A class action lawsuit against Oslo’s property tax system, filed on behalf of 3,400 Oslo residents, made it into the Supreme Court this week. It claims the Labour Party-led Oslo city government’s property tax is illegal because its burden isn’t equally shared.
“We hope we win the court’s support for our objection in principle that the entire Oslo property tax model … only applies to 20 percent of the population,” lawyer Bettina Banoun told news bureau NTB.
With a standard deduction of NOK 4 million a property’s value, the tax when it was imposed applied to around 20 percent of the population. As property assessments have risen, more property owners are likely being hit now, but plaintiffs argue that they’re still paying an unfair portion of the hundreds of millions in revenue raised by the property tax.
They lost at the county and appeals court levels but the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case on Monday. A verdict, which likely would have consequences for other municipalities around Norway, is expected in around a month.
newsinenglish.no staff
