Issue - meetings

Council Tax Discounts

 

 

Meeting: 03/02/2020 - Strategy and Resources Committee (Item 101)

101 Council Tax Discounts pdf icon PDF 141 KB

Report by Revenues and Benefits Manager (attached).

Minutes:

Councillors Lane, Prowse and Yabsley declared personal interests in the above item as benefit from Council Tax discounts as owned properties that were empty.

 

The Committee considered a report by the Revenues and Benefits Manager (circulated previously) regarding Council Tax Discounts relating to certain properties for the financial year commencing 1 April 2020.

 

The Head of Resources highlighted the following:

 

·         Section 12 (2) of the Local Government Finance Act 2012 allowed local authorities to set a council tax rate for long term empty properties of up to 200% of the normal liability. A ‘long term empty property’ must have been unoccupied and substantially unfurnished for at least two years

·         From 1 April 2020 the Rating (Property in Common Occupation) and Council Tax (Empty Dwellings) Act 2018 enabled Councils to charge a maximum of 300% of the normal liability against property that has been unoccupied and unfurnished for at least 5 years.

·         From 1 April 2021 the Act also enabled Councils to charge a maximum of 400% of the normal liability against property that had been unoccupied and unfurnished for at least 10 years.

·         The changes were a drive by Government to bring empty properties back into use.

 

RECOMMENDED that Council makes the following determinations in relation to the classes of dwellings set out below for the financial year commencing 1 April 2020 :

 

(a)

Class A and Class B

 

Unoccupied and furnished properties

Set a 0% discount, thereby levying full council tax

 

(b)

Classes A and B do not include any dwelling –

 

a)    Which consists of a pitch occupied by a caravan or a mooring occupied by a boat

b)    Where a qualifying person in relation to that dwelling is a qualifying person in relation to another dwelling in England, Wales or Scotland which is job related

c)    Which for a qualifying person is job related where that person is a qualifying person in relation to another dwelling in England, Wales or Scotland

 

(c)

Class C

 

Unoccupied and substantially unfurnished properties  

Set a discount of 100%, for up to three months.

 

(d)

For the purpose of Class C, in considering whether a dwelling has been unoccupied for any period, any one period, not exceeding six weeks, during which it was occupied shall be disregarded;

 

(e)

Properties which have been unoccupied and substantially unfurnished for over two years, levy the empty home premium of 200% of the normal liability;

 

(f)

Properties which have been unoccupied and substantially unfurnished for over five years, levy the empty home premium of 300% of the normal liability;

 

(g)

That from April 2021 properties which have been unoccupied and substantially unfurnished for over ten years, levy the empty home premium of 400% of the normal liability.