XN000022-1984-03-22 — Page 8

THURSDAY, MARCH 22, 1984

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+ IT SHOULD BE BORNE IN MIND THAT RATES IN 1984-85 WILL STILL, ON AVERAGE, REPRESENT LESS THAN 5.5 PER CENT OF PREVAILING MARKET RENTS, WHICH MUST COMPARE VERY FAVOURABLY WITH SIMILAR PROPERTY TAXES ELSEWHERE IN THE WORLD, HE SAID.

FURTHERMORE, WITH THE PROPOSED LEVEL OF RATE RELIEF SET AT 20 PER CENT, FEW RATEPAYERS IN 1984-85 WILL PAY MORE THAN THAT PAID IN 1983-84 PLUS 20 PER CENT+.

+I SAY FEW RATEPAYERS, SINCE THERE MAY BE SOME INSTANCES WHERE RATES IN 1984-85 WILL EXCEED THAT LIMIT WHERE, FOR EXAMPLE, ALTERATIONS OR ADDITIONS TAKE PLACE OR THE POSITION REGARDING THE SUPPLY OF GOVERNMENT WATER IS CHANGED.

+WHILE IT IS INTENDED THAT THESE RELIEF PROVISIONS SHOULD CONTINUE AS A PERMANENT FEATURE OF HONG KONG'S RATING SYSTEM, THE PERCENTAGE LIMIT CAN BE AMENDED BY RESOLUTION OF LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL, + MR FRY EXPLAINED.

ABOUT 75 000 PREMISES, OR JUST OVER 10 PER CENT OF THE TENEMENTS ON THE ASSESSMENT LISTS, WILL PAY AN INCREASE OF LESS THAN 20 PER CENT AND, OF THESE, ABOUT 32 000 WILL PAY LESS RATES THAN IN THE 1983-84 FISCAL YEAR.

MR FRY SAID THAT RATES WILL YIELD OVER $2.5 BILLION IN REVENUE IN 1984-85, WITH $1.19 BILLION GOING TO THE URBAN COUNCIL AND $1.34 BILLION TO THE GOVERNMENT.

HE BELIEVED THAT RATES, WHICH HE DESCRIBED AS BEING +CERTAIN, REASONABLY FAIR IN APPLICATION, INEXPENSIVE TO ADMINISTER AND ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO EVADE+, WOULD CONTINUE TO SERVE HONG KONG WELL PROVIDED THAT REALISTIC RATEABLE VALUES WERE MAINTAINED THROUGH REGULAR REVALUATIONS.

HE SAID THAT HIS VIEWS WERE SHARED BY ONE LOCAL NEWSPAPER WHICH RECENTLY SUGGESTED REVALUATION SHOULD BE CONDUCTED EVERY TWO YEARS SO THAT INCREASES IN RATEABLE VALUES WOULD NOT BE SO PRONOUNCED.

+THIS, I HOPE, WOULD BE POSSIBLE FOR THE FUTURE, PARTICULARLY WITH THE FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF COMPUTER-ASSISTED TECHNIQUES FOR MASS APPRAISAL WORK, MR FRY ADDED.

BECAUSE OF THE LIKELIHOOD OF REDUCED PERCENTAGE RATE CHARGES IT WAS ALSO THOUGHT NECESSARY TO CHANGE THE WAY IN WHICH THE CONCESSIONS FOR WATER ARE APPLIED.

CURRENTLY A TWO PERCENTAGE POINT REDUCTION IS MADE WHERE THERE IS NO SUPPLY OF GOVERNMENT WATER AND ONE PERCENTAGE POINT REDUCTION WHERE THE SUPPLY IS FROM AN UNFILTERED SOURCE.

+WITH EFFECT FROM APRIL 1. THESE DEDUCTIONS WILL BE APPLIED TO THE GROSS RATE CHARGE AND IT IS PROPOSED THAT THEY BE 15 PER CENT AND 7.5 PER CENT RESPECTIVELY.

/+THUS THE