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Carmena Announces A “Significant” Decrease Of IBI …

3 September 2015 – El Economista

The mayor of Madrid, Manuela Carmena, has announced that there will be a “significant” drop in Property Tax (Impuesto sobre Bienes Inmuebles, IBI) in 2016 for the “vast majority”, although she could not yet specify the exact reduction because it is still being “studied”.

This was stated in an interview on Onda Cero, where she noted that it is an issue they could examine now that they are preparing budget for next year; and that they took into account  contributions of the opposition because they want to “work with everyone” .

“During elections when we were asked about taxes we said that ‘we will look into it’. Well, we have and in 2016 we will lower the IBI”, stated the Mayor of the capital, who could not, however, specify the amount of tax decrease.

“We are studying it,” she said, while acknowledging that “it will be noticeable” and that they have to keep in mind the need to “offset the income deficit”, which the tax decrease will mean. Therefore, the reduction will not apply to “certain properties with a very high level of surface”.

Municipality Debts

When asked about the debt of the City of Madrid and if the banks can remain calm, she stated that there is “no problem”, they are already paying them because they can and “there is enough revenue to keep doing it.” She also said “absolutely no” to the implication that the conducting of an audit will mean that the portion of the debt will not be paid.

To Carmena, what matters in the “first inquiries” is “to analyze the impact possibly made” by the performance of previous governments and the resulting debt in “social policies”. “It is important to know what has been accomplished, the past and the present both matter to us,” she stated.

It does not mean, she added, that since there is going to be the anti-fraud office, “as an instrument to prevent corruption, and fully dependent as a whole”, in view of the debt analysis, she referred to the same “operations that may have become irregular and may have certain responsibility.”

Original story: El Economista

Translation: Lee La