Plans for North Yorkshire council tax support to help households in need
A report will be discussed next week
There are plans for council tax support to help the lowest income households across North Yorkshire.
A policy to unify the provision of financial aid for council tax bills is set to be adopted from the spring of next year when a new council is launched to cover the whole of North Yorkshire.
Senior members of North Yorkshire County Council will consider the proposals which will provide up to 100 per cent reductions on council tax bills for households on the lowest incomes.
A report which will be discussed at the next meeting of the authority’s executive on Tuesday 19th July, sets out how the new council tax reduction scheme will be introduced when the new North Yorkshire Council is established in April next year.
The county council’s deputy leader and executive member for finance, Cllr Gareth Dadd, said: “The move to streamline how we provide such an important scheme will benefit thousands of people across North Yorkshire.
“Rising costs have affected us all, but it is those who are on the lowest incomes who are feeling the effects the most, and this new scheme will be essential to ensure that they are given the greatest amount of support possible.
“The new approach to providing the council tax reduction scheme will not only make it easier for people to apply for support, but it will also help streamline its administration when the new council launches next year.
“As a council, we are committed to helping the most vulnerable in society, both financially and socially, and the proposed new scheme will be an important addition to that mission.”
The proposed scheme is expected to increase the overall level of support for the lowest income households, whilst reducing the administrative burden placed on the new council by the introduction of Universal Credit.
The current structure has seen different approaches administered across North Yorkshire’s existing seven district and borough councils, which are the authorities responsible for the billing of council tax.
For instance, three of the current district councils in Craven, Hambleton and Scarborough still require working age applicants to pay a minimum amount of their council tax bills, with the greatest contribution being 12.5 per cent. The remaining districts and borough authorities allow working age applicants up to 100 per cent financial support for their council tax bills.
The cost of introducing the new scheme is expected to be £38 million, and will require an additional £2.3 million for it to be delivered when compared to the current structure which is administered by North Yorkshire’s district and borough councils.
However, £2 million is set to be used from funding raised through a council tax discounts and premiums scheme, while the efficiencies achieved by introducing the unified approach are expected to cover the extra costs.