Valuation of Land Act 1971

This Act may be cited as the Valuation of Land

Act 1971.

In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears—

annual value of land, means a value computed as three-quarters of the gross annual rental that the land might reasonably be expected to realise if leased upon condition that the landlord were liable for all rates, taxes and other imposts on the land and the insurance and other outgoings necessary to maintain the value of the land, or as five per cent of the capital value of the land, but this definition is subject to the following qualifications—

the annual value of land held of the Crown by virtue solely of a mining lease must not exceed the amount of the rental payable to the Crown under the lease, and if the annual value of any such land would, but for this paragraph, exceed that amount, the annual value must be reduced to that amount;

and

if the value of the land has been enhanced by trees planted on the land (other than commercial plantations), or trees preserved on the land for the purpose of shelter or ornament, the annual value must be determined as if the value of the land had not been so enhanced; and

if the value of the land is enhanced by the existence on the land of any fixtures, consisting of prescribed machinery, plant or equipment the annual value of the land must (where the annual value is computed on the basis of gross annual rental, but not otherwise) be reduced by an amount representing depreciation on that machinery, plant or equipment; and

where it is not reasonably practicable to determine a gross annual rental in relation to land, the annual value of the land must be computed on the basis of the capital value of the land;

area means a municipality or district as defined in the Local Government Act 1934 and an area in relation to which any body corporate is, by virtue of any Act, taken to be or vested with the powers of, a municipal council or district council, and any other portion or portions of the State declared by regulation to constitute an area for the purposes of this Act;

business of primary production means the business of agriculture, pasturage, horticulture, viticulture, apiculture, poultry farming, dairy farming, forestry or any other business consisting of the cultivation of soils, the gathering in of crops or the rearing of livestock or consisting of the propagation and harvesting of fish or other aquatic organisms;

capital value of land means the capital amount that an unencumbered estate of fee simple in the land might reasonably be expected to realise upon sale, but if the value of the land has been enhanced by trees planted on the land (other than commercial plantations), or trees preserved on the land for the purpose of shelter or ornament, the capital value must be determined as if the value of the land had not been so enhanced;

council means a municipal council or a district council and includes any body corporate that is, by virtue of any Act, taken to be, or vested with the powers of, a municipal or district council;

general valuation means a valuation of all the land within an area on which any rate, tax or impost is to be levied or imposed under the provisions of any of the rating or taxing Acts;

owner of land means the person who is liable to pay tax in respect of the land under the Land Tax

Act 1936, or where there is no person so liable, a person who is liable, as owner or occupier of the land, to pay any rate, tax or impost under any other of the rating or taxing Acts;

the rating or taxing Acts means—

the Land Tax Act 1936;

and

the Local Government Act 1934;

and

the Emergency Services Funding

Act 1998; and

the Waterworks Act 1932, the

Water Conservation Act 1936 and the

Sewerage Act 1929;

site value of land means the capital amount that an unencumbered estate in fee simple in the land might reasonably be expected to realise upon sale assuming that any improvements on the land, the benefit of which is unexhausted at the time of valuation, had not been made; for the purposes of this definition—

improvements means—

buildings and structures (but not including structures in the nature of site works); and

wells, dams and reservoirs; and

the planting of trees for commercial purposes;

unimproved value of land means the capital amount that an unencumbered estate of fee simple in the land might reasonably be expected to realise upon sale assuming that any improvements on the land (except, in the case of land not used for primary production, any site improvements), the benefit of which is unexhausted at the time of valuation, had not been made; for the purposes of this definition—

improvements means houses and buildings, fixtures and other building improvements of any kind whatsoever, fences, bridges, roads, tanks, wells, dams, fruit trees, bushes, shrubs and other plants planted or sown, whether for trade or other purposes, draining of land, ringbarking, clearing of timber or scrub and any other actual improvements;

site improvements means reclamation of land by draining or filling, and any retaining walls or other structures or works ancillary to that reclamation, the excavation, grading or levelling of land, the removal of rocks, stone, sand or soil, and the clearing of timber, scrub or other vegetation;

value in relation to land means the annual value, the capital value, the site value and the unimproved value of the land or any one or more of those values; to value means to determine or assess those values or any one or more of them; and

determination of value or valuation means a determination or assessment of those values or any one or more of them.

