33 of Tipperary’s 40 councillors voted to approve an amended budget for county Tipperary today.
The meeting began at 10am and concluded with the vote at 2.45pm.
The budget proposed by the Chief Executive was amended to include a rates increase for some commercial ratepayers of 5% – the executive had sought a 7% increase.
In addition, ratepayers with a Rateable valuation of up to €26,000 can avail of a 6% discount for early payment of their rates.
Officials from the finance department say that the changes will mean that approximately 95% of ratepayers will see a reduction next year if they participate in the Early Payment Scheme.
Officials have promised to run a strong promotion campaign to get ratepayers to participate in the Scheme which is also eligible to rate payers in arrears in certain circumstances.
A proposal from Councillor Pat English to have funds for councillors to attend conferences at home and abroad transferred to the county Playground fund was defeated on a vote of 29 against and 5 in favour.
The budget for the county is costed at €205.7M – an increase of 5.8% on 2022.
