A meeting of Sligo County Council yesterday (Monday) heard there was confusion about the Local Property Tax.
But after a lengthy discussion on the matter, the bottom line is that the property tax in County Sligo is to remain the same for the year ahead.
It means the 15% increase decided on last year remains in place for the coming year.
The Local Property Tax for each year is based on a baseline that remains the same, irrespective of previous increases or decreases.
Sligo councillors have decided to leave the Property Tax as is for the coming year, but this means the 15% increase agreed by councillors last year stays in place.
Fianna Fail Councillor Martin Baker said it did not mean councillors were ‘jacking it up’ again this year.
Tenants of council housing are not liable for property tax.
Yesterday, Sligo councillors had three options.
They could have increase it by 15%, as was decided last year.
Or they could have reduced it to the base level, as was proposed by Fianna Fail Councillor Tom MacSharry, which would have, in effect, meant a 15% reduction for the coming year.
Meanwhile, Independent Socialist Councillor Declan Bree proposed a reduction of 15% from the baseline, which would have, in real terms, meant a 30% cut from what it currently is.
Solidarity People Before Profit Councillor Gino O Boyle seconded Cllr Bree’s proposal.
Councillors were told this would result in a shortfall of €1.6m in income for the council while leaving the rate the same would result in a loss of €800,000.
Councillors were warned the shortfall would result in a lack of money to match funding already secured for various projects.
They heard it would mean 45% of households would save €2.26 per month which, Chief Executive Ciaran Hayes said, would not be enough to buy a cup of coffee . . .but the impact on the council’s finances and services would be ‘immediate and enormous.’
Director of Services Tom Kilfeather outlined some of the consequences of a reduction of €1.6m; among them the recruitment of staff, no Blue Flag in Rosses Point because the toilets there would not be refurbished, there would be no Blue Flag in Enniscrone, work on piers and harbours would be affected, and there would be no money in the roads budget for councillors’ proposals.,
During the debate, some councillors asked others to show where the shortfall of €1.6m in funding would be found if their proposal for reductions in the tax were agreed to.
Mr Hayes says if the tax were to be reduced, the council needed to know from councillors what services would be reduced.
Councillors eventually voted by 13 to 4 against Cllr Bree’s motion.
Cllrs Bree, O Boyle and Sinn Fein Councillors Arthur Gibbons and Thomas Healy voted in favour.
Those who voted against Cllr Bree’s motion were Cllrs Martin Baker, Marie Casserly, Michael Clarke, Martin Connolly, Tom Fox, Donal Gilroy, Tom MacSharry, Sinead Maguire, Dara Mulvey, Rosaleen O Grady, Joe Queenan, Paul Taylor and Thomas Walsh.
The proposal to keep the rate the same — proposed by Fine Gael Councillor Dara Mulvey, seconded by Independent Councillor Joe Queenan – was agreed by 11 votes to five.
Those who voted in favour were Cllrs. Baker, Casserly, Clarke, Connolly, Fox, Maguire, Mulvey, O Grady, Queenan, Taylor and Walsh.
Cllrs. Bree, Gibbons, Healy, MacSharry and O’Boyle voted against.
Fianna Fail Councillor Donal Gilroy abstained after complaining about the amount of money spent in his Sligo/Drumcliffe district compared to other areas despite promises, he said, were made last year.
Because of the vote to keep the tax as is, Cllr MacSharry’s motion was not taken.
Cllr MacSharry said he had hoped the tax could have been brought back to its base level, which would have meant dropping the 15% increase that was decided last year.
He added that it’s incumbent on the council to now ask central government to bail out the local authority and make up the shortfall in funding.