Where land is—

a primary strata lot in a strata scheme under the

Community Titles Act 1996 in which none of the primary lots has been divided by a secondary plan; or

a unit under the Strata Titles

Act 1988, the unimproved value or site value of the lot or unit will be determined as follows:

the capital value of all lots or units shown on the plan will be assessed; and

the unimproved value or site value (as the case may require) of the parcel or site will be assessed; and

the unimproved value or site value of the strata lot or unit will be taken to be the value that bears to the unimproved value or site value of the parcel or site the same proportion as the capital value of the lot or unit bears to the aggregate capital value of all the strata lots or units shown on the plan.

Where any of the primary strata lots created by the deposit of a primary strata plan under the Community Titles

Act 1996 have been divided by a secondary plan the unimproved value or site value of the primary lots that have not been divided by a secondary plan (if any), the secondary lots that have not been divided by a tertiary plan (if any) and the tertiary lots (if any) will be determined as follows:

the capital value of all the undivided primary and secondary lots and the tertiary lots shown on the plan will be assessed; and

the unimproved value or site value (as the case may require) of the primary parcel will be assessed; and

the unimproved value or site value of a primary, secondary or tertiary lot will be taken to be the value that bears to the unimproved value or site value of the primary parcel the same proportion as the capital value of the lot bears to the aggregate capital value of all the undivided primary and secondary lots and the tertiary lots shown on the plan.

The Governor may, by notice published in the Gazette, appoint a

Valuer-General who will have the general administration of this

Act.

If the Valuer-General is temporarily absent from the duties of office or if the office of Valuer-General is temporarily vacant, the Governor may, by notice published in the Gazette, appoint an officer of the Public

Service to be a Deputy Valuer-General and that person, while so appointed, will perform all such functions and duties as are imposed on, or assigned to, the

Valuer-General by or under this or any other Act.

Where a Deputy Valuer-General is appointed to perform the functions and duties of the Valuer-General, references in this or any other Act to the

Valuer-General will, in relation to those functions or duties, be read as references to the Deputy Valuer‑General.

A person appointed Valuer-General, or a Deputy Valuer-General under this section must be a person who is qualified for membership of the Australian

Property Institute Incorporated or a body prescribed by regulation and has practised as a land valuer (whether in the service of the Government or privately) for a period (whether continuous or in aggregate) of at least 5 years.

The Valuer-General will, in valuing any land or performing any statutory function as Valuer-General, exercise an independent judgment and not be subject to direction from any person.

The Valuer-General may, by instrument in writing, delegate any of his or her powers, authorities, duties and functions (except this power of delegation) under this or any other Act to any other person.

Any such delegation does not prevent the Valuer-General from acting personally in any matter.

The Valuer-General will be paid such salary and allowances as the

Governor may from time to time determine.

The salary and allowances referred to in subsection (1) are a charge on the Consolidated

Account which is to the necessary extent appropriated accordingly.

The Valuer-General will be appointed for a term of 5 years.

Subject to this Act, a person appointed to be the Valuer-General is, on the expiration of a term of office, eligible for reappointment for a term of 5 years.

The Governor may remove the Valuer-General from office upon the presentation of an address by both Houses of Parliament praying for his or her removal.

The Governor may, at any time suspend the Valuer-General from office on the ground of incompetence or misbehaviour and upon such suspension—

a full statement of the reason for the suspension must be laid before both Houses of Parliament within 7 days of the suspension if Parliament is then in session or, if not, within 7 days of the commencement of the next succeeding session of Parliament; and

if within 1 month of the statement being laid before Parliament, neither House of Parliament presents an address to the Governor praying for the removal of the Valuer-General from office, he or she must be restored to office, but if either House does present such an address, the Governor may remove the Valuer-General from office.

