Page 1329 - Week 07 - Thursday, 24 August 1989
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neutral, that the cost of the discount for early payers will exactly equal the extra revenue that comes from the late payers who have to incur interest. I very much doubt that there is such a fine balance between early payers and late payers, and I think that, with the incentive to pay, the Government may well find that they forgo their $1.27m worth of revenue by way of discount and they may not attract any additional income from interest at all. So there is a potential cost to the budget of $1.27m. I will be interested to see whether at the end of the year that $1.27m has been taken advantage of by the community and whether we have in fact received any revenue from late payers, particularly when late payers, if they have a real problem financially and simply cannot afford to pay the rate, can seek a remedy and have a waiver of that. I am sure that they will find that that interest is waived.
So while bringing those salient points of the Bill to the attention of the community, I think that it is an initiative that the Government has to take. The other two Bills are simply amendments to water and sewerage rates which allow the collection by the ACT Electricity and Water authority rather than by the ACT Administration, and we have no objection to their being dealt with cognately.
MR JENSEN (12.00): I note with interest the Rates and Land Tax (Amendment) Bill provides for a five per cent discount, but it seems to me that that is going to benefit those comfortably off, who will pay early. In fact I noticed that the Chief Minister said in her presentation speech:
A five per cent discount compares favourably with the after tax benefit ratepayers would receive if they decided to continue to pay by instalments and invest the second, third and final instalment moneys until they were required to make a rates payment.
Might I respectfully suggest that there are quite a number of people out there who would have some difficulties in being able to find the money to invest in that sort of way. So I would suggest that maybe that needs a little bit of consideration, and the Chief Minister may consider reductions for the not so well off, those people who cannot afford it, in meeting each instalment date - say a 1.25 per cent reduction if they meet their instalment date on time, if they wish to pay by instalments. That is just something that she may wish to consider. (Quorum formed)
As I said, I wonder whether the Chief Minister may consider that as an option. I would suggest it is particularly important for those less well off and householders out there who cannot find the necessary funds to pay their first instalment when due, and I would suggest that that would provide a similar sort of encouragement to them to pay their rates on time.
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