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Jul 15, 2016 News
A decision by the Mayor and City Council of Georgetown (M&CC) to implement a $25,000 tax for containers seems to be attracting serious objections by businesses.
The Private Sector Commission (PSC), which represents a cross-section of businesses in the country, had asked for legal advice on the tariff which was adopted on Monday, and the news is not good for the council.
Attorney-at-law Sase Gunraj, who was retained by the PSC for his advice, believes that the decision by M&CC for the fee is arbitrary and unlawful, as it was made based on the wrong section of the Municipal and District Councils Act in the first place.
The PSC has already asked for a meeting with the M&CC, with Chairman, Eddie Boyer, stressing that its membership wants consultations.
“Yes, we have asked for a meeting with the Council and we are awaiting that,” Boyer disclosed.
Asked about the legal advice, the PSC official declined to comment, noting that although the commission has received it, it still has to be discussed.
However, according to the legal advice seen by Kaieteur News, from the lawyer to the PSC Chairman, the M&CC decision may have been based on a wrong section of the act.
He noted in the correspondence that according to Section 20 of Municipal and District Councils Act, Chapter 28:01, “All goods or livestock taken from any vessel laying alongside of any market stelling and landing at any other or place within the city shall pay market fees, if they have not been already paid at the entry of the vessel: and any other refusing to pay the fees for goods or livestock so landed shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine of five thousand dollars.”
Gunraj contends that this actually corresponds with Section 21 of the City (Markets) By-Laws appended to the act.
The lawyer also pointed out that the same by-laws have absolutely no application to the landing of vessels at private wharves, as they are not connected with markets of any kind.
“Thirdly, the penalty for non-compliance with this purported fee is far less than the fee that is being demanded.”
According to the lawyer, it is for these reasons that any “attempt by the Mayor and City Council of Georgetown is arbitrary and unlawful and the section upon which they are relying cannot form the basis of a successful prosecution in a Court of Law.”
According to M&CC, the fee’s implementation was officially adapted by the Full Council when they held their Statutory Meeting at City Hall. The council had reportedly met resistance when it tried to collect fees for containers parked outside a few businesses.
M&CC said that it has “recognized that previously, business persons and other contain operators have been accessing city streets, and other public spaces with those storage containers free of cost. However, the containers are sometimes left parked in public spaces for long periods. They take up much space in especially active locations, and in some cases add to the congestion situation.”
M&CC said that containers – loaded or not – contribute immensely to the destruction of city roads. “In some cases they have broken or bent bridge railings and broken off road shoulders, leaving the city to bear the expense. While container users will pay $25,000 to have the storage device parked for 72 hours, Council’s decision also supports a penalty fee of $5000 for every other day the container is left parked in the public space.”
The idea, according to Mayor Patricia Chase-Green, is to ensure that containers are not left parked around the city if not being used. She explained that the Council was in receipt of complaints by persons who were being affected by the wanton parking of containers in the city.
“The City continues to receive complaints about container trucks also using inner city streets and some residential locations during their routes.”
According to M&CC, the Council is powered under the Municipal and District Councils Act Chapter 28:01, to implement such a fee and “not a tax” in its bid to manage the operations of containers within the city.
“The regularization of container movement in the city is part of a wider traffic regulation operation being undertaken by the Municipality. The Council had previously published, under Chapter 28:01 the streets to be used by container trucks. The law says that such vehicles were not permitted in certain areas without the permission of the city.”
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