Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 6 May 2014
168. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Finance if he will provide details on the level of consultation that has taken place between the Revenue Commissioners and the Local Government Management Agency to ensure that sufficient information regarding householders who paid and did not pay the household charge in 2012 is now with the Revenue Commissioners. [20287/14]
View answer169. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Finance the number of householders now being pursued for arrears because they failed to pay the household charge in 2012. [20288/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 168 and 169 together.
I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that they have been in constant communications with the Local Government Management Agency (LGMA) since Local Property Tax (LPT) was first announced by the Government in 2012. The LGMA was also represented on the inter-Departmental Group, chaired by Revenue, which was established following the Government decision.
The LPT register was developed using data drawn from a range of sources and this included the Household Charge database which they received from the LGMA in 2012. The Commissioners have confirmed that they received additional files from the LGMA in 2013 to assist in identifying further properties that had paid the charge or, in respect of which a waiver or exemption from the charge had been granted. I am also advised that since then there has been extensive on-going engagement with the LGMA to ensure all the relevant Household Charge data held by them has been forwarded to the Commissioners.
A comprehensive data matching exercise was undertaken by Revenue which identified a database of some 400,000 properties for which the Household Charge (HHC) was outstanding. Work on the database is continuing according as property owners contact Revenue. It is accepted that the database may not be 100% accurate for a number of reasons, including:
- The LGMA Register captured the name of the person who paid the HHC rather than the owner of the property, therefore, for example, where a son or daughter paid the HHC on behalf of a parent and particularly where the address of the property was a 'non-unique' rural address, Revenue may not have been able to match the HHC payment to the right property.
- The legislative basis for both the HHC and LPT are different. Some properties that are liable for LPT were exempt from the HHC and, unlike LPT, property owners were not actually required to make a claim for exemption from HHC. For that reason, Revenue could not identify every property that was exempt from HHC through the cross-referencing process.
In all its communications with property owners during the current compliance campaign, the Revenue Commissioners have highlighted that these inconsistencies exist and have outlined the action that owners need to take if the HHC is not due. The Commissioners have confirmed that as part of their Household Charge compliance campaign they are currently writing to some 227,000 property owners who, according to their records, have not paid the €200 arrears in respect of about 273,800 properties. The letter advises property owners to log in to the LPT/Household Charge arrears online system on the Revenue website and make arrangements to pay the €200 arrears, or update their Household Charge arrears record to confirm they have paid the charge or are exempt, or entitled to a waiver, from the charge. Owners who require assistance or who are not the liable person for the Household Charge are being advised to contact the LPT helpline on 1890 200 255.
Where a liable person ignores the letter, payment of the LPT/Household Charge arrears will be pursued, where necessary, using the range of collection/enforcement powers at Revenue's disposal which includes mandatory deduction at source from salary, various occupational pensions or from certain Government payments. I am also informed that since taking on responsibility for Household Charge arrears in July 2013, about €7.6m has been collected by the Revenue Commissioners.
