POOR RATE. The name of the tax raised in England for the maintenanee of the public poor relief. The first tax levied for this purpose was in 1573. The assessment and collection were in charge of the Overseers of the Poor (q.v.). The earlier levies seem to have been on the basis of the number of acres owned, but later degrees of value were recognized. The Overseers were made subject to the courts and their assessment had to be countersigned by two justices. Great inequal arose in the different parishes. and no fixed basis of assessment was reached until 1836. when the Parochial Assessment Aet (Ii and 7 William IV.) established the principle that the "net rent is the standard of ratable value." This act wag, permissive only, but in 1845 the justices were em powered to appoint an assessment committee. for the purpose of determining the county rate. I (wing to the varying contributions of the different par ishes, the law of 1861 (24 and 25 Viet., 4'. 53)
made the share of each parish to accord with its ratable value, and in 1862 the Union Assess ment Committee Act was passed. This required the Guardians to appoint a committee, to which the Overseers of each parish submit their lists of property. These lists are made public, and property-owners are given a chance to appear and to appeal. The list given out by this committee becomes the basis for levying the rate. In 1807 a special act was passed to meet conditions in London. In 1896 the amount raised by the poor rates was f21,236,297, but of this £11.892,190 was turned over to other departments. See PAITERISM: POOR LAWS. Consult Nicholls, History of the English Poor Lair (London, 1854), third volume by 31aekay (London, 1898).