Local Government (Rates and Charges Remissions) Amendment Act 2001
An Act to amend the Local Government (Rates and Charges Remissions) Act 1991
[Royal Assent 29 June 2001]
Be it enacted by His Excellency the Governor of Tasmania, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council and House of Assembly, in Parliament assembled, as follows:
This Act may be cited as the Local Government (Rates and Charges Remissions) Amendment Act 2001 .
This Act commences on 1 July 2001 or, if it has not received Royal Assent by that date, it is taken to have commenced on 1 July 2001.
In this Act, the Local Government (Rates and Charges Remissions) Act 1991 is referred to as the Principal Act.
4. Section 3 amended (Interpretation)
Section 3 of the Principal Act is amended as follows:(a) by omitting the definition of eligible pensioner and substituting the following definitions:charges means charges payable under Part 9 of the Local Government Act 1993 and, if a discount has been given, means the amount of charges actually paid, but does not include any penalty or interest charges imposed under that Act;eligible pensioner means the following:(a) the holder of a current Pensioner Concession Card issued under a relevant Act of the Commonwealth;(b) a war widow;(c) a war widower;(d) a totally and permanently incapacitated person;(b) by omitting the definition of rates and charges and substituting the following definition:rates means rates payable under Part 9 of the Local Government Act 1993 and, if a discount has been given, means the amount of rates actually paid, but does not include any penalty or interest charges imposed under that Act;(c) by omitting "rebate." from the definition of remission and substituting "rebate;";(d) by inserting the following definitions after the definition of remission :totally and permanently incapacitated person means a person to whom section 24 of the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986 of the Commonwealth applies;war widow means a war widow receiving a pension under Part II or IV of the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986 of the Commonwealth at a rate determined in accordance with subsection 30(1) of that Act;war widower means a war widower receiving a pension under Part II or IV of the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986 of the Commonwealth at a rate determined in accordance with subsection 30(1) of that Act.
5. Section 4 amended (Municipalities to remit rates and charges)
Section 4 of the Principal Act is amended as follows:(a) by inserting in subsection (1) "and subsection (3C) " after " subsection (2) ";(b) by omitting subsection (3) and substituting the following subsections:(3) For the purpose of subsection (1) (b) (ii) , a person is taken to have been occupying a property as a principal dwelling on the relevant date if –(a) in the case of a single person, that person was in a prescribed institution and did not receive any rental income from the property; or(b) in the case of a married person –(i) that person and that person's spouse were in a prescribed institution and neither person received any rental income from the property; or(ii) that person was in a prescribed institution and that person's spouse occupied the property as his or her principal place of residence.(3A) For the purpose of subsection (3)(a) , a person must provide a statutory declaration stating that the person –(a) was in a prescribed institution; and(b) did not receive rental income from the property.(3B) For the purpose of subsection (3)(b)(i) , a person must provide a statutory declaration stating that the person and the person's spouse –(a) were in a prescribed institution; and(b) did not receive rental income from the property.(3C) A person referred to in subsection (3)(a) or subsection (3)(b)(i) is only eligible for a remission of rates or charges for a period not exceeding 2 consecutive financial years.
Any remission of rates or charges made before 1 July 2001 under section 4 of the Principal Act was validly made if made to the following persons:(a) a person who is a totally and permanently incapacitated person to whom section 24 of the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986 of the Commonwealth applies;(b) a person who is a war widow or war widower receiving a pension under Part II or IV of the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986 of the Commonwealth at a rate determined in accordance with subsection 30(1) of that Act.
7. Entitlements not retrospective
A person who before 1 July 2001 is or was an eligible pensioner under the Principal Act, as in force before that date, but has not received any remission of rates or charges under section 4 of the Principal Act is not entitled to any remission of those rates or charges.
[Second reading presentation speech made in:
House of Assembly on 13 JUNE 2001
Legislative Council on 20 JUNE 2001]