Rates are a property tax used to fund local services that dates back to the Poor Law.
The Poor Law (Scotland) Act 1845 modernized the system, and the Lands Valuation (Scotland) Act 1854 established the foundations of the modern system.
The Valuation and Rating (Scotland) Act 1956 established a system of five-yearly revaluations, undertaken by an Assessor appointed by the local authority.
In 1989, domestic properties were removed from the rating system with the introduction of the Community Charge in Scotland, later to be replaced with Council Tax.
The Local Government Finance Act 1988 amended the existing rating system in Scotland from 1990 at the same time as introducing a new system of business rates in England and Wales from 1990, and the Local Government Finance Act 1992 made further changes.