Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising this matter. Unfortunately, the Minister, Deputy Simon Coveney, is before the Select Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government and I will be taking this matter on his behalf.

Local authorities are under a statutory obligation to levy rates on any property used for commercial purposes in accordance with the details entered in the valuation lists prepared by the independent Commissioner of Valuation pursuant to the Valuation Acts 2001 to 2015. The Local Government Act 1946 provides that where a property is unoccupied on the date of the making of the rate, the owner becomes liable for rates. However, the owner may be entitled to a refund if the property is vacant for specified purposes, the specified purposes being as follows: if the premises are unoccupied for the purpose of making additions, alterations or repairs; where the owner is bona fide unable to obtain a suitable tenant at a reasonable rent and where the premises are vacant pending redevelopment. The collection of rates and the determination of eligibility for a refund in this context are matters for each individual local authority. The Local Government Act 1946 provided that the owner was entitled to a 100% refund in most local authority areas. Separate legislation governed refunds in the cities of Dublin, Limerick and Cork where the same criteria for refunds applied, but only 50% of the rates paid were refundable.

With effect from 1 June 2014, when the relevant provision commenced, the Local Government Reform Act 2014 gives discretion to the elected members of individual local authorities to vary the levels of rates refunds that apply in individual local electoral areas within the authority’s administrative area. The Local Government (Financial and Audit Procedures) Regulations 2014 provide that the decision to alter the rate of refund should be taken at the annual budget meeting and that the rate of refund decided in respect of the relevant local electoral area shall apply to eligible persons for the year to which the budget relates. The absence of a decision to vary the refund means that the existing legislative provisions regarding the rate of refunds apply, that is, either 100% or 50%, as set out.

The legislative basis for the levying of rates is spread over a number of enactments, some dating back to the 19th century. Many of the provisions are outdated and not suitable for business trends in the modern era. The Minister will shortly be bringing proposals to the Government to modernise the legislation governing the levying and collection of commercial rates. The proposals will include measures for the elected members of a local authority to determine, as part of the annual budget process, the level of abatement from rates where a property is vacant. The Minister envisages that the new legislation will be brought before the Houses later in 2017.