RATING FARM LANDS

Stratford Evening Post, Issue 44, 5 December 1929, Page 3

RATING FARM LANDS

1 BASIS OF ASSESSMENT. The following is from the latest issue, of “Board and council” : Amongst the opposition which dce upod against the Urban barm Lands Baling Bill was numbered the institute of Town Clerks, members of which favoured a. system of rating 'relief based on valuations, i&i preference to the method of classification proposed in the bill, -Lem method of rating put forward by the president, Mr. P. Skoglund, and which is considered by the Institute to bo more practicable, is based on that in force in England to afford affrioui tujrat |L;uulst relief from rating. in a statement on the subject, Mr. Skoglund say s that the English Bating paid Valuation Act, 1925, states definitely that every rate shall be be a rate at a uniform amount per, pound, artel this Act also prescribes the amount of relief to be given to agricultural lairds. The N.Z. Urban Farm Lands Aatirrg Bill provided for differentiation of rates by rating. This method will not allow the maintenance of a uniform rate in tiro pound, and it is for a uniform rate they are asking. “The uniform rate in the pound can bo ma^utaijued, 1 if differentiation is made by valuation, as in Engand, 'and ffhig is the point which lias, apparently, been misunderstood”, Mr. Skoglund observes. “It lias been inferred that to differentiate by valuation the Valuation Department, would have to reduce values below what tire department considers fair and reasonable”. That such is not the case is demonstrated by a state 1 - mdnt which it had been intended to send to all members of Parliament through the institute. As the bill Was not proceeded with tins course was (not followed; but tiro details are nevertheless.interesting to those concerned. Following is the substance f — •

MAINTENANCE OF UNIFORM RATE, It i s understood that- the ValuerGeneral hag a decided objection to value lands on ■ a lower scale than what be deems to be the actual value in order to enable a uniform rate in the £to be maintained. The object of a uniform rate, however, can. be ' achieved without , asking the Valuer-General to depart from the usual method of valuing.. The Valuation Department can fix tile valuations at what is deemed to b > the correct value. The commission it is proposed to set up can assess the percentage of relief farm, lands are entitled to. 'The rating authority can give the' relief by reducing the valuation per medium of the rate book. For instance if the valuation in the valuation roll is shown as £IOO thi s amount will he entered hi the rate hook; a second column will show the percentage of relief to be given ; and the third column will show the actual amount on which to istrike the rate. Thus the rating authority maintains the uniform rate. The difference between the uniform rate and the method proposed in the bill can bo better illustrated by an actual example.. Maintenance of uniform rate, three different classes of property, rate, say, 5d in the pound : Class 1, valuation as P or valuation Roll £IOO, relief 10 per cent., valuation for rating £9O, rate sd, amount of rate £1 17s 6d; class 2, £IOO, 20 per cent..

£SCi 5(1, £1 13s 4d; class 3, £IOO, no relief, sd, £2 Is 8d; total valuation for rating £270, total rate £o 12s 6d. The uniform rate is maintained and the figures will balance, ■viz, £270 at 5d equals £5 12s 6d. Method proposed in the Bill: Class 1, valuation as per Valuation Roll £IOO, 10 per cent, relief, rate 4ld, amount of rate £1 17s Gd, class 2, £IOO, 20 per cent., rate 4d, £1 13s 4d ; ’dass it £IOO. no relief, sd, £2 Is S(D total valuation Hot; rating £3OO, total rate £5 12s Gdh. To balance the figures under this method the rate hook would have -to be divided into three 'separate divisions, a separate division for each class of land. The amount of work entailed/ and the complications that might arise from this method both in compiling and auditing the rate hook, can he imagined. - When the method of making the relief allowance on the valuation was pointed out to the Minister he said the valuation arrived at would he a fictitious one. If that statement is a logical one then the term “fictitious” must also he applied ■ to the result of an allowance made , 0 n a , into. Both systems achieve the same result with this difference; the former is much the simpler one.