Commentary Part 5: Community Empowerment Chapter 1: Council Tax New section 52ZE: Alternative notional amounts
167.New section 52ZE provides the Secretary of State with the power to make a report setting alternative notional amounts to be used in place of an authority’s relevant basic amount of council tax for the preceding year. The alternative notional amounts will be used when making a comparison with an authority’s relevant basic amount of council tax for the year under consideration to determine whether its council tax is excessive. An alternative notional amount report may be made when an authority did not exist at the beginning of the financial year preceding the one under consideration, or where the functions of an authority have changed. This is to enable a like-for-like comparison of council tax changes for the purposes of determining whether an amount of council tax is excessive by reference to the principles. The amount should be set out in a report that may relate to more than one authority. It must contain such explanations as the Secretary of State thinks desirable of the need for an alternative notional amount to be calculated and the method of calculation, and must be laid before the House of Commons. The report takes effect if approved by resolution of the House of Commons.