THE National Valuation Exercise is expected to commence early in 2019, with a pilot project already underway in New Amsterdam, under the Municipal Property which will be done by a Canadian-based company.

This is according to Minister of Communities Ronald Bulkan, who was at the time responding to questions regarding his ministry’s 2019 budgetary allocation in the Committee of Supply on Wednesday.

He explained that the mass property evaluations will be carried out over an 18-month period at a cost of $320 million.

The House approved the Ministry of Communities’ 2019 budgetary allocation of $8,321,699 billion on Thursday.

Some $2,772,199 billion will go towards Current Expenditure and $5,549,500 billion for Capital Expenditure.

During the consideration of the estimates, opposition parliamentarians also inquired about contracted employees, to which Minister Bulkan promised to lay over the list of these staffers and their salaries. The contract workers include the permanent secretary, legal adviser and ministerial advisers.

Bulkan also explained that 15 of 21 staffers were so employed due to them being over the age for pensionable employment.

He explained that the increase in sums for mayors, regional education officers and Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) staffers was due to approved increases for salaries.

Regional chairs will receive $300,000; regional vice chairs $240,000; the four hinterland mayors $110,000 and their deputy mayors $85,000; coastal mayors $75,000 and their deputies $65,000; hinterland town clerks $78,000; councillors $55,000; and overseers $40,000.

These increases, he said, resulted from a meeting of the National Conference of Local Democratic Organs held earlier this year.

Minister Bulkan added that new municipalities will also benefit from additional funding, along with stipends for community enhancement workers.

The communities minister also informed the House that funding for national events will cover participation in 13 national holidays and events such as Heritage Month and regional and agricultural exhibitions.

It was confirmed that $124 million will be used to expedite recommendation arising from the Local Government Commission’s recommendations.

Municipality’s subventions totaling $210 million include–$30 million for Georgetown and $18 million for each of the four new townships. The five Neighbourhood Democratic Councils will each receive $5 million.

New NDC areas will be provided with funds to facilitate new officers and other personnel, the minister added.

Project Development and Assistance was allocated a reduced sum. Minister Bulkan explained that the expenditure, formally recurrent in nature, was shifted to another area; hence, there was no actual reduction.

Responding to a question concerning the increase in local travel and subsistence, the minister explained that the $3.5 million increase will allow for more field trips and monitoring of two Caribbean Development-funded projects.