RATING ON UNIMPROVED VALUES.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLVIII, Issue 8106, 8 October 1904, Page 2

RATING ON UNIMPROVED VALUES.

The case of the ratepayer brought before the Borough Council the other evening was certainly rather hard, and we do not suppose any one will object to the Council's decision, as an act of grace, to grant a remission. But, as Cr. Sargeson said, it amounted to giving away the principle of rating on unimproved values. The principle of that system, we take it, is that individuals shall not be considered, that the annual return ot the absence of any annual return from ratable property shall not be considered. The idea is to rate not persons, not property generally, not income — simply land irrespective of whether it is held profitably or unprofitably. When objectors have pointed out that under such taxation they would be unduly taxed on land which they cannot make productive, the unsympathetic answer has 6iniply been: Dispose of it to sonic one who can ; and it is of no use replying that in the nature of things it is impossible for all the land in a town or borough to be profitably used as building sites. That view is ignored. The purpose is to hit speculative landholders, and that purpose is in the abstract good. The unfortunate thing is that people who are not land speculators get hit just as badly. W.e shall not be surprised if the Council get more applications for remission. For instance, some of the tenants of its grazing reserves feel the pinch severely. Yet it must be borne in mind that as the rate must all come from the land in the borough every remission means that so much more has to be found by tho other landholders.