Having provided some three months amnesty to defaulting tax payers, the Mayor and City Council (M&CC) is taking a firm stand against property-owners, who fail to meet their civil obligation.The Council in a statement has warned that legal action will be taken against those persons owing the Municipality Of sums are not paid within the stipulated time. Town Clerk Royston King said last Thursday that the Council is asking delinquent tax payers to come in and pay their roles. He also noted that the Council is in dire need of cash to continue its revitalisation and rehabilitation works, while ensuring that a serious maintenance programme is afoot to upkeep the work completed.
According to financial records, large sums of money are still owed to the Municipality. In some cases, it was explained; persons had not paid their taxes in years, resulting in them owing hundreds of thousands of dollars to the City.
Late last year, the Municipality had provided to businesses and property owners, amnesty on interest accrued for the non-payment of taxes. This meant that delinquent tax payers had the interest removed from the actual tax amounts they owed. In a bid to facilitate these payments, the amnesty period which was originally scheduled only for the month of September, was extended on two occasions, closing until the month of November.
Rates and taxes are payable to the M&CC according to the ordinance of the Municipal and District Council Act Chapter 28:01, Section 213. This speaks to the due date and procedures surrounding the payment of these fees. The Town Clerk insists however that, “The M&CC is no longer being forced to compromise on the service it provides, thus all sums owed must be collected to continue the good work the Council has started.” He said too that the Council will not compromise on the enforcement of its rules and regulations, “not when we are trying to reinstate our authority and return discipline to the city.”