East Riding of Yorkshire Council is set to get £5.6m more in council tax income during the next financial year, according to officers’ forecasts.
East Riding Council’s Cabinet has approved a rise in the council tax base, used to calculate levies, for 2022-23 of 3.1 per cent to 120,901.5 Band D homes.
The base is a calculation of how many homes in the area are liable to pay council tax.
Council Finance Director Julian Neilson told the Cabinet that the projected increase in income was due to more homes eligible for levies, a drop in support claimants and stable collection rates.
Council leader Cllr Jonathan Owen said the 3.1 per cent increase was welcome and keeping council tax support schemes in place was the right thing to do.
The Cabinet heard keeping means tested council tax discounts of up to 75 per cent for working age households and 100 per cent for pension age ones was recommended.
A report to the Cabinet stated the number of homes eligible to pay council tax at Band D rates was forecast to rise by 1,593 by the next financial year.
The base has also risen by an estimated 1,233 Band D homes due to collection rates being 1 per cent higher than expected.
The number of homes claiming council tax discounts has also dropped by around 399, with the scheme costing around £14.7m.
But the report also stated the fragility of the UK economy meant falls in council tax collections and rises in support claims risked a lower base.
It added government support funding had also almost halved since 2013-14, dropping from £16.3m to £8.1m this financial year.
The cabinet also decided to keep trial council tax discounts for special constables despite recommendations to remove them and look at non-financial rewards for all emergency services volunteers.
Cllr Owen said it would allow East Riding officials to talk to the police to find out the best way to move forward.
Mr Neilson said:
“The collection rate has held up really well, we were concerned about the impact of the pandemic on employment and people’s ability to pay.
“Our calculations assume the collection rate will return to 98 per cent, there’s always an underlying risk it will be lower but that is a fundamental part of setting the base.
“We’re recommending that the current council tax support scheme is maintained, we’ve been cautious in our approach to it due to the pandemic.
“We saw a drop in the base initially in the pandemic as council tax support claimant numbers increased.
“But there’s been a strong recovery and claimant numbers have returned to pre-pandemic levels.
“The increase in the base if approved is really good news going forward.”
Cllr Owen said he welcomed the 3.1 per cent increase in the base especially given the complex council tax payment and collection system.
The council leader said:
“Council tax collection is not always an easy job because of the different ways people pay and having to chase some people up.
“We’re comfortable with continuing with the council tax support schemes, we’re doing the right thing by supporting residents with that.”
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