Perry Properties Pty Ltd v Chief Commissioner of State Revenue

In *Perry Properties Pty Ltd v Chief Commissioner of State Revenue*, the Court of Appeal of New South Wales considered an appeal by Perry Properties Pty Ltd against a decision of the Chief Commissioner of State Revenue concerning land tax. The dispute centred on whether certain land owned by Perry Properties was exempt from land tax under section 10Q of the *Land Tax Management Act 1956* (NSW). This exemption applies where land is used for low-cost accommodation and the Chief Commissioner is satisfied that the land is so used and occupied in accordance with guidelines approved by the Treasurer.

The primary legal issue before the court was the proper interpretation of section 10Q and the Treasurer's guidelines. Specifically, the court had to determine whether the purpose of the guidelines was to assist the Chief Commissioner in forming the satisfaction required for the exemption, or whether they were intended to specify particular types of low-cost accommodation that were entitled to the exemption. A further issue was whether the guidelines conferred a freestanding discretion on the Chief Commissioner to grant an exemption, particularly in relation to a "long-term residency requirement".

The Court of Appeal reasoned that the guidelines approved by the Treasurer under section 10Q were not intended to create a freestanding discretion for the Chief Commissioner. Instead, their purpose was to provide criteria and a framework to assist the Chief Commissioner in forming the necessary satisfaction that the land was being used and occupied for low-cost accommodation in accordance with the legislative intent. The court held that the guidelines specified the conditions that must be met for the exemption to apply, rather than granting the Chief Commissioner unfettered discretion to grant it.

The appeal was dismissed, and Perry Properties Pty Ltd was ordered to pay the respondent's costs of the appeal.