VPRS 16188 Rate Book Summary

Every year each local council is required to make and levy rates in respect of all rateable properties within its 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. 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.

每年，各地方议会均须就其管辖区内的所有应课税物业（rateable properties）制定并征收税项。《1854年市政机构法案（第26号）》授权地方议会制定附例，以规管自身议事程序，其中包括税项征收事宜。尽管设有法定上限，但税项税额仍由议会决定，而税项亦是议会的主要收入来源。税项记录是对应课税物业的税项征收与缴纳情况的记录。除了对所有物业统一征收的一般税项外，议会还可征收附加税项或专项税项。附加税项可在一般税项之外，针对市政辖区内的特定分区征收，用于覆盖该分区产生的开支；当议会为市政辖区内某一特定区域的专属利益开展工程时，亦可征收专项税项。针对一般、附加及专项税项，分别保存税项记录，因此这些记录会被登记为独立的系列。针对每一处应课税物业，均会创建一条记录，用于标识该物业及应缴税主体，并包含该物业的年度估值、应缴金额、已缴金额、欠缴金额以及税项弃征时间等详细信息。完整的税项记录可分为两部分：应课税物业登记册（Register of Rateable Properties）与税项登记册（Rates Register）。前者用于标识物业及应缴税主体，后者则包含会计明细信息；若同时存在这两部分记录，则会分别进行登记。税项记录的格式多年来历经变迁。最初，税项的征收与缴纳情况被记录在成册的簿册中（即税项簿（Rate Books）），直至20世纪30年代引入卡片式记录（即税项卡（Rate Cards））。到了20世纪80年代及90年代，自动化系统得到广泛应用，自动化系统生成的打印件通常即作为税项记录。不同格式的税项记录系列会分别进行登记。