NRS-17973 | Rate and Valuation Book [Municipality of Hillgrove]

This series consists of records of rates and valuations for the Borough of Hillgrove (1899-1906) Municipality of Hillgrove (1907-1923), created under the Local Government Act 1919 (Act No.41, 1919).Rates were levies raised by local authorities such as municipalities, shires or county councils to fund their services and operations. The 'rate' refers to the level of charge, commonly set as a ratio against the value of property held within the local authority's jurisdiction; for example, one penny for each pound of property value. An assessment of this value was then required in order to calculate the charge to the ratepayer.The Borough of Hillgrove appointed valuers in February 1900, soon after incorporation. (1) Valuations were an annual responsibility of the local authority under the Municipalities Act, 1897 (Act No.23, 1897) s.138(i). The Valuation of Land Act, 1916 (Act No.2, 1916) moved this responsibility to the new Office of the Valuer-General; but only applied once the Valuer-General had revalued the area, supplied a valuation list to the local authority, and gazetted the application of the Act. After the Valuer-General had taken on the valuations for an area, local body records were reduced to the calculation and payment of rates. The Valuation of Land Act 1916 was not applied to Hillgrove while it was an independent municipality. (2)The Local Government Act, 1919 Sch.3 gave temporary provisions for continued local body valuations, to apply until a valuation list was supplied. Valuations could be of unimproved capital value of the land; improved capital value including enhancements such as buildings; or assessed annual value, being 9/10ths of the annual rental value of the improved land. Schedule 3 of the 1919 Act required that the first two be done for all ratable land in a municipality, and the third for all urban areas. Values were to be reassessed at least every three years. A universal charge by property value for general purposes was called a general rate. Other forms of charge allowed for under the Act were special, local and loan rates. (3) A special rate was also universal, but imposed to fund a specific purpose. A local rate could be levied to pay for works that benefited a particular locality, and was paid only by ratepayers of that locality. A loan rate would service a loan contracted by the Council for public works, and might be applied locally or universally depending on the purpose of the loan. In the period of this series, Hillgrove applied a general rate and a local water rate.This series is a single volume of combined rates and valuations. The valuations are from 1920-1922, although rates payments are recorded into 1923. The volume is designed for a three-year valuation cycle, and was constructed so that each valuation leaf has three smaller following leaves, one per year, on which to record payments. The narrower page keeps visible the assessment number and owner's name on the valuation sheet. The final pages are signed by the valuer and the mayor for each year of the volume, and have an impress of the municipal seal.The valuation sheet includes fields for assessment numbers; name and occupation of owner and occupier or ratepaying lessee; the nature of the property (e.g. residential, commercial) and a description of the location and area of the land, by section and lot number; the valuation by year and type; whether the valuation was appealed and any new value resulting. The rating sheets record the calculated charges, payments, arrears and interest. Not all fields were necessarily completed or used as intended.The valuations are in generally geographical order. Sometimes street names are given, although not addresses. Changes of ownership or abandonment of properties are annotated. The previous assessment number field has instead been used to identify those to whom the water rate applied, with a 'W' stamp.After amalgamation, Hillgrove became part of C riding of Dumaresq Shire, so rates and valuations after 1923 will be found in NRS17996. There is no cross-reference of assessment number from the Hillgrove book.Custody HistoryHillgrove records passed to Dumaresq Shire on amalgamation in 1924. This series was transferred in 1961 to the University of New England Archives. Earlier rates and valuation records from Hillgrove are not extant. A survey of local government records published by the Royal Australian Historical Society in 1990 reported that all were believed destroyed. (4) Rating records were sometimes destroyed by local authorities as out-of-date accounts. As the Dumaresq Shire rates and valuations have been preserved, the earlier Hillgrove records may not have come into Dumaresq custody.Endnotes:1. NSW Government Gazette No.200, 6 March 1900, p.1900.2. The Valuation of Land Act was applied to Hillgrove as part of Dumaresq in 1969: NSW Government Gazette No.144, 12 December 1969, p.5078. 3. Local Government Act,1919 (Act No.41, 1919) s.117-128.4. Hughes, Joy N., Local Government...Local History, Royal Australian Historical Society, Sydney 1990, p.28.

