VPRS 9576 Rate Books

Every year each local council is required to make and levy rates in respect of all rateable properties within their municipal district. The Municipal Institutions Act 1854 (No.26) empowered local councils to make by-laws for the regulation of their own proceedings including the collection of rates. The amount of rate is therefore determined by the council although a statutory limit applies. Rates are the main source of revenue for the council.The rate record is a record of the levying and payment of rates on rateable properties. Apart from the general rate which is levied equally on all properties a council may levy an extra rate or a special rate. An extra rate may be levied, over and above the general rate, on a subdivision of a municipality to cover expenses occurred in that subdivision. A special rate may be levied when a council undertakes works for the special benefit of a particular portion of the municipality subject to a petition lodged by the owners and occupiers of property in that portion. Separate rate records are maintained for general, extra and special rates and these are therefore registered as separate series.For each rateable property a record is created which identifies the property and person rated and includes details of the annual value of the property, the amounts due, amounts paid, arrears and when rates were abandoned. A complete rate record may comprise two parts: a Register of Rateable Properties and a Rates Register. The Register of Rateable Properties identifies the properties and persons rated and the Rates Register comprises the accounting details. Where these two parts exist they are registered separately.The format of rate records has changed over the years. Initially the levying and payment of rates were recorded in volumes (known as Rate Books) until the introduction of cards (known as Rate Cards) from the 1930s. In the 1980's and 1990's automated systems have mostly been used. Printouts of the automated system are usually produced as the rate record. Series of rate records in different formats are registered separately.

各地方议会每年均须就其市政辖区内的所有应课税物业（rateable properties）核定并征收差饷（rates）。《1854年市政机构法》（第26号）授权地方议会制定附例，规范自身运作流程，包括差饷征收事宜。因此，差饷征收金额由议会确定，但需遵守法定限额。差饷是地方议会的主要财政收入来源。差饷记录（rate record）是对应课税物业征收及缴纳差饷的档案。除针对所有物业统一征收的一般差饷（general rate）外，议会还可征收额外差饷（extra rate）或专项差饷（special rate）。额外差饷可在一般差饷之外，针对市政分区征收，用于覆盖该分区产生的开支。专项差饷则可在议会为市政区域特定片区开展专项受益工程时征收，但需以该片区物业业主及占用人提交的请愿书为前提。地方议会会分别留存一般差饷、额外差饷及专项差饷的记录，因此这些记录会被归入不同的登记序列。针对每一处应课税物业，都会创建一份档案，标识该物业及被征税方，并包含物业年度估值、应缴金额、已缴金额、欠款情况以及差饷停征情况等详细信息。完整的差饷记录可分为两部分：应课税物业登记册（Register of Rateable Properties）与差饷登记册（Rates Register）。前者用于标识物业及被征税方，后者则包含财务核算细节。若这两部分档案均存在，则会分别进行登记。差饷记录的格式多年来几经变迁。在20世纪30年代引入差饷卡（Rate Cards）之前，差饷征收与缴纳情况最初均记录于成册的差饷簿（Rate Books）中。20世纪80年代至90年代，自动化系统得到广泛应用，自动化系统的打印输出件通常即作为差饷记录。不同格式的差饷记录序列会分别进行登记。