:1/3/2022
 
 
 
 

​     Your magical 4.5 mile bike ride through the hundreds of lighted, animated displays at Jackson County's Christmas in the Park begins on Sunday, November 21st from 6:00pm – 7:00pm at the Frank White, Jr., Softball Complex, continues along County Park Road and through Christmas in the Park.                 
     For the safety of all, there will not be a pre-gathering area or announcements before the event. Riders may simply park in the Lee's Summit Community Center parking lot and make their way onto the course.      
     Adult cyclist ride at 6:00pm; families with children ride at 6:15pm. The route is dark and hilly, and may not be suitable for children under the age of 10.
 

     The Jackson County Legislature voted  November 1st to extend the indoor mask mandate until November 22nd, with five voting for the extension, two members absent, and members Dan Tarwater III and Jeanie Lauer voting against the resolution.
     In a release, County Executive Frank White, Jr., stated,
     “Over the past several weeks we have made significant progress in reducing the spread of coronavirus by wearing masks. However, we have not yet reached the CDC threshold that would no longer categorize our community as a high or substantial area of virus transmission. Thanks to the community’s continued sacrifice and resilience, we are very close to where we need to be. But until then, it is important for everyone to keep wearing their masks in public indoor places to provide the most protection for our children, who will soon have the opportunity to get vaccinated.”
      White continued, “From the beginning, I have said I will trust and follow the science, as well as the CDC and health officials’ recommendations to determine how we move forward safely. These decisions have never been easy for me or the County Legislature and today, a majority of the members did what they believe is in the best interest of our community’s well-being. We will continue to analyze the data and provide the Legislature with all information necessary to ensure we can make informed, life-saving decisions together.”
 

​     The Jackson County Health Department is now offering Moderna and Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 booster doses at all of its COVID-19 vaccine clinics to eligible populations. 
     Booster doses are now recommended for all Johnson & Johnson recipients as well as some Pfizer/Moderna recipients. Eligible Pfizer and Moderna recipients include those who have been fully vaccinated for at least six months and have certain medical conditions, are age 65+, or work/live in a setting with a high risk of COVID-19. Everyone who received a Johnson & Johnson shot is eligible for a booster dose after two months. 
     Community members interested in receiving a booster dose are invited to visit jacohd.org/booster-doses to check their eligibility or schedule an appointment.