West Midlands Mayor Andy Street has announced he will not levy an additional charge on council taxpayers in the West Midlands.
The mayor is allowed to add a "precept" to council tax bills to contribute to the cost of running his office - and last year announced plans to add £12 to bills for a Band D home, only to back down in the face of opposition from council leaders.
Mr Street has now announced that for the second year running there will be no precept from the mayor's office.
It means he has pledged not to add a charge to council tax bills in the West Midlands until at least May 2020.
Regional mayors across the country have the power to impose precepts, although most of them choose not to do so.
One exception is Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham, who added a charge of £8 for Band D properties for the financial year to May 2019.
Local councils, the Fire Service and the Police also have the power to raise additional council tax and are set to announce any changes in the coming weeks.
Andy Street said, “I am delighted that I have been able to give this commitment not to increase bills for council taxpayers in the West Midlands.
“The West Midlands has come together to bring in more money from Government and is looking to attract private sector investment. As we leave the EU, we will push to secure funding which is coming back from Brussels.
"We are also working hard to keep costs as low as possible.”
He claimed he was able to avoid imposing a precept because of success in winning more funding from central government, which the Mayor said amounted to £1.7 billion since May 2017.
Mr Street also hopes that the Government will agree to devolve to the West Midlands funding of £550 million currently provided by the EU, after Brexit takes place next year.
