As expected, the St. Louis County Council voted 6-1 Tuesday night to approve a proposal to ask voters countywide on Aug. 3 whether they want to have an elected assessor, instead of an appointed one.

Tuesday's vote was identical to last week's initial approval, with only Councilman Greg Quinn (right), R-Ballwin, voting against the idea. Quinn said last week that he supports the idea of an elected assessor, but believes the countywide vote is unnecessary -- and the results possibly misleading -- because the entire state will vote on the matter Nov. 2.

The November vote is on a proposal by the Missouri Legislature, advanced last year, to require elected assessors in St. Louis and Kansas City, as well as St. Louis County. The measure exempts Jackson County, which surrounds Kansas City.

Council President Barbara Fraser, D-University City, is among the council's Democratic majority who agree with County Executive Charlie Dooley's assertion that it should be up to the county -- and not the state -- to decide whether the county and its big-city counterparts should eliminate the appointed assessor positions that they've had for at least 50 years.

Dooley (left) proposed the Aug. 3 vote several weeks ago, even though he admits that he prefers an appointed assessor, saying such a person can act in a more professional way without worrying about politics.

But Republicans, and some county residents, have been critical for years of the assessment process in St. Louis County -- asserting that assessments are higher than they should be, compared to rural Missouri, where assessors always have been elected.

County Republicans now accuse Dooley, a Democrat, of orchestrating the Aug. 3 vote because he doesn't want the matter to be part of his battle for re-election in November. His Republican rival, lawyer Bill Corrigan, called for an elected assessor last year.

During this debate, two questions remain unanswered:

• Whether a legal fight will ensue if county voters reject the elected assessor idea on Aug. 3, and statewide voters embrace it for the county, St. Louis and Kansas City.
• If a separate court battle wiill be sparked by the Nov. 2 statewide vote because it exempts Jackson County, which would  retain its appointed assessor.

And the reasons for exempting Jackson County are tied to politics, not policy. When the Legislature acted last year to order this year's election, Jackson County's legislators -- or, at least, the most influential members -- wanted no part of it.