asked the Minister for Finance whether with reference to a reply of 8th May he will now state (a) the number of revisions of rateable valuations which have been made in Dublin city in the past year, (b) the number of such revisions which have been appealed against and (c) the total number of undetermined appeals, in view of the fact that this information has not been made public by the local authority.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Dublin Valuation Revisions.
51.
To put this matter in its proper setting, I should explain that revisions of valuations and determination of first appeals against valuations so revised, are the statutory responsibility of the Commissioner of Valuation, in which the Minister for Finance cannot interfere. The respective rating authorities have a statutory responsibility to refer to the Commissioner each year the lists of properties made out by rate collectors and ratepayers as requiring revision of valuation and, subsequently, the notices of appeal against valuations so revised. The rating authorities are also responsible under statute for the publication of the following relevant particulars:
(i) Lists of properties to be referred to the Commissioner as requiring revision of valuation; this is done in June each year.
(ii) Revised valuation lists made out by the Commissioner and showing the decisions resulting from (i); this is done in March of following year.
(iii) Lists of decisions by the Commissioner on appeals against revised valuations; no date is set by statute—they are now usually ready for publication in August or September each year but may be later in some districts.
The Statute (section 21 Valuation (Ireland) Act, 1852) enjoins that each list at (iii) should show all cases in a given district; there is no discretion to publish the decisions piecemeal.
It should, therefore, not be necessary for the Minister for Finance to have to give details of such activities, since the local authorities are statutorily charged with the publication of information concerning them. Such information will readily be made available to Deputies by the local authorities.