Council has voted to provide rates relief to those worst affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and lock down.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Also on the agenda at the April meeting last Wednesday evening, was the Revised Delivery Program 2017/21 and Draft Operational Plan 2020/21, with Council voting to adopt the IPART rates model that includes a 2.6 per cent increase (based upon property valuations ad valorem) to be distributed evenly across all land categories - farmland, residential, business, and mining.
The Rating Relief motion, listed by Cr Paul Cavalier, sought to allocate $720,000 to the 2019/2020 budget for the purpose of providing rate relief to those most impacted by the COVID-19 situation. With a workshop to be held to establish a process and criteria for assessing hardship applications to provide rate deferrals and/or monetary relief to ratepayers who meet the criteria.
Also, to provide a streamlined process to allow rate payers having difficulty paying, to apply for an extension to pay up until September 30 - with any interest charges waived. And to cease formal debt recovery action, with no more missed installment notices or recovery letters issued until after August 31.
"We're obviously all aware of the financial impact that COVID-19 is having on the whole country and indeed the rest of the world - and certainly our local community," Cr Cavalier said.
"This will provide some rate deferrals and monetary relief for those residents that have been most impacted by this crisis. It removes some pressure from them and gives them some breathing room while we work through the issues that are coming out of this."
He added that the $720,000 - from unrestricted cash - was calculated from not imposing the IPART 2.6 per cent increase. But rather than apply a zero per cent increase to all, and with the hardship application process, it can be used to provide "meaningful relief".
"There is some rationale behind the $720,000 figure, Council have had some discussions around what we're going to do around upcoming rates and not imposing an increase across all of the categories that are rated. The figure is inline with what would be afforded to the broader community if we were to drop the 2.6 per cent increase," he said.
"My thinking is that rather than providing less meaningful assistance to everybody within the region, it will provide meaningful assistance to those who are financially impacted by the situation.
"It will help us identify which residents out there are being impacted by COVID-19 financially and put them into a position where we can provide some meaningful relief. Instead of offering a broad brush spread across the entire region, where some people may only see a benefit to them to the tune of $20."
The motion was carried, councillors voting 8-1, with only Cr Percy Thompson voted against. Cr Esme Martens had initially spoken against the motion, citing hardship in the farming sector particularly caused by drought and fires.
"I don't think that the hardship provisions should apply only to [those affected by COVID-19], I think it should apply to all sectors of the community. And particular, the farming sector has certainly has certainly had a great deal of hardship of the last three years," Cr Martens said.
"They've had virtually no income from drought, then they've had bushfires - I believe that 16 people have lost houses in the Running Stream, Brogans Creek, Olinda area - also they've had lots of fences and pastures [burned]. And indeed certain people are still feeding their stock.
"I had proposed putting forward a motion that we don't increase the rates at all for all categories, because I think everybody has been affected. The tourist industry has certainly been affected, many businesses have been affected and I would hope that when the workshop looks at this, will also consider the option of spreading rate relief through hardship over all categories."
But it was clarified that rate payers in all categories would be eligible to apply and that rating relief for landowners affected by bushfires was provided through the Commonwealth Disaster Relief Funding allocated to Mid-Western Region Local Government Area. With fire victims eligible to have two quarters of their rates "wiped, not deferred" and that the Bush Fire Liason Officer is contacting those who've paid their rates in full to ask if they want the two quarters refunded or added to later.
Councillors Thompson and Martens also voted against endorsing the Draft Delivery Program 2017/21 and Draft Operational Plan 2020/21. Opposing the 2.6 per cent increase rather than zero per cent, with the former suggesting applying to add the outstanding amount to a later year.
"I believe that we shouldn't be having any taking up of the rate rise, we can take it up in the future by applying to the minister - I'm sure he'll allow you to do it once we get over this terrific crisis," Cr Thompson said.
"It's only just started, what we need to take into consideration as leaders in the community, we need to make sure that we're trying to help all these people. I mean there are businesses closed down everywhere, so we need to help these people it's only just the start of it."
His amendment - that Council not take up the 2.6 per cent rate increase and ask staff to cut back on a lot of expenditure in the management plan - was put and lost 7-2.
Cr Peter Shelley said, "what Cr Thompson proposes is that we do a zero per cent increase for rates this year and then hit them twice as hard next year - I think that's preposterous".
"It will put people in a far more onerous position than what they find themselves in now."
Earlier, when speaking to the Rating Relief, Cr Shelley said, "I'd like to thank Cr Cavalier for his very succinct motion, it is dealing with the problems that our whole community is facing at the moment".
"It's a start and Council has done a lot to support our community in the past, particularly with the bush fires and everything else. And this is a start to dealing with the problems we're facing today," he said.
"It is only a start and allocating that $720,000 is a very good idea because it's targeting those who are most affected."
Mayor Des Kennedy said with the Rating Relief motion and endorsing the 2.6 per cent across all categories, they wanted to ensure relief is available to those who need it.
"IPART recommended that we put our rates up 2.6 per cent this year, which is normal, right across the board and we decided at budget workshops that's probably the way to go," he said.
"We've discussed today, councillors and senior staff, that [to] have no 2.6 per cent increase across the board - which equates to about $700,000 [of Council's 2019/2020 budget] - people who could afford it would still get a benefit.
"Eg, if you're rates were $10,000 per year that's a $260 reduction in your rates. We decided that some of the people who'll get rewarded would not need it.
"So after we have a workshop and decide how-to and what to do, it may be that we waive people's rates who are farmers who have been doing it really tough for the last year, or [waive] 50 or 20 per cent of their rates.
"We'll come up with a remedy in the next workshop to decide how that $720,000 will be spent relieving the burden on the people most needing - not the whole ballgame.
"Because we've got a plethera of different people in this community, they are people employed by the mines who've still got a job who probably don't need rate relief. This way we'll be rewarding the needy, let me tell you."
The Draft Delivery Program 2017/21 and Draft Operational Plan 2020/21 has gone on public exhibition for a period of 28 days commencing Friday, April 17, 2020, before it's brought back before Council.
The document can be viewed online here, with feedback to be submitted at yoursay.midwestern.nsw.gov.au by 4.30pm on Friday, May 15, 2020.