By: Aida Aziz
IPOH: The Ipoh City Council (MBI) has agreed to lower the proposed increase in the new assessment tax rate, initially set at nine per cent, following a special meeting held today.
Ipoh Mayor Datuk Rumaizi Baharin said the decision was made after considering public feedback, although the council does not intend to revoke the reassessment process as only six percent of property owners opposed the hike.
“We have held a special meeting to address the objections, and we have listened to the concerns and voices of the people of Ipoh. Legally, I believe there’s no need to revise the approved reassessment.
“This is because only six percent of property owners objected to the increase. We received 18,000 objections out of approximately 319,000 properties.
“This means 94 percent did not object.
“Although only six percent raised concerns, we took that into account and decided to reduce the hike slightly. The exact figure will be announced later,” he told reporters after chairing MBI’s full council meeting for November on Thursday.
When asked if the increase was considered steep, Rumaizi explained that it was reasonable given that this was the first reassessment in 42 years.
“In states that regularly reassess property values, such as Penang, Selangor, Johor, and Kuala Lumpur, this is a common practice.
“In Perak, specifically Ipoh, this is the first reassessment in over 40 years, with the last one conducted in 1982.
“So, it’s not a sudden hike. It appears significant because it has been 42 years,” he added.
Previously, the media reported that the Ministry of Housing and Local Government (KPKT) urged all local authorities to conduct reassessments of assessment taxes while ensuring public welfare is prioritized.
Its Minister, Nga Kor Ming, was quoted as saying that tax hikes should not be implemented suddenly or in ways that burden the public.
