Somerset Residents are being encouraged to have their say on possible changes to a scheme that gives financial support to working age adults on low incomes.
In November 2023, Somerset Council declared a financial emergency due to increasing costs of providing key services and agreed to a number of actions to reduce spending. This included a commitment to consult with the public on potential changes to the Council Tax Reduction scheme. Council Tax Reduction is a discount offered for Council Tax payers on low incomes.
The proposed changes would only apply to working age adults, the support provided for pensioners would not be affected. The options for consideration include reducing the maximum available discount from 100% to 75%.
Leader of Somerset Council, Councillor Bill Revans says they have no choice but to consider all available options to cut spending, due to the poor state of the Council’s finances. Any decision to reduce the discount available to qualifying council tax payers will not be taken lightly and ask that as many people as possible take part in the consultation so the Council can consider every impact before any decisions are made.
To have your say or find out more about the proposals, go to the Somerset Council website.
The consultation runs until October First, with any decisions taking place later in the year and any changes coming into effect from 1 April 2025.
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