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A public rental housing (PRH) tenant was today (January 21) sentenced to a fine of $2,400 for failing to provide particulars on his household income under the Survey on Household Income of PRH Tenants.
This is the first time the Housing Department (HD) has ever taken legal action on such a matter since the start of the monthly survey on household income by sampling in January 2007. The purpose of the survey is to collect accurate information on household income of PRH tenants for statistical analysis. This would enable the Housing Authority to effectively discharge its statutory functions and duties under the Housing Ordinance.
Each month 2,000 households are randomly selected to complete an Income Declaration Form (IDF) by furnishing the particulars required before the time specified. The IDF is a mandatory declaration issued under s.25(1) of the ordinance.
Under s.27(a) of the ordinance, any person who refuses or neglects to furnish any of the particulars specified in the IDF shall be guilty of an offence. Currently, the convicted person would be liable to a maximum penalty of a fine of $25,000 and imprisonment for three months.
A spokesman for the HD said that the household income sampling survey has been implemented smoothly since it began and had a good response rate of 99%. There were only a few cases where the households could not provide the required information on time for justifiable reasons, such as overseas employment/study and long term illness.
The subject tenant failed to complete and return the IDF before the specified time despite repeated reminders by officers of the HD. The HD decided to prosecute under section 27(a) of the ordinance after careful deliberation. This is the first court case brought by the HD for the Survey on Household Income of PRH Tenants.
The defendant pleaded guilty on January 7 in the Kowloon City Magistrates' Courts. The court reserved sentence to January 21 and advised the defendant to furnish the required information to HD. The court sentenced the defendant today to a fine of $2,400 after being satisfied that the defendant had provided the required information to HD and showed remorse.
The spokesman reminds PRH tenants of their statutory duties under the ordinance to complete and return the IDF before the time specified if they are sampled to participate in the household income survey.
Ends/Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Issued at HKT 18:47
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