a result of falling Crown Estate revenues. In addition, the legislation requires that the Sovereign Grant shall not rise to such a level that the Reserve Fund becomes more than half the level of annual expenditure. Annual financial accounts are published by the Keeper of the Privy Purse and audited by the National Audit Office, making the Sovereign Grant more accountable than its predecessor. Funding to the Royal Household is treated similarly to funding for other government departments, unlike previous Civil List payments. Finances Since its inception, the Sovereign Grant has often risen each year at a rate higher than the rate of inflation. About a third of the grant is used to tackle the backlog in property maintenance at the Royal Palaces. Following the 2016 review of the percentage of the Crown Estate income used to calculate the grant, it was announced that a temporary increase in the Sovereign Grant would be used to fund a £369 million refurbishment of Buckingham Palace, subject to parliamentary approval. The trustees recommended that the percentage should rise to 25% for the 10 years during which the work would take place, and that the grant should then be returned to 15% when building work is finished in 2027. This was expected to result in a 66% rise in the grant in 2017–18. The increase in the grant to 25% was approved by Parliament in March 2017. A decrease in the Crown Estate's rental income during the COVID-19 pandemic led to the first use of the provision that prevents the value of the Sovereign Grant from falling, with the Treasury committing to make up the shortfall. In January 2023 the Keeper of the Privy Purse, on behalf of King Charles III, asked the government to reduce the percentage used to calculate the sovereign grant so that the total does not include the income from new offshore wind power leases, calculated to be worth around £1 billion annually to the Crown Estate. This request was said by the King to be due to his desire that the money could instead be used for the "wider public good". The King and the Prince of Wales also receive private income through the Duchy of Lancaster and Duchy of Cornwall. The Sovereign Grant only accounts for one part of the total cost of running the monarchy. The Sovereign Grant does not cover the costs of police and military