Australia. Pensioners claim rebates on $31 million worth of rates
Canberra pensioners have received rebates on $31 million worth of rates in the past three years, on land worth a cumulative $14.4 billion dollars.
More than 18,000 property owners are using the pensioners rebate scheme for rates, figures revealed in an answer to a question on notice in the ACT Legislative Assembly.
However the number of applications for rates deferrals on the basis of hardship have doubled on the same time last year, after the ACT government changed the formula for calculating rates on apartments.
Pensioner rebates are currently capped at $700 but Greens crossbencher Caroline Le Couteur signalled she would like to explore whether that could be raised.
Read full content: The Canberra Times
