Welfare groups have welcomed an ACT government review of whether current concessions are enough to cushion the impact of rate rises on people who are on a low income or asset-poor.
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The ACT Greens negotiated the review with ACT Labor after the Canberra Liberals unsuccessfully tried to halt the government's "unfair and destructive" rates reform though a motion in the ACT Legislative Assembly on Wednesday.
The government will now conduct a financial and social impact analysis of the shift from stamp duty to land-based taxation on low-income and asset-poor households.
Greens crossbencher Caroline Le Couteur said while she supported the reform, the Greens wanted to ensure it did not have "unintended consequences for the vulnerable people in our community".
"That's why the Greens argued that the government should monitor the impact of the recent tax and concession policy changes as these roll out for property owners on low or fixed incomes, and for Canberrans who are both income and asset poor," Ms Le Couteur said.
"We're pleased that the government has committed to this today ahead of the next budget."
But Liberals leader Alistair Coe said concessions were a "symptom" and did not address the fundamental flaws in how the reform was being rolled out.
"Concessions are not the core issue. The core issue is why a concession is needed," Mr Coe said.
However both the ACT Council of Social Services (ACTCOSS) and the Council of the Ageing believed the review is a step in the right direction.
"It's what we've been calling for," ACTCOSS executive director Susan Helyer said.
She believed the review should focus on households in the bottom 40 per cent of income groups.
"Many of [those households] are not eligible for concessions because they don't have a government health care card or income support," Ms Helyer said.
"Maybe they're people in work who have unreliable work with not enough hours or are not financially stable.
"We overall support the move to a tax based om land values rather than on housing transactions but think there are risks around the edges and we need to deal with households put in financial hardship to not to undermine the overall aim of the tax reform.
"If we can make sure people aren't put into financial hardship or put risk more broadly we believe tax this reform is the right reform, it's what's been recommended as the most efficient and effective way of securing a revenue base for the ACT government.
COTA ACT executive director Jenny Mobbs said the review would be "timely" and she would like to see the outcome.
The ACT government in 2015 reviewed its suite of concessions but ultimately decided not to make any changes.
One of the options put forward in a discussion paper was to reduce the difference in rebates between the capped and uncapped schemes.
On average, uncapped recipients receive a 50 per cent higher level of concession than capped recipients, although the difference is much larger for high value properties
About 3000 households receive the generous uncapped rates discounts, which for those in the most valuable suburbs amounts to $2000 a year or more.
Meanwhile it can be revealed 23 land valuation challenges have been lodged so far this year as residents feel the sting of rising rates.
However an ACT government spokeswoman said this was a similar number to the objections raised last year.
