Each European Union Member State keeps a register of data on properties located in its territory. The number, type and scope of these properties are determined by each Member State’s needs. The INSPIRE Directive enables the scope of data to be harmonised, and the data to be made available for the purpose of assisting legislators in taking decisions and actions likely to have either direct or indirect impact on the environment. The aim of the study was to indicate the basic differences between the data contained in Polish and Latvian cadastres. Unlike other similar studies analysing the content of data in the cadastre, this article pays special attention to the number of available sets of data about the parcel and its surroundings, the ease of access to these data and the possibility for acquiring them by an interested party without incurring additional fees. This is particularly important in activities related to spatial management and the development of an information society. The results show that in both countries, the decision makers have approached the INSPIRE Directive differently. Direct analyses conducted for the cities of Wrocław (Poland) and Riga (Latvia) demonstrated that the information system in Wrocław contains a considerably greater scope of information available free of charge, is easier to use and offers more services. The Latvian Republic’s spatial information system provides a less-developed scope of information about real estate (without fees) that is dispersed on several websites, which slows down and hinders its use.
The article is a review of the current theoretical achievements in the context of the discussion on the shape and validity of the property tax reform in Poland, indicated in the endogenous development of municipalities. The conclusions contained in the article are an attempt to join in a scientifi c discussion on the subject of property taxation. They constitute a proposal of formulated recommendations necessary from the point of view of legitimacy of collecting property taxes and the implementation of the new system of ad valorem tax.
The Land and Property Register (LPR) also called the Cadastre by the legislator should function in accordance with regulations in force, meet expectations of the public and provide universal access to Register data for its users. Beyond any doubt, credibility and usefulness of data in this public register are affected by the manner it is kept, which generally in-cludes active and passive approach. If the LPR is kept in an active manner and constantly up to date, its data is very useful. The qualitative aspect of the land and buildings database’s records establishes the calculation accuracy of the owners’ land parcels evidenced in the Land and Mortgage Registers, which protect the ownership right to the property. In order to ensure that the plot of land is unequivocally and correctly measured, it is necessary to establish breakpoints of the parcels’ bounda-ries in the presence of the interested parties.
Research conducted on the possibility of using the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for measuring purposes indicates immense probability where this technology may be used for the selected details of group I (most accurately located) in modernization of land and buildings registers.