This section is the Rates Remission and Postponement Policy extract from the Hawke's Bay Regional Council's Long Term Council Community Plan 2004-2014.
It covers criteria, conditions and management of::
Introduction
Maori freehold land is defined in the Local Government (Rating) Act 2002 (LGRA) as land whose beneficial ownership has been determined by a freehold order issued by the Maori Land Court. Only land that is the subject of such an order may qualify for remission or postponement under this policy. Whether rates are remitted or postponed in any individual case will depend on the individual circumstances of each application.
This policy has been formulated for the purpose of:
- ensuring the fair and equitable collection of rates from all sectors of the community by recognising that certain Maori owned lands have particular conditions, features, ownership structures or other circumstances that make it appropriate to provide relief from rates
- meeting the requirements of Sections 102 and 108 and the matters in Schedule 11 of the Local Government Act 2002 to have a policy on the remission and postponement of rates on Maori freehold land.
Objectives
The objectives of this policy are:
- to recognise situations where there is no occupier or person gaining an economic or financial benefit from the land
- to set aside land for conservation purposes because of its natural features
- to recognise and take account of the presence of waahi tapu (sacred areas) that may affect the use of the land for other purposes
- where only part of a block is occupied, to grant remission for the portion of land not occupied.
Conditions and criteria
- Application for a remission or postponement under this policy must be made by the person(s) liable for rates for the land (e.g. owners or trustees), or a person appointed by the Maori Land Court, or other authorised agent of the owners of the land.
- The application is to be made in writing prior to thirty days of the due date of payment. Applications made after this cut-off date will apply from the beginning of the following rating year. From time-to-time the Council will review the appropriateness of remissions.
- The applicant must include the following information in their applications:
• details of the rating unit or units involved
• documentation that shows that the land qualifies as land whose beneficial ownership has been determined by a freehold order issued by the Maori Land Court
• details supporting the applicants eligibility under clause 5 below
- Relief and the extent thereof, is at the sole discretion of the Council and may be cancelled or reduced at any time.
- The Council may grant a remission on Maori freehold land of up to 100% of all rates for the year to which the application applies, based on the following criteria:
i) the land is in multiple ownership
ii) where the level of gross income derived from the land is not sufficient to cover the cost of rates levied on that land
iii) where it is not possible to identify or locate the owners, or those liable to pay rates on the land
iv) the support for the use of the land by the owners for traditional purposes
v) the support for the relationship of Maori and their culture and traditions with their ancestral lands
vi) recognition of the presence of sacred areas (waahi tapu) that may affect the use of the land for other purposes
vii) recognition of the importance of the land for community goals relating to:
• the preservation of the natural character of the coastal environment
• the protection of outstanding natural features
• the protection of significant indigenous vegetation and significant habitats of indigenous fauna
- No application under this policy will be automatically backdated; however, having granted a remission on a property under the criteria laid down in clause 5 (above), the Council may remit (write-off) outstanding arrears owing on that same property.
Delegated Authority
Decisions on the remission and postponement of rates on Maori freehold land are delegated to the Group Manager Corporate Services or the General Manager.
Review of Policy
This policy will be reviewed on at least a three yearly basis, to ensure that the conditions and criteria on which the policy is based, continue to be relevant and appropriate.
Introduction
In order to allow rate relief where it is considered fair and reasonable to do so, Council is required to adopt policies specifying the circumstances under which rates will be considered for remission. There are various types of remission, and circumstances under which a remission will be considered are set out below. A remission will not be granted in addition to any entity who has qualified under the LGRA of partial non rating under Part 2 of Schedule 1 of the LGRA. The conditions and criteria relating to each type of remission are also set out below. This policy is prepared under Section 109 of the Local Government Act 2002, for consultation using the Special Consultative Procedure, as laid down in Section 83 of the same Act.
Part 1 – Remission of Rates in Special Circumstances
Policy objective
To provide for the possibility of a rates remission in circumstances that have not been specifically addressed in other parts of the Council’s rating policy.
Conditions and criteria
- The Council may remit all or part of the rates assessed in relation to a particular rating unit in special or unforeseen circumstances where it considers it just and equitable to do so.
- The approval of the remission must not set a precedent that unfairly disadvantages other ratepayers.
- A remission under this policy will apply for one year only. Applicants must reapply annually.
- No application under this policy will be backdated. Rates arrears on the land as at 1 July 2004 will remain outstanding until such time as the Council is no longer legally able to pursue the collection of the rates.
- All applications must be received in writing detailing the rating unit(s) involved and any other relevant information supporting the applicants eligibility for the remission.
- The application for a rates remission must be made prior to 7 days of the due date of payment.
Delegation
Decisions relating to the remission of rates special circumstances are retained by Council.
Review of Policy
This policy will be reviewed on at least a 3 yearly basis, to ensure that the conditions and criteria on which the policy is based, continue to be relevant and appropriate.
Part 2 – Remission of Penalties on Rates
Objective
To enable the Council to act fairly and reasonably when rates have not been received by the due date.
