Latest update April 18th, 2024 12:59 AM
Oct 21, 2008 News
In a bid to recover much-needed revenue to maintain the City of Georgetown, the Mayor and City Council might soon be moving to sell the properties of defaulting tax payers.
This disclosure was made by City Mayor Hamilton Green yesterday when he said that the municipality continues to operate in a cash-strapped state and therefore must find innovative ways to force tax payers to pay up what they owe to the City.
Mayor Green, however, pointed out that even if all rates and taxes are paid up, there still would not be enough funds to alleviate the problems faced by the municipality.
Currently, the municipality has engaged an intensified rates collection process, which according to Mayor Green mandates residents to pay up their taxes within 14 days or face the courts. About ten such defaulters were taken before the court yesterday, Mayor Green added.
But, according to Mayor Green, while the most drastic action that could be taken against residents is to confiscate and sell their properties, the process is in fact a very slow one.
It was for this very reason, the mayor related, that he had for more than 10 years been requesting that a court be set up exclusively for municipal issues. According to Green, with a municipal court, matters that concern the municipality could be addressed with much haste, even allowing for the timely payment of rates and taxes and to facilitate any necessary court action against defaulters.
Mayor Green pointed out that, instead of addressing the need for the municipal court, discussions were instead engaged for a Traffic court.
Without the introduction of an exclusive municipal court, Green said, it would be a near impossible effort to seize and sell the properties of the major defaulters.
In the meantime, the mayor noted, there is no choice but to endure the slothfulness of the court in an attempt to garner the much-needed finances to manage the City.
However, Mayor Green is of the belief that the municipality will continue to be short-changed if the new evaluation of the City does not come into play.
According to Green, the new evaluation, which comes under the purview of the Ministry of Finance, is the key to boosting the City’s revenue base to some extent.
In addition to properties being undervalued, Green said, there are many properties in the City that have been transformed from residential to commercial purposes; thus some residents, while they are paying their taxes, are paying far less than should be paid.
The City Council has been saddled with an enormous debt situation, which it seems unable to reverse.
The mayor had on numerous occasions cited the need for the City to expand its revenue base, a factor which was highlighted by the Interim Management Committee which had some years ago controlled the maintenance of the City.
But, according to the mayor, Government continues to suppress the operation of the municipality, a practice which he noted is inconsistent with modern-day governance.
JAGDEO ADDING MORE DANGER TO GUYANA AND THE REGION
Apr 18, 2024
SportsMax – West Indies captain Hayley Matthews has been named Wisden’s leading Twenty20 Cricketer for 2023, as she topped all and sundry, including her male counterparts. Alan Gardner looks...Kaieteur News – Compliments of the Ministry of Education, our secondary school children are being treated to a stage... more
By Sir Ronald Sanders Waterfalls Magazine – On April 10, the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States... more
Freedom of speech is our core value at Kaieteur News. If the letter/e-mail you sent was not published, and you believe that its contents were not libellous, let us know, please contact us by phone or email.
Feel free to send us your comments and/or criticisms.
Contact: 624-6456; 225-8452; 225-8458; 225-8463; 225-8465; 225-8473 or 225-8491.
Or by Email: [email protected] / [email protected]