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Council Tax Setting in Order to Meet the County Council's Council Tax Requirement for 2021/22

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Council Tax Setting in Order to Meet the County Council's Council Tax Requirement for 2021/22 County Council 24 February 2021 Council Tax Setting in Order to Meet the County Council’s Council Tax Requirement for 2021/22 Report of Paul Darby, Corporate Director of Resources (Interim) Councillor Alan Napier, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Finance Electoral division(s) affected: Countywide Purpose of the Report 1 To provide Members with financial information and forecasts to enable the Council to set the council tax for 2021/22. Executive summary 2 The Local Government Finance Act 1992 and subsequent amendments (the Act) requires the council to set its council tax before 11 March each year. 3 In setting the council tax, the council is required to make certain calculations and to approve a number of resolutions in accordance with the Act. The detailed calculations are set out in Appendices 2 to 5 to this report. 4 The recommended council tax at Band D for the council is £1,703.58 for 2021/22. This represents an increase of £49.46 or 2.99% from 2020/21 and is inclusive of an Adult Social Care precept of 1%, in line with Government guidance to cover the rising costs of Adult Social Care services to vulnerable adults. The council tax at Band D, including the County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Authority and the Durham Police, Crime and Victims’ Commissioner precepts is £2,041.37 in 2021/22. 5 County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Authority set a Band D council tax of £107.55 for 2021/22. This represents an increase of £2.07 or 1.96% year on year. 6 The Durham Police, Crime and Victims’ Commissioner set a Band D council tax of £230.24 for 2021/22. This represents an increase of £15.00 or 6.97% year on year. 7 There is an additional council tax charge in any parished area where a precept has been served on the council as billing authority and, in the former City of Durham District Council area, an additional sum for the Charter Trustees for the City of Durham. The town and parish council precepts for 2021/22 total £13,734,000, which results in an average Band D council tax of £122.23, which represents an increase of £0.93 or 0.77% from 2020/21. Full details of individual parish precepts are provided in Appendix 3. 8 The council has estimated the collection fund deficit as at 31 March 2021 to be £6.576 million for council tax. This is made up of a £0.854 million brought forward deficit from 2019/20 and a 2020/21 in year deficit of £5.722 million. The in year deficit will be spread over the next three financial years in line with government guidance. The deficit is shared between the council, County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Authority and Durham Police, Crime and Victims’ Commissioner in proportion to the 2020/21 demands/precepts. 9 The government announced that a 75% grant would be made available to cover the in year 2020/21 collection fund losses, though the conditions attached to this grant are complex and does not equate to 75% of the year end collection fund accounting deficit given the assumptions on overall collection rates over time. Shares of this 75% grant (estimated at a total of £1.331 million) will also be distributed between the council, County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Authority and Durham Police, Crime and Victims’ Commissioner in proportion to the 2020/21 demands/ precepts. Recommendations 10 The Council is recommended to: (a) note that the council tax base 2021/22 for: (i) the whole council area is 141,623.2 Band D equivalent properties [Item T in the formula in Section 31B of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 (as amended)] and (ii) dwellings in those parts of its area to which a parish precept relates is set out in the attached Appendix 3. (b) agree that the Council Tax Requirement for the Council’s own purposes for 2021/22 (excluding Parish precepts and the Charter Trustees for the City of Durham) is £241,266,451. (c) agree the following amounts in accordance with Sections 30 to 36 of the Act being the: (i) aggregate of the gross expenditure which the council estimates for the items set out in Section 31A(2) of the Act taking into account all precepts issued to it by parish councils is £1,227,548,929; (ii) aggregate of the gross income which the council estimates for the items set out in Section 31A(3) of the Act is £972,548,478; (iii) amount by which the aggregate at (c) i) above exceeds the aggregate at (c) ii) above in accordance