PENANG has decided to give tax assessment rebates amounting to RM24.5 million to 649,950 taxpayers this year.

State housing, local government and town and country planning committee chairman Jagdeep Singh Deo today said taxpayers residing in low-cost, low-medium cost and village houses in Penang were granted a 100% rebate on the increase of tax assessment rate for 2021, which was approved earlier.

He said other housing units in Penang not categorised under the aforementioned categories were given a 50% rebate on the increase of tax assessment rate for this year.

“The Penang Island City Council has granted an overall of RM10.3 million in tax assessment rebates for the island, whereas the Seberang Perai City Council provided a total of RM14.2 million rebates on the mainland,” he said in a press conference in George Town.

Last year, a total of RM47.3 million in tax assessment rate was not collected by both Penang city councils to ease the burden of taxpayers.

He said the waiver was given according to the Local Government Act 1976, which includes allowing the public to make their objections with regard to the increase of tax assessment.

Among the main objections to the increase was it was too sudden and imposed at a time when the people were struggling with the high cost of living amid the Covid-19 pandemic, he added. – Bernama, January 2, 2021.