The office of Valuer-General becomes vacant if the Valuer-General—

dies; or

resigns by written notice addressed to the Governor; or

completes a term of office and is not reappointed; or

is removed from office by the Governor under subsection (2) or (3); or

becomes bankrupt, applies to take the benefit of any law for the relief of bankrupt or insolvent debtors or compounds with his or her creditors for less than one hundred cents in the dollar; or

is convicted of any indictable offence or is sentenced to imprisonment for any offence; or

becomes a member of the Parliament of the State or the Commonwealth; or

becomes, in the opinion of the Governor, incapable, by reason of mental or physical illness, of further performing his or her functions and duties under this Act; or

is removed from office by the Governor on the ground that the Valuer-General has engaged in any remunerative employment, occupation or business outside the duties of the office without the consent of the Minister.

Except as provided by this section, the Valuer-General cannot be removed or suspended from office, nor does the office of Valuer-General become vacant.

If a person's conditions of appointment as Valuer-General so provide, a person who—

was an employee in the Public Service immediately before his or her appointment as Valuer-General; and

is not reappointed as Valuer-General at the expiry of a term of office, will be entitled to be appointed (without any requirement for selection processes to be conducted) to a position in the Public Service with a remuneration level the same as, or at least equivalent to, that of the position he or she occupied immediately before his or her appointment as Valuer-General.

The Valuer-General must make or cause to be made general valuations of land within the areas of the State.

For the purposes of each such general valuation, the Valuer-General must determine or cause to be determined, with respect to all land subject to the general valuation, the annual value, the capital value, the site value and the unimproved value of the land so far as those values are required for the purpose of levying or imposing any rate, tax or impost.

A separate valuation roll must be prepared in respect of each area.

A value assigned to land for the purposes of a general valuation must be the value of the land as at a date (whether before, on or after the completion of the general valuation) determined by the Valuer-General in relation to the general valuation.

When a general valuation of land within an area has been made under this Act, the Valuer-General must cause notice of the making of the general valuation to be published in the Gazette.

A notice published under subsection (1) must specify the area in which the general valuation has been made, and the date determined by the Valuer-General as at which values are assigned to land in the area for the purposes of the general valuation.

The determinations of value comprising the general valuation will come into force and supersede any previous determinations of value in force under this Act and affecting the land to which the general valuation relates as from such day (whether before, on or after the date as at which values are assigned to land for the purposes of the general valuation) as may be determined by the Valuer-General and specified in the notice published under subsection (1).

A general valuation must be made within each area at least once during each successive period of 5 years after the day on which the first general valuation of land within the area comes into force.

If the Valuer-General is of opinion that the value of land within an area has not materially increased or diminished since a previous general valuation of land within the area, he or she may, by notice published in the

Gazette, declare that the valuation roll prepared for the purposes of that previous general valuation, correctly represents the value of land within the area and such a declaration will be taken to constitute a general valuation of the land within the area.

A value will be taken to have been assigned to land for the purposes of a general valuation made by declaration in accordance with subsection (2) as at the date (whether before, on or after the date of the declaration) specified by the Valuer-General in that declaration.

The Valuer-General may at any time, value or cause to be valued any land if the land has not previously been valued or separately valued under this

Act or if, in his or her opinion, the value of the land has been materially enhanced or diminished, or such a valuation is, for any reason whatsoever, necessary or expedient.

Where a valuation is made under subsection (1), the value of the land must be determined—

if there has been a previous general valuation of land within the same area as that land, in accordance with the level of values prevailing in relation to land of the same or a similar character at the date as at which values were assigned to land for the purposes of the latest such general valuation; or

if there has been no previous general valuation of land within the same area as that land, as the value of the land as at the date of valuation.

A determination of value made under this section will come into force and supersede any previous determination of value in force under this Act and affecting the land to which the determination relates as from such day (whether before, on or after the day on which the determination of value is made) as may be determined by the Valuer-General.

A value determined by valuation under this section must be entered in an appropriate valuation roll.