Parish Rate (Administration) (Amendment No. 6) (Jersey) Law 1995

Jersey Law 12/1995 PARISH RATE (ADMINISTRATION) (AMENDMENT No. 6) (JERSEY) LAW 1995 ____________ A LAW to amend further the Parish Rate (Administration) (Jersey) Law 1946, sanctioned by Order of Her Majesty in Council of the 8th day of FEBRUARY 1995 ____________ (Registered on the 21st day of April 1995) ____________ STATES OF JERSEY ____________ The 6th day of September 1994 ____________ T HE STATES, subject to the sanction of Her Most Excellent Majesty in Council, have adopted the following Law – ARTICLE 1 In Article 1 of the Parish Rate (Administration) (Jersey) Law 1946, as amended 1 (hereinafter referred to as “the principal Law”), after the definition of “agricultural land” there shall be inserted the following definition – “ ‘Board’ means the Parish Rate Appeal Board constituted in accordance with Article 14 of this Law;”. ARTICLE 2 For Article 9 of the principal Law 2 there shall be substituted the following Article – “ARTICLE 9 DUTY OF ASSESSMENT COMMITTEES AND CONSTABLES TO FURNISH INFORMATION Every assessment committee and every Constable shall furnish to the supervisory committee or the Board respectively all information which it may require for the due discharge of its functions under this Law and which it is in the power of the assessment committee or Constable to furnish.”. ARTICLE 3 For Articles 14, 15 and 16 of the principal Law, 3 there shall be substituted the following Articles – “ARTICLE 14 PARISH RATE APPEAL BOARD (1) There shall be a Parish Rate Appeal Board for the Island consisting of five members appointed by the States on the recommendation of the Finance and Economics Committee. (2) The members of the Board shall hold office for such period as the States may determine on their appointment and shall be eligible for re-appointment. (3) Any three members of the Board shall constitute a quorum for the hearing of an appeal or other purpose and the members present for a hearing shall select one of their number to preside at the hearing. (4) The members of the Board hearing an appeal shall, after consultation with the supervisory committee, have power to obtain expert advice in cases in which they consider it to be necessary, and the parish in which the land to which the appeal relates is situated shall defray any expenses so incurred, unless the supervisory committee shall otherwise determine. (5) The secretary of the supervisory committee shall ex officio be clerk to the Board: Provided that the supervisory committee may appoint another person as clerk to the Board and shall fix his salary and determine the conditions of his appointment. ARTICLE 14A APPEAL AGAINST DRAFT LIST (1) Where – (a) the owner of any land; (b) the occupier of any land; or (c) the Constable of the parish in which the land is situated; is aggrieved by the incorrectness or the unfairness of any matter relating to that land in the draft list, he may appeal to the Board within fourteen days after the day on which the draft list was first made available for inspection: Provided that if it is shown to the satisfaction of the Board that, owing to absence, sickness or other reasonable cause, any person has been prevented from appealing within that period, the Board may extend the time for making an appeal by such period or until such date as it shall think fit in the circumstances. (2) An appeal under this Article shall be made to the Board by sending to the supervisory committee a notice of appeal which shall – (a) be in the prescribed form; and (b) specify the grounds of the appeal: Provided that if on the hearing of the appeal the appellant desires to go into any ground of appeal which was not specified in the notice and the omission of that ground from the notice was, in the opinion of the Board, not wilful or unreasonable, the Board shall not, by reason of anything in this paragraph, be precluded from allowing the appellant to go into that ground or taking it into consideration. (3) Within fourteen days after the notice of appeal has been received by it, the supervisory committee shall cause a copy of the notice to be sent to – (a) the Constable of the parish in which the land to which the appeal relates is situated; (b) the assessment committee of that parish; (c) where the appeal is in respect of foncier rate, the owner of the land to which the appeal relates; (d) where the appeal is in respect of occupier’s rate, the occupier of the land to which the appeal relates; and s h all deliver to the Board the notice of appeal. ( 4 ) The Board shall set the date, time and, subject to paragraph (5) of this Article, the place of the hearing of an appeal. (5) Unless in the opinion of the Board there is a sufficient reason for hearing it elsewhere, the Board shall hear an appeal at the parish hall of the parish in which the land to which the appeal relates is situated. (6) The Board shall give in writing not less than seven days notice of the date, time and place of hearing of the appeal to the appellant and each of the persons to whom a copy of the notice of appeal shall have been sent pursuant to paragraph (3) of this Article (7) The Board shall have power to postpone or adjourn the hearing of an appeal and shall take reasonable steps to notify the appellant and each of the persons to whom a copy of the notice of appeal shall have been sent pursuant to paragraph (3) of this Article of the postponement or adjournment. (8) At the hearing of an appeal, the appellant and the persons to whom a copy of the notice of appeal shall have been sent pursuant to paragraph (3) of this Article may – (a) appear and be heard, either in person or by an authorized representative; (b) call and examine witnesses; and (c) produce documentary or other evidence. (9) At the hearing of an appeal, the Board may – (a) call and examine witnesses; and (b) be assisted by such persons as it may determine. ARTICLE 15 DETERMINATION OF APPEAL BY BOARD (1) On an appeal under Article 14A of this Law, the Board shall have power to confirm or alter any matter in the draft list which relates to the land in respect of which the appeal shall have been made and its decision shall be final. (2) If the members of the Board hearing an appeal are not unanimous in their decision, the decision of the Board shall be the decision of a majority of the members of the Board hearing the appeal. (3) The Board may give reasons for its decisions. (4) After the determination by the Board of an appeal, notice in writing of its decision shall be sent to – (a) the appellant; (b) all p e rsons to whom a copy of the notice of appeal shall have been sent pursuant to paragraph (3) of Article 14A; and (c) the supervisory committee. (5) If, within twenty-one days after the determination by the Board of an appeal, the Board is so requested in writing by any person referred to in paragraph (4) of this Article, it shall give reasons for its decision in writing, which shall be signed by a member of the Board hearing the appeal, and cause a copy of the reasons to be delivered to each of the persons referred to in paragraph (4). ARTICLE 16 FINAL APPROVAL OF LIST The supervisory committee shall, not later than the thirty-first day of July in each year – (a) revise the draft list in accordance with the decisions of the Board on any appeals under Article 14A of this Law; (b) finally approve the draft list and append to it a declaration of approval signed by three members of the committee present at the meeting at which the list is so approved; and (c) transmit the list to the Constable.”. ARTICLE 4 (1) This Law may be cited as the Parish Rate (Administration) (Amendment No. 6) (Jersey) Law 1995. (2) This Law shall come into force on such day as the States may by Act appoint. C.M. NEWCOMBE Deputy Greffier of the States. 1 Tome VII, page 351, and Volume 1990–1991, pages 871 and 1112. 2 Tome VII, page 356. 3 Tome VII, pages 358 and 359, and Volume 1990–1991, page 873.