Agenda item

Council Tax Reduction Scheme and Council Tax Discounts

At its meeting on 6 October 2021 the Executive Committee considered the Council Tax Reduction Scheme and Council Tax Discounts and RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL:

1. That the default Council Tax Reduction Scheme be ADOPTED with effect from 1 April 2022, with a minor revision to the national working age regulations to allow for a de minimis tolerance for income changes of £10 or less per week.

2. That authority be delegated to the Head of Finance and Asset Management, in consultation with the Lead Member for Finance and Asset Management, to agree the uprating of the working age regulations incorporated into the local Council Tax Reduction Scheme in line with those announced by the Department for Work and Pensions.

3. That options for the working age Council Tax Reduction Scheme for 2023/24 are formally reviewed during the 2022/23 financial year.

4. That the following Council Tax discounts be ADOPTED effective from 1 April 2022:

· The discount for unoccupied and substantially unfurnished properties is 25% for a maximum period of six months.

· The discount for properties which are vacant and require major repair work to render them habitable is 25% for a maximum period of 12 months.

· The discount for unoccupied furnished properties (second homes) is zero.

· An empty homes premium of an additional 100% is levied on properties that have remained unoccupied and substantially unfurnished for at least two years, but less than five years.

· An empty homes premium of an additional 200% is levied on properties that have remained unoccupied and substantially unfurnished for at least five years, but less than ten years.

· An empty homes premium of an additional 300% is levied on properties that have remained unoccupied and substantially unfurnished for at least ten years.

Minutes:

34.15 At its meeting on 6 October 2021, the Executive Committee had considered the Council Tax Reduction Scheme and Council Tax Discounts and recommended to Council that the default Council Tax Reduction Scheme be adopted with effect from 1 April 2022, with a minor revision to the national working age regulations to allow for a de minimis tolerance for income changes of £10 or less per week; that authority be delegated to the Head of Finance and Asset Management, in consultation with the Lead Member for Finance and Asset Management, to agree the uprating of the working age regulations incorporated into the local Council Tax Reduction Scheme in line with those announced by the Department for Work and Pensions; that options for the working age Council Tax Reduction Scheme for 2023/24 are formally reviewed during the 2022/23 financial year; and that the following Council Tax discounts be adoptedeffective from 1 April 2022: the discount for unoccupied and substantially unfurnished properties is 25% for a maximum period of six months; the discount for properties which are vacant and require major repair work to render them habitable is 25% for a maximum period of 12 months; the discount for unoccupied furnished properties (second homes) is zero; an empty homes premium of an additional 100% is levied on properties that have remained unoccupied and substantially unfurnished for at least two years, but less than five years; an empty homes premium of an additional 200% is levied on properties that have remained unoccupied and substantially unfurnished for at least five years, but less than ten years; and an empty homes premium of an additional 300% is levied on properties that have remained unoccupied and substantially unfurnished for at least ten years.

34.16 The report which was considered by the Executive Committee had been circulated with the Agenda for the current meeting at Pages No. 129-133.

34.17 The Chair of the Executive Committee proposed the recommendation and the Vice-Chair seconded it.

34.18 A Member referred to paragraph 4 of the report, properties which were vacant but required major repair work to make them habitable, and questioned how that would be policed. In response, the Revenues and Benefits Manager explained that this was driven by case law. There was no definition as such but essentially it would be a property that someone could not live in. Every property received a visit from an inspector and there was a rigorous process to follow when determining properties that met that criteria. Another Member questioned what was being done to bring empty properties back into use and the Housing Services Manager indicated that this was something that would come forward through the review of the Housing Strategy; this would involve working with other services such as Council Tax, Housing and Environmental Health to look at identifying properties and how they could be brought back into use.

34.19 Accordingly, it was

RESOLVED 1. That the default Council Tax Reduction Scheme be ADOPTED with effect from 1 April 2022, with a minor revision to the national working age regulations to allow for a de minimis tolerance for income changes of £10 or less per week.