Came across this CFE article recently regarding local communes' ability to reassess the level of CFE contributions.
Many thanks to Tracy who has kindly translated it below:
A decision has been made in the Senate affecting the current rules whereby the communes fix the amount of the CFE according to their turnover.
The amendment authorises the communes ‘if they wish’ to reconsider the decisions taken in 2011. They may decide to allow a rebate/discount on the 2012 contributions to allow for a minimum contribution, negating the large increase between 2011 and 2012. This meeting must take place before the 15th January and they must make their decision to hold the review before the 15th December.
For those communes deciding to do this, a payment extension is given to all taxpayers for the amount exceeding the CFE paid in 2011. Once the discount is decided, the taxpayer must immediately pay the new balance due.
However, payment extensions must be granted to all businesses according to their capacity to pay, with regards to their tax payment in 2011. For those who pay by direct monthly payment, a repayment will be made by the Service des Impots. These decisions still have to be made to the Assembly.
All communes have till the 31 December to fix the amounts for next year. The Commission also notes that they are still reflecting on ways to change the imposition.
Frances, Chris - been out or I would have replied earlier.
CFE stands for Cotisation foncière des entreprises - it was an attempt at recouping some of the money that communes lost when the business tax was scrapped.
Oh yes, Frances: they are a mystery to me too!
Exactly, which I why I waste a terrible amount of time doing it too.
Is this complicated enough?
Umm, it was an interesting exercise to translate and took many readings to understand it, then put it into (more or less) comprehensible English. I found it was typical of most of the communiques they issue, complete waste of time, however, you have to read them, just in case they say something important or useful!
Thanks Frances, I always learned to write out in full first time then add in brackets or by another means thereafter, so yes good point.
A plea to you all when discussing anything specifically French (ha!and this is a good example)... Please don't use acronyms. I know the French love them but I have no idea what anyone is talking about. Even if you write it out in full I might not understand if it affects me or not. The first person to post an article on anything relating to a requirement, organisation, group etc should, I feel use the full name, very short explanation of what it is and the acronym in the first post. I'd learn a lot just by reading all that , let alone if it directly affected me on that occasion.
I'm a communications and education specialist. If you use acronyms a large percentage of your audience won't understand AND they won't learn anything for future use. How about it? Just a thought...
Quite, that is why they need to have an entirely new mindset before any such thing will work. I hold out no hope of any real relief or incentive for small businesses and the self-employed.
I believe that once they set the amount, they will have been banking on receiving that level of income (and quite possibly have already spent it), so I'm not holding out too much hope that this will filter down to the tax payer.
Well, clear as mud when analysed. they can decide they want to, don't want to or might go somewhere between. The original says it clearer to me (no fault with your translation at all Tracy): le gouvernement propose un réajustement. It remains to be seen how many communes are sympathetic rather than supportive of the people most affected. I think we are in a lucky position of having a maire who is sympathetic and will probably lead this council correctly. In contrast, the next commune is already forcing people out of business as it is, typically with a maire who feathers his own nest without being overtly corrupt and has been in office 30 odd years. This is something that might get the support and action it needs if local government is reformed as well, so that one cannot have a sitting council for decades on end who on the one hand dislike change and on the other like revenues.