A RATING POINT

Evening Post, Volume CX, Issue 35, 9 August 1930, Page 13

A RATING POINT

COURT'S INTERPRETATION

Judgment was delivered by the Full Court yesterday in a case in which section 69 of the Eating Act, 1925, was under consideration, in eases where the system of rating on unimproved value was in force. The defendant, Arthur ■ George Buchanan, commission agent, of Auckland, it was stated, was the owner of property, on which there was a dwelling house, in Queen street, Northcotc, where rating on unimproved value was in force. His property was vacant for six months of the rating year, 1929, and having given notice as required by section 69 of the Act, he applied for remission of half the rates levied. Mr. J. O'Shea (Wellington), who appeared for the Northcote Borough Council, submitted that section 69 was not applicable where tho rating was on unimproved value. Section 69 states.—"ln every : case where: (a) Any dwellingrhouse or other building remains actually vacant • and unoccupied for a period of not less than six months in any rating-year whether continuously or not; and (b) T,ho person ra^ed in - respect thereof gives to the local authority, within fourteen days after the expiration of such period, notice in writing of the dates on which such house or building became vacant and unoccupied, and on which it again became occupied— then such person shall be liable to pay only half-the amount which would otherwise be payable for tho year's rates in respect of such dwclling-houso or other building, and shall bo entitled to a refund of whatever sum he may have paid in excess of such half." In the course of his judgment, Sir Michael Myers, (Chief Justice), in delivering the judgment of the Court, stated: — • ■ . "W© can see no reason whatever for limiting the construction of section 69 in the manner contended for by Mr. O'Shea. Beading the words 'such dwel-ling-house or other building,1 as we think they must be read, as meaning the land and the dwelling-house, or what is the same thing, the clwelhngliouse or building and tho land within its curtilage, the basis or system upon which the property, is rated seems to us to be quit© immaterial.'Where a person owns land upon which a 'dwel-ling-house is erected his rates are still 'payable,' whatever tho basis or system may be upon which the rates are made and levied. The point is, we think, that the words 'in respect of such dwelling-house or other building,' whatever they may mean—and we havo indicated what we think they mean—apply to the same subject matter whatever the basis or system of the rating may be. When once this point is appreciated the supposed difficulty ceases; and it follows that section 69 does apply to a district whore the system of rating is on the unimproved value, as well as to districts where the system in force is that of rating on either the annual value or the capital value."