PART 5

Valuations

18. —In this Part a reference, however expressed, to the carrying out of a valuation of a relevant property shall, in the case of a relevant property that is the subject of a valuation carried out under the repealed enactments or of a valuation previously carried out under this Part, be construed as a reference to the carrying out of a revaluation of that property.

19. —(1) The Commissioner, after consultation with the Minister for the Environment and Local Government and the rating authority concerned, may make an order (in this Act referred to as a “valuation order”) specifying a rating authority area as being an area in relation to which the Commissioner proposes to appoint an officer of the Commissioner under subsection (2) to organise and secure the carrying out of a valuation of every relevant property situate in that area (other than any property specified in paragraph (a) or (b) of that subsection).

(2) As soon as may be after the making of a valuation order, the Commissioner shall appoint an officer of the Commissioner to organise and secure the carrying out of a valuation of every relevant property situate in the rating authority area specified in the order, other than—

(a) any relevant property the subject of an order under section 53 , or

(b) any relevant property specified in Schedule 4.

(3) The officer so appointed is referred to in this Act as a “valuation manager”.

(4) For the purposes of subsection (2), a valuation manager shall arrange for the carrying out of a valuation of each property concerned by one or more officers of the Commissioner (who may include that valuation manager).

20. —(1) A valuation order shall specify one date by reference to which the value of every relevant property, the subject of the valuation mentioned in the order, shall be determined.

(2) The date so specified shall not be later than the date of the making of the valuation order.

21. —(1) A valuation order shall specify a date (in this Act referred to as the “publication date”) on which the Commissioner proposes to cause to be published under section 23 a list comprising every relevant property that has been the subject of the valuation mentioned in the order, and the value of that property as determined by that valuation.

(2) Such a list shall be known, and is in this Act referred to, as a “valuation list”.

(3) The date so specified shall not be later than 3 years after the date of the making of the valuation order.

(4) The Commissioner may, with the consent of the Minister, by order amend a valuation order by substituting a different publication date for the publication date specified therein.

22. —(1) As soon as may be after he or she makes a valuation order, the Commissioner shall give notice, in such manner as he or she considers appropriate, of the fact of the making of the order and of the place or the means where or by which a copy of the order may be inspected under subsection (2).

(2) As soon as may be after the making of a valuation order, the Commissioner and the rating authority to whose area the order relates shall, at such place or by such means as the Commissioner determines, make available a copy of the order for inspection by members of the public until the publication date specified in the order.

23. —(1) On the relevant publication date, the Commissioner shall cause to be published the valuation list in respect of the relevant properties to which the valuation order concerned relates.

(2) Before that date, the Commissioner shall give notice, in such manner as he or she considers appropriate, of the fact that that list will be published on that date.

(3) On being so published, the valuation list shall—

(a) replace the existing valuation list or, as appropriate, the valuation list last previously published under this Part that relates to the same rating authority as the first-mentioned list relates to, and

(b) have full force for the purposes of that rating authority making rates on properties situate in its area by reference to it.

(4) The reference in this section to a valuation list being caused to be published on a publication date by the Commissioner is a reference to that list being made available by—

(a) the Commissioner, and

(b) at the request of the Commissioner to that authority to do so, the rating authority to whose area the list relates,

at such place or by such means as the Commissioner determines, for inspection by members of the public during the period—

(i) beginning on that date, and

(ii) ending on the date on which that list is replaced by another valuation list in relation to the same rating authority area.

24. —(1) On a date that is no later than 7 days before the date the Commissioner causes to be published under section 23 a valuation list, the valuation manager who secured the carrying out of the valuation concerned under section 19 shall cause to be issued to each occupier of every relevant property to which that valuation relates a certificate stating the value of that property as determined in accordance with that valuation.

(2) Such a certificate is referred to in this Act as a “valuation certificate”.

25. —(1) It shall be the duty of the Commissioner to exercise the powers conferred on him or her by subsections (1) and (2) of section 19 from time to time in relation to each rating authority area so that the result referred to in subsection (2) is achieved.

(2) The result mentioned in subsection (1) is that a period of not less than 5 years and not more than 10 years elapses between the date on which any valuation list in relation to the area concerned is caused to be published under section 23 and the date on which the next subsequent valuation list in relation to that area is caused to be so published.

26. —(1) The valuation manager who secured the carrying out of the valuation concerned under section 19 shall, not less than 3 months before the date on which the valuation list based on that valuation is caused to be published under section 23 , cause to be issued to the occupier of each property that will appear on the list a copy of the valuation certificate proposed to be issued under section 24 in relation to that property, together with the notice referred to in subsection (2).

(2) The notice mentioned in subsection (1) is a notice stating that the occupier concerned may, within 28 days from the date of the issue of the notice to him or her, if he or she is dissatisfied with any material particular stated in the copy of the valuation certificate, make representations to the valuation manager in relation to that matter (and such an occupier may make such representations, within that period, to the valuation manager accordingly).

(3) The valuation manager referred to in subsection (1), having considered or caused to be considered any representations made to him or her by an occupier under and in accordance with subsection (2), may, if he or she thinks it appropriate to do so, cause the terms of the valuation certificate concerned proposed to be issued under section 24 to be amended and that certificate, in the terms as so amended, to be issued under that section accordingly.