Barry Cowen (Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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106. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if a business undergoing a revaluation for the purposes of commercial rates and which decides to appeal the results of the revaluation process could be subject to an increase in its valuation; if so, her views on whether it is unfair; and if she will review this matter. [12897/17]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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Decisions on valuation appeals are a matter for the Valuation Tribunal which is a statutorily independent body established to hear appeals against determinations of the Commissioner of Valuation. I, as Minister for Minister for Justice and Equality, have no role in either of the decision-making processes.

The revaluation provisions in the Valuation Acts 2001 to 2015 provide for revaluation of all rateable property within a rating authority area to reflect changes in value due to economic factors, differential movements in property values or other external factors such as road or other infrastructural development in the vicinity of a property. The purpose of revaluation is to bring more equity, fairness and transparency into the local authority rating system - distributing the commercial rates liability more equitably between ratepayers. Following revaluation, there is generally a much closer and uniform relationship between rental values of property and their commercial rates liability.

The Valuation Acts provide several avenues of redress for the occupiers of property and for a number of other categories of persons listed in the legislation who are dissatisfied with a determination of value under the provisions of the legislation. Firstly, there is a statutory right for the occupier of a property to make representations within 40 days to the Valuation Office in relation to the proposed valuation to be placed on their property. Since the statutory mandate of the Valuation Office is to ensure that valuations of all rateable property are correct, equitable and uniform, relative to each other, consideration of representations made to the Office in respect of an individual property may result in a decrease, increase or no change in the valuation of that subject property. The outcome is based on the evidence provided to and available to the Valuation Office. In any event, this outcome may be the subject of an appeal to the independent Valuation Tribunal. Finally, there is a right of appeal to the Higher Courts on a point of law.

With regard to the Deputy’s specific question in relation to the appeal process to the Valuation Tribunal, the legislation specifies the categories of persons who have a right to appeal to the Valuation Tribunal. These include (a) an occupier of the subject property under appeal; (b) an occupier of other rateable property situated in the same local authority area as the property under appeal; (c) a rating authority; and (d) a person, in respect of any property in relation to which he or she is an interest holder. While in most cases, the appellant is usually the occupier of the premises subject to revaluation or their professional representative, it is possible for a person listed in categories (b) to (d) to lodge an appeal. In determining an appeal the Valuation Tribunal may, under Section 37 of the Valuation Act 2001 as amended by the Valuation (Amendment) Act 2015, decrease or increase a valuation or determine that no change is warranted.

In reaching its decisions, the statutory duty of the members of the Valuation Tribunal is to ensure that valuations are (insofar as is reasonably practical) correct, equitable and uniform, relative to each other. The professional expertise in both law and valuation practice of the Tribunal members is brought to bear in arriving at such decisions. Therefore I have no reason to consider that the decisions of the Valuation Tribunal are unfair in circumstances where the valuation of a property is reduced, remains the same or is increased. Appeals to the Tribunal are dealt with in a comprehensive manner involving the consideration on a quasi-judicial basis of detailed, formal written documentation submitted to it. The Tribunal can hold hearings as provided for in the legislation which allows for the taking of oral evidence and the receipt and consideration of written submissions made to it by and on behalf of all parties to the appeal concerned, including any person appearing to the Tribunal to have an interest in or be likely to be affected by the determination of the appeal. When issuing its decisions, the Valuation Tribunal issues formal, written judgments which provide clear and cogent reasons for its decisions and these judgments are available to the public on the Tribunal’s website, www.valuationtribunal.ie.