RATING RELIEF

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 9, Issue 26, 23 November 1945, Page 5

RATING RELIEF

BURDEN of hospital levy SELECT COMMITTEE'S RECOMMENDATIONS Following the recent discussion •at the Borough Council meeting anent the recommendations of the Parliamentary Select Committee with regard to Hospital we print below the extracts applicable to the suggested relief for ratepayers in Hospital districts, which mustt have a very direct and important bearing on the suggested! amalgamation of this district with Waikato. The report states that from the. Committees enquiries it was evident that some relief must be provided tile ratepayers. It states: —

"We have been impressed by the evidence of a number of local authorities who maintained that the burden of the Hospital levy prior to the introduction of the Social Security Act was not excessive. Some witnesses advocated that the State should take over the complete responsibility for the linance of Hos-' pital Boards. We are not convinced as to the wisdom of this at the present time. Ratepayers should have some financial responsibility if they are to accept the administrative responsibility of Hospital Boards.

We therefore recommend that the Hospital levy, as at present calculated be abolished and that in fulure. each constituent local authority of a hospital district, shall pay to the Hospital Board the product of the average rate per pound of -capital value of the years. 1935/3(5 to 1938/39. This will mean a reduction in the levies in all districts. Some will benefit in this respect, more than others, but the aggregate reduction would, represent approximately 40 per cent, of the levies for 1944/45. The product of this average rate per pound of capital value for the years 1935/36 to 1938 39 will not be a lixed amount, but will tend "to vary with variations in the. capital value. Where population is increasing, capital values tend to increase and consequently although > 5 '-11 ■the rate per pound of capital value :is stabilised the actual product of the rate, will tend, to'increase, in areas which are increasing in population. This is equitable, since the amount of hospital facilities necessary is closely related to the size of the population. Conversely, in districts where the population is falling and where because of this or -other causes the total rateable value is tending to fall, the product of this stabilised rate per pound of capital value, will also tend to fall.

We further recommend j that in addition to stabilising the rate per pound of capital value on the average of the years from 193r)/3() to 1.938/30 further relief should be given to those districts with a relatively high hospital rate, by fixing a minimum rate of say 0.7 d per pound of rateable capital value. This would mean immediate further relief to four districts..

Finally we recommend that the Government should examine the possibility of lowering this maximum amount in succeeding vears } with a view to the ultimate extinction of the levy for hospital purposes from rates.

Our recommendations involve a complete redrawing of the levy and subsidy provisions of the Hospital and Charitable Institutions Act > 1928. What will be required will be .a provision somewhat similar to other provisions in the Municipal Corporations and the Counties fixing the maximum rate, for Hospital purposes and stating that the product of this maximum rate shall be paid to the Hospital Board. There will be no necessity to provide for the computation of the subsidy by the Government because the Government will then accept the responsibility for all hospital expenditure over and above the product of this stabilised rate per pound of capital value.

We recommend that the Government subsidy should be paid from the Consolidated Fund, because we think that the method of collection of taxation by income tax is more equitable in general for hospital purposes than collection from the Social Security Fund.

The increase in subsidy by the •Government should not necessitate

any further centralisation of control other than is required under the present system. l-'rom evidence which was produced from a number j of sources, it appears that .the relations between the Health: Department and the. Hospital Hoards at the present time are quite satisfactory ; and a change in the source of income of Hospital should not necessitate a change in control. At the same time it is obvious that many Hospital Hoards are too small to be run and the sug--gestion of the Health Department that the present districts should be substantially reduced should be implemented at the earliest possible moment by the processes which have been recommended previously. Capital Expenditure Tf the recommendations above are carried out there will be no necessity to distinguish between revenue and capital for the purpose. of collection of levy and sub- ' sidv.