with Section 31A(4) of the Act as its Council Tax requirement for the year [Item R in the formula in Section 31B of the Act] is £255,000,451; (iv) amount at (c) iii) above (Item R), all divided by Item T ((a) i) above), in accordance with Section 31B of the Act as the basic amount of its council tax at Band D for the year (including parish precepts) is £1,800.56; (v) aggregate amount of all special items referred to in Section 34 (1) of the Act: (total of all parish precepts including Charter Trustees) is £13,734,000; (vi) amount at (c) iv) above less the result given by dividing the amount at (c) v) above by Item T ((a) i) above), in accordance with Section 34(2) of the Act, as the basic amount of its Council Tax at Band D for the year for dwellings in those parts of its area to which no Parish precept relates is £1,703.58; (d) note that for 2021/22, the County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Authority has recommended the following amounts be in the precept issued to the County Council, in accordance with Section 40 of the Act, as shown in the table below: COUNTY DURHAM AND DARLINGTON FIRE AND RESCUE AUTHORITY A B C D E F G H £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ 71.70 83.65 95.60 107.55 131.45 155.35 179.25 215.10 (e) note that for 2021/22, the Durham Police, Crime and Victims’ Commissioner has recommended that the following amounts be in the precept issued to the County Council, in accordance with Section 40 of the Act, as shown in the following table: DURHAM POLICE, CRIME AND VICTIMS’ COMMISSIONER A B C D E F G H £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ 153.49 179.08 204.66 230.24 281.40 332.57 383.73 460.48 (f) set the aggregate amounts shown in the tables below as the amounts of council tax for 2021/22 for each part of its area and for each of the categories of dwellings, in accordance with Sections 30 and 36 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 (as amended). DURHAM COUNTY COUNCIL A B C D E F G H £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ 1,027.75 1,199.05 1,370.34 1,541.63 1,884.21 2,226.80 2,569.38 3,083.26 DURHAM COUNTY COUNCIL – ADULT SOCIAL CARE A B C D E F G H £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ 107.97 125.96 143.96 161.95 197.94 233.93 269.92 323.90 AGGREGATE OF COUNCIL TAX REQUIREMENTS (excluding Parish, Town Council and Charter Trustees) A B C D E F G H £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ 1,360.91 1,587.74 1,814.56 2,041.37 2,495.00 2,948.65 3,402.28 4,082.74 (g) agree that its relevant basic amount of council tax for 2021/22 is not excessive in accordance with principles approved under Section 52ZB Local Government Finance Act 1992 (as amended) and that the increase in council tax is not excessive in accordance with the principles approved under Section 52ZC Local Government Finance Act 1992 (as amended). (h) agree that the council has not been notified by County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Authority and Durham Police, Crime and Victims’ Commissioner, as major precepting authorities, that their relevant basic amount of council tax for 2021/22 is excessive and that the billing authority is not required to hold a referendum in accordance with Section 52ZK Local Government Finance Act 1992 (as amended). (i) set a 0% discount for Second and Empty Furnished Homes, in accordance with Section 11A (3) of the Act. (j) set a 0% discount for dwellings defined in classes C or D, in accordance with Section 11A (4A) of the Act. (k) set premium charges for long term empty homes, in accordance with Section 11B (1b) of the Act: 100% premium for properties which have been empty between two and five years and 200% premium for properties empty for longer than five years. (l) instruct the Chief Executive to publish a notice in accordance with Section 38 (2) of the Act, relating to the amounts of council tax set. (m) instruct the Chief Executive to publish a notice in accordance with Section 11A (6) and 11B (6) of the Act, relating to the discount set. Background Council Tax Levels 11 The Local Government Finance Act 1992 and subsequent amendments (the Act) requires the council to set its council tax before 11 March 2021. 12 The Localism Act 2011 and the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014 made significant changes to the Local Government Finance Act 1992, and require the council as ‘billing authority’ to calculate its ‘council tax’ requirement for the year. 13 In setting the council tax, the council is required to make certain calculations and to approve a number of resolutions in accordance with the Act and the detailed calculations are set out in Appendices 2 to 5.
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