NRS-15766 | Rate books [Leichhardt Council]

This series of Rate books for the Municipality of Leichhardt records payment of rates by property owners. Each year each local council was required to set the level of, and collect rates in respect of all rateable properties within the municipal or shire district. These rate books were initially created under s.163-188 of the Municipalities Act 1867 (Act No.12, 1867) and later rate books were created under subsequent legislation. These sections specified the rating responsibilities of the council, and the need to maintain a rate book. Rates were levied under s.153 which allowed the council to make by laws. Rates could be general, or special, such as water or educational rates. Section 183 required that accounts books be submitted regularly for auditing. For each rateable property a record was created which generally identified the property and person rated and included details of the annual value of the property, the amounts due, amounts paid, arrears, and when rates were abandoned. A complete rate may comprise two parts: a Rate book and a Valuation book. The Valuation books generally identified the properties and persons rated, and the rates book comprises the accounting details. Valuation and Rate books were generally maintained separately and therefore have been registered as separate series. Where the books were maintained together they have been registered as one series. For some periods of time, the rate books in this series were rate books only and at other times they were valuation and rate books. There are some separate valuation books for the Municipality of Leichhardt and these form the series NRS 15765. The format of the rate books for the Municipality of Leichhardt changed significantly over time and included small and large books, volumes, and bundles of papers tied together. Although details recorded in the rate books varied over time, all contain the basic details of assessment number, owner, and amount of rates levied and paid. The Rate books contain additional information although the type of information differed over time. For example, the early rate books have numbered folio pages with printed, titled columns for the entry of handwritten information. Handwritten entries in columns generally record the following information: a consecutive number allocated to each ratepayer, name of person in occupation, situation of property (early entries may only give an estate or street name, later entries also give the street number), name of owner, brief description of property (eg. land, cottage, house, shop), annual value, value assessed by Council, amount paid, date of payment. Later Rate books were typescript and contain less information than early books.Prior to 1943, the Rate books were large volumes but from 1943, the Rate books are essentially copies of Rate Notices bound, tied or bundled together. The Rate Notice forms comprising the Rate books after 1943 were office copies with the following notice “This form is one of a series comprising the rate book for the year”.The Rate books are arranged chronologically. Within the chronological arrangement, they were arranged at different times by Assessment number, Ward name, or street name. There are gaps in the content of the series (for example the Rate books for 1954 to 1956 are missing) and the records for these periods may not be extant.

本系列莱卡特自治市（Municipality of Leichhardt）税率簿（Rate books）记录了房产所有人缴纳市政税的明细情况。每年，各地方议会均需核定税率标准，并对其管辖的市政或郡辖区内所有应纳税房产征收市政税。此类税率簿最初依据1867年《市政法案》（第12号法案，1867年）第163至188条编制，后续版本则依据后续立法制定。上述条款明确了议会的征税职责，以及维护税率簿的法定要求。市政税依据该法案第153条征收，此条款授权议会制定附例（by laws）。税款可分为普通税与专项税，例如水费及教育税。该法案第183条要求定期提交会计账簿以供审计。针对每一处应纳税房产，均会创建专属记录，通常会标注房产与纳税义务人信息，并包含房产年度价值、应缴税额、已缴金额、欠缴款项以及税款豁免情况等细节。一套完整的税务档案可分为两部分：税率簿与估值簿（Valuation book）。估值簿通常用于标注房产与纳税义务人信息，而税率簿则包含会计核算相关明细。估值簿与税率簿通常分开保管，因此被登记为两个独立的档案系列；若两者合并保管，则合并登记为一个系列。本系列的税率簿在部分时段仅为单纯的税率簿，其余时段则同时包含估值与税率内容。另有部分单独的莱卡特自治市估值簿，归入档案系列NRS 15765。莱卡特自治市税率簿的格式随时间推移发生了显著变化，涵盖大小不一的簿册、卷宗以及捆扎成册的文件组。尽管税率簿记录的细节随时间有所调整，但所有簿册均包含评估编号、所有人、应征及已缴税额等核心信息。税率簿还包含其他额外信息，不过信息类型随时间有所差异。例如，早期税率簿带有印刷好标题栏的编页，用于录入手写信息。栏目中的手写记录通常包含以下内容：为每位纳税人分配的连续编号、占用人姓名、房产位置（早期记录可能仅标注地产或街道名称，后期则补充门牌号）、所有人姓名、房产简要描述（例如土地、小屋、住宅、商铺）、年度价值、议会评估价值、已缴金额、缴款日期。后期的税率簿为打字稿形式，相较于早期簿册，记录的信息有所精简。1943年之前，税率簿为大型卷宗；1943年起，税率簿本质上为装订、捆扎或集中存放的税率通知书副本。1943年后构成税率簿的税率通知书副本均带有如下官方标注："本表格为本年度税率簿系列表单之一"。本系列税率簿按时间顺序排列。在时间排序的框架下，不同时期又分别按评估编号、选区名称或街道名称进行分类。本系列档案存在内容缺失（例如1954年至1956年的税率簿已佚失），此段时期的记录或已不复存在。