Agenda item

Report of the Director of Finance and Resources (Section 151 Officer)

Cabinet considered a report of the Director of Finance and Resources (Section 151 Officer), which would also be considered by Council at its meeting on 20^th February 2024, that calculated the Council Tax level for 2024/25 and made appropriate recommendations to Council, consistent with the Budget Report 2024/25. The report recommended a 4.9% increase in the City’s Council Tax. Some figures and information, shaded grey in the report, were provisional due to precepts not having been confirmed at the time of publication. These figures were confirmed as final at the meeting and confirmed as accurate.

The report incorporated the impact of the Council's gross expenditure and the level of income it would receive through Business Rates, grants, and fees and charges. This resulted in a Council Tax requirement, as the amount that its expenditure exceeded all other sources of income.

The report included a calculation of the Band D Council Tax that would be needed to generate this Council Tax requirement, based on the City's approved Council Tax base. The 2024/25 Band D Council Tax that was calculated through this process had increased by £94.44 from the 2022/23 level.

Each year the Government determined the maximum Council Tax increases that local authorities could set without triggering a referendum. For 2024/25 the Secretary of State had published a report which proposed that the rise in Coventry City Council’s Council Tax must be below 5% in 2024/25 to avoid triggering a referendum, comprising a 2% precept for expenditure on adult social care and a maximum of 3% for other expenditure. At the time of writing the Secretary of State’s report was subject to parliamentary approval. The recommendations within the Budget Report 2024/25 were based on a proposed increase in Council Tax of 4.9%, incorporating a core Council Tax rise of 2.9% and a 2% Adult Social Care Precept.

Members noted that the recommendations followed the structure of resolutions drawn up by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy, to ensure that legal requirements were fully adhered to in setting the tax. As a consequence, the wording of the proposed resolutions was necessarily complex.

RESOLVED that, the Cabinet recommend that Council:

(1)   Notes the following Council Tax base amounts for the year 2024/25, as approved by Cabinet on 9 January 2024, in accordance with Regulations made under Section 31B of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 ("the Act"):

a) 87,734.0 being the amount calculated by the Council as its Council Tax base for the year for the whole Council area;

b) Allesley  403.7

   Finham  1,564.8

  Keresley  561.8

being the amounts calculated by the Council as its Council Tax base for the year for dwellings in those parts of its area to which one or more special items relate.

(2)  That the following amounts be now calculated by the Council for the year 2024/25 in accordance with Sections 31A, 31B and 34 to 36 of the Act:

(a) £867,820,927  being the aggregate of the amounts that the Council estimates for the items set out in Section 31A(2) of the Act taking into account all precepts issued to it by Parish Councils (Gross Expenditure and reserves required to be raised for estimated future expenditure);

(b) £691,923,346  being the aggregate of the amounts that the Council estimates for the items set out in Section 31A(3) of the Act. (Gross Income including reserves to be used to meet the Gross Expenditure but excluding Council Tax income);

(c) £175,897,581  being the amount by which the aggregate at (2)(a) above exceeds the aggregate at (2)(b) above, calculated by the Council in accordance with Section 31A(4) of the Act, as its Council Tax requirement for the year;

(d) £2,004.90    (2)(c)   =  £175,897,581

    (1)(a)    87,734

being the amount at (2)(c) above divided by the amount at (1)(a) above, calculated by the Council in accordance with Section 31B of the Act, as the basic amount of its Council Tax for the year.  (Average Council Tax at Band D for the City including Parish Precepts).

(e) £51,447  being the aggregate amount of all special items referred to in Section 34(1) of the Act.  (Parish Precepts);

(f) £2,004.31  = (2)(d) –  (2)(e)   =  £2,004.90  –   £51,447 

     (1)(a)    87,734.0

being the amount at (2)(d) above, less the result given by dividing the amount at (2)(e) above by the amounts at (1)(a) above, calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 34(2) of the Act, as the basic amount of its Council Tax for the year for dwellings in those parts of the area to which no special item relates. (Council Tax at Band D for the City excluding Parish Precepts);

(g)

  being the amounts given by adding to the amount at (2)(f) above, the amounts of the special item or items relating to dwellings in those parts of the Council's area mentioned above divided in each case by the amount at (1)(b) above, calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 34(3) of the Act, as the basic amounts of its Council Tax for the year for dwellings in those parts of its area to which one or more special items relate.  (Council Taxes at Band D for the City and Parish).

h) 

being the amounts given by multiplying the amounts at (2)(g) above by the number which, in the proportion set out in Section 5(1) of the Act, is applicable to dwellings listed in a particular valuation band divided by the number which in that proportion is applicable to dwellings listed in valuation Band D, calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 36(1) of the Act, as the amounts to be taken into account for the year in respect of categories of dwelling listed in different valuation bands.

(3)  To note that for the year 2024/25 the Police and Crime Commissioner for the West Midlands and West Midlands Fire Authority have stated the following amounts in precepts issued to the Council, in accordance with Section 40 of the Act, for each of the categories of dwelling shown below:

(4)  That having calculated the aggregate in each case of the amounts at (2)(h) and (3) above, the Council, in accordance with Sections 30 and 36 of the Act, hereby sets the following amounts as the amounts of Council Tax for the year 2024/25 for each part of its area and for each of the categories of dwellings shown below:

(5)  That the Council determines that its relevant basic amount of Council Tax for 2024/25 is not excessive in accordance with the principles set out in the Secretary of State’s report, under Sections 52ZC and 52ZD of the Act.