Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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228. To ask the Minister for Finance the number of persons who opted to pay their local property tax by way of weekly deduction from their social welfare payment; if he will confirm the total local property tax liability of those persons for 2013; the number of those people in respect of whom deductions from their weekly social welfare payment have commenced and the total amount collected to date; if he will further confirm the number of those persons in respect of whom deductions from their weekly social welfare payment have not yet commenced; and the reasons for same. [38380/13]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by the Revenue Commissioners that property owners in respect of approximately 15,500 residential properties, representing a total declared liability for 2013 of approximately €2.26 million, have opted to pay their Local Property Tax (LPT) by way of deduction at source from a Social Welfare payment. The Commissioners also advise that in the majority of cases, deductions from Social Welfare payments have already commenced and approximately €720,000 has been collected by Revenue to date. I am further advised that certain issues arose with this payment option, whereby a number of property owners selected the wrong Social Welfare payment type. This was subsequently corrected and deduction at source in these cases should have already commenced. In a further category of cases that opted for this payment type, the person either selected a Social Welfare payment type for which deduction at source did not apply, or was found not to be in receipt of any Social Welfare payment. In these instances, Revenue contacted the property owner directly advising him or her to select an alternative payment option. The Commissioners also advise that, where operational and administrative issues have arisen, they have been addressed on a case by case basis, and there may be a residue of cases where deduction at source from Social Welfare payments has not yet commenced as these are currently being worked by Revenue. I am advised that it is not possible to provide details of the numbers concerned but they represent a small subset of the numbers who have selected this payment option. For completeness, the Social Welfare payments from which LPT may be paid via deduction at source are as follows: State Pension (Contributory); State Pension (Non-Contributory); Widow/widower's or Surviving Civil Partner's Contributory Pension; Widow/widower's or Surviving Civil Partner's Non-Contributory Pension; State Pension (Transition); One Parent Family Payment; Invalidity Pension; Carer's Allowance; Disability Allowance; and Blind Pension.