Conditions and criteria
Upon receipt of an application from the ratepayer, or if identified by the Council, the Council may remit a penalty where:
- it is demonstrated that the penalty has been levied because of an error by Council, or
- it considers that it is fair and equitable to do so.
Matters that will be taken into consideration by the Council under (B) above include the following:
- the ratepayer’s payment history
- the ratepayer entering into an agreement with the Council for the payment of rates.
The Council reserves the right to impose conditions on the remission of penalties.
Delegation
Decisions relating to the remission of penalties on rates are delegated to the Group Manager Corporate Services or General Manager.
Review of Policy
This policy will be reviewed on at least a 3 yearly basis, to ensure that the conditions and criteria on which the policy is based, continue to be relevant and appropriate.
Objective
- To assist ratepayers experiencing short term extreme financial hardship that affects their ability to pay rates.
- To assist ratepayers whose property has been subject to a natural disaster to the extent that ratepayer is unable to pay rates
Conditions and Criteria
The financial hardship must be caused by circumstances beyond the ratepayer’s control. The postponement of rates in cases of financial hardship is a last resort to assist residents who own the property to which the postponement application applies.
Criteria for the postponement of rates for ratepayers in cases of hardship are as follows:
- The applicant can illustrate a postponement of rates will help them overcome their short term extreme financial hardship.
- The applicant has no access to other funds to pay the rates due.
Criteria for the postponement of rates for ratepayers in cases of natural disaster are as follows:
- The applicant is unable to pay their rates bill because of a natural disaster or severe weather event that has severely impacted on their ability to pay rates but a postponement will help to enable them to pay in the future.
Other Conditions
Approval of rates postponement is for one year only. The applicant must reapply annually for the continuation of a rates postponement.
Delegation
Decisions relating to the postponement of rates in cases of financial hardship are delegated to the General Manager.
Decisions relating to the postponement of rates in cases of natural disaster are retained by the Council.
Review of Policy
This policy will be reviewed on at least a 3 yearly basis, to ensure that the conditions and criteria on which the policy is based, continue to be relevant and appropriate.
Remission for Uniform Annual General Charges (UAGC)
Introduction
In order to allow rate relief where it is considered fair and reasonable to do so, Council is required to adopt policies to specify the circumstances under which rates will be considered for remission. This policy is prepared under section 109 of the Local Government Act 2002 for consultation using the special consultative procedure as laid down in Section 83 of the Act.
Policy Objectives
- To provide relief to ratepayers who occupy several near adjacent rating units, but which do not meet the criteria for contiguity under section 20 of the Local Government (Rating) Act 2002.
- To encourage sub-divisional development in urban areas.
Remissions under the Local Government (Rating) Act 2002
Section 20 of the Local Government (Rating) Act 2002, stipulates that there shall be one property for the purposes of levying the UAGC, where two or more separately rateable properties are:
- occupied by the same ratepayer (owner or person with right to occupy by virtue of lease for more than 12 months); and
- used jointly as a single property (for the same purpose); and
- contiguous but separated only by road, railway, train, water race, river or stream, they shall be deemed to be one property for the purposes of any Uniform Annual General Charges.
Where not already reflected on Council's rating information database, Council will allow, without any further enquiry, (except for clarification), applications made by ratepayers in the form of a statutory declaration to the effect that two or more separately rated properties are occupied by the same ratepayer and used jointly for the same purpose, the Uniform Annual General Charge levied on the second and subsequent assessments will be cancelled.
Conditions and Criteria to achieve Policy Objectives
- Where farming or horticultural operations conducted on separate blocks of land are so far apart so as to indicate that there is no possible continuancy between them, all charges may be levied on each; however, factors such as distance, stock rotation, stock driving, etc., property size and the number of properties effected, will be taken into account in determining whether remission should apply:
a. without dwellings:
Where a single operation is operated over a number of separate rating units, or blocks of separate rating units within close proximity the 'flagship' (major rating) may be levied a full charge and the associated rating units and may receive a 100% reduction.
b. with dwellings:
Where a single operation is operated over a number of separate rating units, or blocks of separate rating units within close proximity a charge may be levied against each rating unit with a habitable dwelling and the associated units may receive a 100% reduction.
Where a single operation is operated over a number of separate blocks of contiguous rating units that contain dwellings, one full charge may apply to each block of such rating units.
- Miscellaneous
If a rating unit is of a size which would not enable a dwelling to be erected and where no dwelling exists, a 100% reduction in charge may apply.
Remission of the charge may apply to a subdivision for the period if the individual lots continue to be in the ownership of the developer.
- The application is to be made in writing 30 days prior to the due date of payment.
- All applications must be received in writing, detailing the rating unit/units involved and any other relevant information supporting the applicant's eligibility for the remission.
Delegation
Decisions relating to the remission of Uniform Annual General Charges are delegated to the Group Manager Corporate Services and Financial Accountant.
Review of Policy
This policy will be reviewed on at least a three yearly basis to ensure the conditions and criteria on which the policy is based, continue to be relevant and appropriate.