‘Only 25-50 pc property tax hike for most urban homes’

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu local administration minister KN Nehru on Tuesday clarified that about 83% urban households in the state would be affected by only 25-50 per cent hike in property tax. Nehru also accused the previous AIADMK regime of dropping a proposed property tax in 2018 for elections.

He briefed the media at the Secretariat a day before the Assembly meets to debate the demand for grants for various departments. Nehru said that the 15th finance commission constituted by the Union government had insisted that states revise property tax by hiking the floor rate (for buildings) from 2022-23 to avail subsidies and annually revise the property tax in tune with their GSDP (Gross State Domestic Product).

“The union govt had also mandated that the urban local bodies should notify the property tax revision to avail funds under Swachh Bharat and Amrut 2.0 schemes,” he added.

Nehru clarified that the hike has been implemented in such a way that poor people are not affected. “Property tax has been increased only between 25% and 50% for 83.18% urban households in the state,” he pointed out. “Of the 77. 87 lakh homes in urban Tamil Nadu, 25% hike would apply to 44.54 lakh homes (58.45%) and 19.24 lakh homes (24.75%) would be affected by 50% hike in property tax. Only 1.4% (110 lakh homes) and 7% of urban home in the state would be affected by 150% and 100-150% hike respectively.”

The minister said that the previous AIADMK regime had proposed a 50% and 100% hike in property tax for house and non-housing buildings in 2018, but it had been put on hold for elections.

“People who hiked the taxes uniformly at the rate of 100% for all are now agitating. Unlike them, we’ve fixed different slabs. Buildings (carpet area) and vacant lands are factored in for tax computation. Taxes were hiked based on the recommendation of the committee constituted by them in 2018,” he explained.