Issue - meetings

The Executive Member for Finance and Governance and the Director of Finance submitted a report for Executive’s consideration.

The report was part of the process to set the council tax base for the financial year 2023/24 by the statutory deadline of 31 January 2023.

The Council had a legal obligation to calculate a council tax base each financial year. The calculation of the council tax base was a part of the Council’s budget strategy which formed part of the Council’s Policy Framework, and as such must be agreed by Full Council.

The starting point for the calculation of the 2023/24 tax base was the number of dwellings on the Valuation List, provided by the Government’s Valuation Office. The figures were also adjusted for exempt dwellings and for dwellings subject to disabled reduction.

The number of chargeable dwellings in each band was further adjusted for discounts, exemptions, premiums, and council tax support.

The resultant figure (line 1 of Appendix 1) was the total equivalent number of dwellings which were then converted using ratios (in line 2) into the number of Band D equivalents (line 3), specified in the 1992 Act. For 2023/24, the equivalent number of Band D properties was calculated at 36,703.4.

OPTIONS

Not applicable to this report, as the Council had no option but to calculate a council tax base as it was a statutory requirement.

ORDERED That Executive:-

1.    Noted the contents of the report;

2.    Endorsed the council tax base for 2023/24 as 35,749;

3.    Endorsed 2,269 and 1,319 as the council tax bases for the parishes of Nunthorpe and Stainton & Thornton respectively for 2023/24;

4.    Noted that the report was to be presented to Council on 11th January 2023, and that following approval the Police and Crime Commissioner, the Cleveland Fire Authority and the Parish Councils were notified of the 2023/24 council tax base

REASONS

The recommendations are supported by the following reasons: -

a)    The Local Government Finance Act 1992 required a billing authority to calculate its council tax base for each financial year.

b)    The method of calculation was specified in the Local Authorities (Calculation of Council Tax Base) (England) Regulations 2012, which required the calculation to be approved before 31st January in the year proceeding the relevant financial year.