FINANCE Minister Colm Imbert says the government will return to Parliament to bring “minor tweaking” to the Valuation of Land (Amendment) Bill 2023 which was passed in the Senate on Friday with 24 of the 30 senators voting for the bill.

In wrapping up, Imbert said there would be some minor adjustments to the law that would come soon, but did not identify what they were nor how soon he would bring them to Parliament.

In responding to the contribution by Opposition Senator Wade Mark, he said he could not see Mark's points adding that the shouting was uncalled for. Mark's attack on the legislation, Imbert said, were “a lot of hysteria, mis-information and untruths” in an aim to create political mischief.

He said the argument Mark's personal information and that of others being in the public domain is moot as the law, enacted 14 years ago, allows for the information Mark wants private to be shared.

The Government is yet to finalise an estimated revenue from the collection of property tax, Imbert said, adding that the law remained equitable as residential areas, based on the number of houses, will collect monies to facilitate the needs of that area, while larger communities with a higher financial demand, will also collect more in order to meet its needs.

Adding to the equity was the deferrals, which will be for pensioners, those receiving disability grants and other public assistance. It meant that those who could not afford to pay were not being made to do so. If the property was given to someone that could pay the taxes, then the regional corporations would collect, Imbert said.

Imbert said the collection of residential properties would begin this year while collection of agricultural and industrial property taxes would next year.

The delay, he said, is that industrial taxes are more difficult to tally as assessing plant and machinery values are different than homes. He said there would be consultation with stakeholders but he predicted that agricultural land taxes would be the easier of the two to tabulate.

Correcting an earlier mistake, he said the lowest payments would be $486 a year and not $540. Imbert said those wanting to have a payment plan could petition the Board of Inland Revenue but the government was not making provisions in law specifically for that.

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