Commentary on Sections Administration of business rate supplements Sections 18 to 20: Notice to billing authorities and calculations for financial year
47.Section 20 sets out which authority is responsible for calculating the amount to be paid by each person liable to pay a BRS in a year. Where the levying authority is a billing authority for the purposes of national non-domestic rates, subsection (1) requires it to calculate the chargeable amount.
48.However, where the levying authority is not a billing authority, the calculation will be the responsibility of the billing authority for the area that the person’s non-domestic property is situated in (subsections (2) and (3)). To enable the calculation to be made, section 18(1) requires levying authorities intending to impose a BRS to give written notice to each billing authority in their area containing the information specified in subsection (2). In particular, levying authorities must notify billing authorities of the BRS multiplier and their policy on reliefs.
49.If the BRS is to be payable with effect from the beginning of a financial year, section 18(3) specifies that the notice must be given before 1st March in the preceding financial year. If notice is not given by that time, the BRS is to commence in its first year other than on 1st April, or a variation is to take effect other than on 1st April, notice must instead be given under section 19.
50.If notice is not served on a billing authority under section 18 or section 19, it need not make any calculations under section 20(2). Where notice is given of a variation to the BRS, new calculations are required only to the extent necessary to give effect to the variation (section 20(4)).