本系列包含希尔格罗夫行政区（1899-1906年）及希尔格罗夫自治市（1907-1923年）的税率与估值记录，依据《1919年地方政府法案》（1919年第41号法案）创建。

税率是地方当局（如自治市、郡或县议会）征收的税款，用于为其服务和运营提供资金。“税率”指收费标准，通常按地方当局管辖范围内房产价值的一定比例设定，例如每英镑房产价值收取一便士。为计算纳税人应缴费用，需先对房产价值进行评估。

希尔格罗夫行政区于成立后不久的1900年2月任命了估值师。（1）根据1897年《自治市法案》（1897年第23号法案）第138(i)条，估值是地方当局的年度职责。1916年《土地估值法案》（1916年第2号法案）将此职责移交给新设的总估值师办公室，但该法案仅在总估值师重新评估该区域、向地方当局提供估值清单并在政府公报上公布法案适用通知后生效。总估值师接手某区域估值工作后，地方机构记录仅保留税率计算与缴纳相关内容。1916年《土地估值法案》在希尔格罗夫作为独立自治市期间未适用。（2）

《1919年地方政府法案》附表3提供了地方机构继续开展估值工作的临时条款，有效期至估值清单提供为止。估值类型包括：未改良土地资本价值；改良土地资本价值（含建筑物等增值部分）；评估年价值（为改良土地年租金价值的十分之九）。1919年法案附表3要求，自治市内所有应纳税土地需完成前两类估值，所有城区需完成第三类估值。价值至少每三年重新评估一次。

按房产价值向全体征收的一般性用途费用称为普通税率。法案允许的其他收费形式包括特别税率、地方税率及贷款税率。（3）特别税率同样面向全体征收，但专为特定用途筹资；地方税率用于支付使特定区域受益的工程费用，仅由该区域纳税人缴纳；贷款税率用于偿还议会为公共工程签订的贷款，其适用范围（局部或全体）取决于贷款用途。本系列记录期间，希尔格罗夫适用普通税率及地方水费税率。

本系列为单一卷册，整合了税率与估值记录。估值数据涵盖1920-1922年，而税率缴纳记录延续至1923年。该卷册按三年估值周期设计，每一页估值页后附有三张小页（每年一张），用于记录缴费情况。较窄的页面可保持估值表上的评估编号与业主姓名可见。卷册末页有各年度估值师与市长的签名，并有市政印章印记。

估值表包含以下字段：评估编号；业主、占用人或纳税承租人的姓名及职业；房产性质（如住宅、商业）及土地位置与面积描述（按区段及地块编号）；按年度及类型分类的估值；估值是否被上诉及由此产生的新价值。税率表记录计算出的费用、付款、欠款及利息。并非所有字段均按预期填写或使用。

估值大致按地理顺序排列。有时会标注街道名称，但无具体地址。所有权变更或房产废弃情况均有注释。“先前评估编号”字段被转而用于标识适用水费税率的对象，并加盖“W”印章。

合并后，希尔格罗夫成为杜马雷斯克郡C选区的一部分，因此1923年后的税率与估值记录可在NRS17996中查询。希尔格罗夫记录册中的评估编号无交叉引用。

保管历史
1924年合并时，希尔格罗夫记录移交至杜马雷斯克郡。本系列于1961年移交给新英格兰大学档案馆。希尔格罗夫更早的税率与估值记录已不复存在。澳大利亚皇家历史学会1990年发布的地方政府记录调查显示，所有早期记录均被认为已销毁。（4）税率记录有时会被地方当局作为过期账目销毁。由于杜马雷斯克郡的税率与估值记录已被保存，早期希尔格罗夫记录可能未纳入杜马雷斯克郡的保管范围。

尾注：
1. 新南威尔士州政府公报第200期，1900年3月6日，第1900页。
2. 1969年，《土地估值法案》作为杜马雷斯克郡的一部分适用于希尔格罗夫：新南威尔士州政府公报第144期，1969年12月12日，第5078页。
3. 《1919年地方政府法案》（1919年第41号法案）第117-128条。
4. Hughes, Joy N.，《地方政府……地方历史》，澳大利亚皇家历史学会，悉尼1990年，第28页。