MoBay mayor wants to collect over $3b owed in property taxes, trade licences
Published:Monday | March 25, 2024 | 12:08 AMAlbert Ferguson/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU
Chairman of the St James Municipal Corporation and Mayor of Montego Bay, Richard Vernon, says property owners and business operators are delinquent in excess of $3 billion in property tax and trade licence fees.
There are 60,038 parcels of land spread across the parish. Two-thirds of these properties fall within the price band of $800,000 and $3 million.
Vernon said these funds are needed to provide better services, such as fixing roads and collecting solid waste, thereby improving the level of municipal services in the parish.
He said more than 50 per cent of those who own the more than 60,000 parcels of lands are delinquent in their obligations.
“There is a large room for improvement; case in point, only 43 per cent of St James is property tax-compliant, resulting in a deficit of $2.5 billion,” Vernon said, while speaking at the 20th biennial staging of the Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MBCCI) Business Expo on Friday.
The three-day MBCCI business expo was held against the theme Future Forward: Shaping Tomorrow’s business today at the Montego Bay Convention Centre on the tourism elegant corridor.
72% NOT PAYING FEES
According to Vernon, 72 per cent of the approximately 6,000 businesses operating within St James are not paying their trade licence fees.
“Only 28 per cent of businesses are paying for your licence to operate in the space within the municipality, an additional deficit of over $200 million; so we have a wide room to catch up on,” Vernon revealed.
“Therefore, it is more tedious for us at the municipal corporation to deliver these services,” Vernon said.
He is urging all stakeholders to do better in filling the gaps through greater partnerships at every level of the society, so as to ensure a sustainable future for everyone.
“We have to do better as a city and municipality to ensure we shape an environment today for business tomorrow. Therefore, I’m calling on residents to be more compliant not just with payment of taxes and fees, but with the management of your spaces from the proper containerisation of garbage to obeying simple rules, like hours for delivery,” the newly appointed Montego Bay mayor argued, pointing out that, as a people, Jamaicans have to be committed to addressing all areas of development.