The Edo House of Assembly on Tuesday, passed the Local Government Harmonized Levies, Rates, Fees and Charges Bill.
The Speaker of the house, Dr Justin Okonobo, announced the passage of the Bill at plenary.
He said that when endorsed by the governor, the Bill would be known as Edo State Uniform and Harmonized Levies, Rates, Fees and Charges Collected by Local Government Law 2017.
He said that it stipulated that all local government councils in the state should constitute an Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) Committee to collect levies and charges.
Okonobo explained that the Bill gave the IGR committee power from the operations of the local government council authority.
He said that the Bill also stipulated that no person(s), aside members of the IGR committee, should forcefully collect or attempt to collect levies and charges while armed.
According to him, any person(s) who collects or attempts to collect levies and charges while armed, commits an offence and shall be imprisoned for 25 years without an option of fine, when found guilty.
The speaker, thereafter, directed the Clerk of the House to make clean copies of the bill for presentation to the state governor for his assent.
Earlier, Majority Leader of the house, Mr Foly Ogedengbe, (Owan East-APC) moved the motion for the house to dissolve into the committee of the whole to consider bill clause-by-clause.
Mr Bright Osayande (Ovia North-East 1- APC) seconded the motion for the consideration and passage of the Bill. (NAN)
