Considered – Report of the Corporate Director – Resources to present the proposed North Yorkshire Council Tax Reduction (CTR) Scheme for 2024/25.
Councillor Gareth Dadd introduced the report, noting that there are no fundamental changes to the current CTR scheme that was introduced last year, as the seven former district and borough councils were brought together with the county council to create a new scheme to operate under the new unitary authority. Even with a further £1million put into the 2023/24 scheme through an uplift in charges on empty properties, it was felt the introduction of the CTR scheme for 2023/24 had been a success
It is pleasing to note the current 2023/24 scheme has seen reductions in the number of council tax recovery notices issued, with a decrease of over 10% across the county, whilst council tax collection rates have remained stable. This aligns with the priority of helping those most vulnerable residents within our county.
The proposed uplift of 6.7% in the current income bands is in line with the rate of the CPI (Consumer Price Index) and will be funded by an uplift in grant funding from central government.
The officer team who designed the proposed scheme were thanked, with the introduction of the 2023/24 CTR scheme seen as one of the benefits of unitarisation to date.
Marcus Lee, Head of Welfare and Benefits emphasised the scheme was proving successful to support the most vulnerable residents of the county with its simplistic approach to the application process and also the administration of it for officers.
Resolved –
i) recommend the proposed Council Tax Reduction scheme for 2024/25 to full Council, retaining the scheme as that operating in 2023/24
ii) delegate authority to the Section 151 officer to approve the accompanying Exceptional Hardship Scheme
iii) authorise the Section 151 officer, in consultation with the portfolio holder for Finance, to undertake the necessary consultation work to design a scheme for 2025/26.