Concerns have been raised that Laois County Council could be missing out on Local Property Tax revenue because of discrepancies between Eircodes and county boundaries.
The issue was raised by Independent councillor Tommy Mulligan at Monday’s meeting of Laois County Council, where he called for an investigation into whether properties located in Laois are being incorrectly registered as belonging to neighbouring counties.
His motion, which was seconded by Cllr Caroline Dwane Stanley, called on the council to write to Minister of State at the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport, Charlie McConalogue, seeking a full investigation into the matter.
Cllr Mulligan also proposed contacting Revenue to establish whether any discrepancies are affecting the allocation of Local Property Tax (LPT) funding.
He said it was essential that Laois County Council receive all the revenue to which it is entitled.
“The reason I’m bringing this forward is that Local Property Tax is an important revenue stream for Laois County Council,” he said.
He expressed particular concern about properties situated close to county boundaries, where Eircodes and postal addresses may not correspond with the county in which a property is physically located.
Cllr Mulligan questioned whether this could result in properties in Laois being registered for Local Property Tax purposes in neighbouring counties, particularly Kildare and Carlow.
“Do we know, or is there a way of telling, that all houses in Laois, that their Local Property Tax is coming back into County Laois?” he asked.
“And if not, are there houses identified that are paying into another county?”
He acknowledged that Local Property Tax is collected centrally before funding is allocated to local authorities, but said clarification was needed on how properties were registered.
“Is every house in Laois registered for Laois property tax? Or are there houses in Laois where the property tax is going into neighbouring counties?” he asked.
Cllr Mulligan stressed that he was seeking information rather than suggesting that discrepancies had already been established.
He proposed that the council contact Revenue as well as the Minister to determine whether any issues existed.
Cathaoirleach Cllr Catherine Fitzgerald also spoke about difficulties surrounding Eircodes, referring to the hassle she had experienced when trying to obtain an Eircode for her new house.
Cllr Mulligan suggested that it would make more sense if Eircodes corresponded directly with county boundaries.
Cllr Caroline Dwane Stanley, who seconded the motion, said the issue warranted further investigation, particularly in relation to properties close to the Carlow border.
She referred to concerns previously raised by Councillor Ben Brennan about council houses built by Laois County Council being associated with Carlow addresses.
Cllr Dwane Stanley questioned whether such discrepancies could have implications for the allocation of Local Property Tax revenue.
She argued that it would be unfair if Laois County Council was responsible for providing housing and maintaining local infrastructure while property tax revenue associated with those properties was allocated elsewhere.
“If we’re providing the houses, if we’re maintaining the roads for Carlow tenants, then this council should be getting the property tax,” she said.
However, she emphasised that the situation needed to be established factually before any conclusions could be drawn.
“We need to find out factually if that is the case,” she said.
She added that the issue could also affect privately owned properties and supported the proposal to seek clarification from Revenue.
Cllr Fitzgerald agreed that contacting Revenue was a sensible approach, although she acknowledged that resolving the matter could take time.
The council will now seek answers on whether any Laois properties have been incorrectly associated with neighbouring counties and whether any resulting revenue discrepancies need to be addressed.
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