Page 2327 - Week 08 - Friday, 21 June 1991
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considerable administrative relief to cashiers through a reduction in keystrokes, reconciliations and associated checking functions.
Bill No. 1 addresses problems where one of the joint owners of land is the Commonwealth or a statutory authority of the Commonwealth which is exempt from rates and/or land tax charges by providing for recovery of rates and/or land tax charges for the whole property from a non-exempt joint owner. Currently the benefit of such an exemption flows to the non-exempt joint owner involved in a joint ownership arrangement; for example, Westfields at Belconnen, where one of the owners is a Commonwealth statutory authority and is exempted from land tax by enabling legislation. The non-exempt partner benefits from the reduced operating costs of the overall business arrangement. Other land owners are thus being disadvantaged by comparison.
Finally, Bill No. 1 proposes to bind the Crown in right of the Territory, the States and other Territories. This provision will ensure that State and Territory governments are liable to pay rates and land tax charges on properties owned in the ACT. In conclusion, the proposed amendments in Bill No. 1 will considerably improve the land revaluation system, enhance administrative procedures in the Revenue Office and increase revenue.
In relation to Bill No. 2, the Government is proposing these amendments to alter the urban and rural rates for 1990-91 and to make a minor administrative change. Bill No. 2 provides that the municipal rates for 1991-92 are to be 1.149 per cent of the unimproved value for land in the city area and 0.5745 per cent of the unimproved value for rural land.
This Bill also makes a minor administrative amendment. Section 15 of the principal Act is amended by omitting subsection (6) and a reference to subsection (6) in subparagraph 15(5)(b)(i). This subsection provides for fractions of a cent to be included in the last rates instalment and is no longer required because of an amendment to the Act proposed in Bill No 1. Amendment Bill No. 1 provides for all instalments to be equal, except for the first instalment.
The combined effect of the two Bills I have presented today is to increase the overall rates revenue from existing rateable properties by 4 per cent - the expected rate of increase in the consumer price index. Individual ratepayers may experience a change in their rates greater or less than 4 per cent due to the effect of the property revaluation which we propose will occur at the same time. By restricting the average increase to only 4 per cent the Government is seeking to protect ratepayers who were hit last year with an across the board 16.6 per cent increase by the Alliance Government. Mr Speaker, I now present the explanatory memoranda for the Bills.
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