‘We’re really struggling’: Fire levy pushing drought-stricken farmers to the brink

In the midday sun, Stuart Green stands in a barren paddock at his farm in north-eastern Victoria gazing at clouds of dust rising behind the flock of sheep streaming towards him.

Ordinarily, his property in Benalla would be flush with grass at this time of year. Instead, it’s unseasonably warm. And dry.

“We’re really struggling as a small farming enterprise,” he said. “You talk to people that have been around for a long time, and they haven’t seen it this hard and this dry.”

Julie and Stuart Green on their drought-stricken farm in Benalla.Credit: Joe Armao

There is not even a hint of grass growth for his sheep to eat. But in addition to buying in feed for his animals, Green is facing other rising costs, too.

The most contentious of them is the new Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund – a levy imposed by the state government. From July, it will replace the Fire Services Property Levy, which property owners paid to help fund the Country Fire Authority and Fire Rescue Victoria.

The new levy will go towards all emergency services, and many farmers are facing a 150 per cent increase. Green estimates his levy will increase from about $1000 to $2500.

This confluence of drought and a marked increase in the levy brought crowds of irate farmers and CFA volunteers to a noisy protest on the steps of state parliament this week while the Victorian government handed down its budget inside.

Feed needs to be brought in for the sheep on the drought-stricken property in Benalla. Credit: Joe Armao

The Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund applies to owners across property sectors, including residential, commercial and industrial. But the rate of increase for farmers is among the steepest.

Parts of western Victoria are currently in the grip of a record-breaking drought. In about 25 local government areas, farmers are eligible for drought infrastructure grants of up to $5000, although they require a dollar-for-dollar contribution from the grant recipient.

Farmers in those 25 municipalities are also eligible for partial rebates on their emergency services levies this year. But farmers in north-east Victoria, including Stuart Green, are ineligible for the partial levy rebate and drought infrastructure grants.

He says that decision is impossible to understand, given nearby towns of Euroa and Violet Town will be placed on water restrictions next week.

Firefighters and farmers protesting against the new Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund. Credit: Photograph by Chris Hopkins

Green has run out of rainwater even though he has a vast network of tanks with a 120,000-litre capacity. He says the state government’s refusal to acknowledge his community with additional support has added to his family’s frustrations.

“We’re just absolutely sick of dust. You can’t deny it’s dry.”

The Nationals MP for Euroa, Annabelle Cleeland, has started a petition that now has more than 4600 signatures urging the state government to declare a drought in north-eastern Victoria, so farmers there can also access support.

She said it defied belief that farmers in her community were unable to access the same level of support as primary producers in other parts of the state.

“What I’m most concerned about is, farmers are at breaking point,” she said.

Stuart Green on his parched property.Credit: Joe Armao

A government spokesman said Agriculture Victoria was providing farmers business and technical decision-making support across the state, which was included in its $29.4 million drought support package.

“We continue to back farmers impacted by drought and dry conditions across the state with expanded support for farmers,” he said. “We are monitoring conditions across the state to ensure we’re offering tailored support to farmers when and where they need it.”

The government insists the money raised through the fund will support Victoria’s emergency services. It also says most CFA and State Emergency Service volunteers will be better off under the changes.

Those volunteers can claim a rebate on the levy, which can apply to their farm or principal place of residence.

Fire trucks outside state parliament in Melbourne.Credit: Chris Hopkins

The government is expanding the levy so it covers other emergency services, including the State Emergency Service, triple zero, Forest Fire Management Victoria and other services.

The levy is imposed in two parts: a fixed charge and a variable charge. The fixed charge on farming properties will increase only from $267 to $275. However, the variable charge for primary production land will rise from 28.7¢ per $1000 of the property’s capital improved value to 71.8¢.

Rural Councils Victoria chair Rob Amos said even the name of the levy was misleading.

“It’s not a fund,” he said. “It’s not even about volunteers. It’s just a tax increase.”

Amos said farmers would be hit the hardest by the increases, which came at a time when many were struggling with higher costs and the drought. He said local communities would suffer.

“We’re in a cost-of-living crisis,” he said. “Every dollar sent to Spring Street is a dollar we can’t spend in our communities.”

It will fall to councils to collect the new levy. Amos said councils would probably have to deal with frustration over the levy from property owners.

Many CFA volunteers have threatened to walk away from the emergency service and some have hung their uniforms on farm fences in protest. Local councils have also pushed back against the charge.

On Friday last week, the CFA’s acting chief officer, Garry Cook, acknowledged some crews were unavailable overnight due to “crewing issues”. Those issues stemmed from anger over the levy.

Cook said volunteers and brigades had experienced a long summer of fire activity in addition to pressure from the drought.

“We respect their rights to engage in matters relevant to their local communities, including those who are concerned about the potential impact of the Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund,” he said.

A spokesman for the Victorian SES said how emergency services were funded was a matter for the state government. But he noted that the SES and volunteers had been advocating for more support in response to the increasing demands of floods, storms and rescues.

“Many VICSES volunteers have shared that, on top of training and responding to emergencies, they spend countless hours fundraising in their communities to operate their units,” the spokesman said.

Victorian Farmers Federation president Brett Hosking said he was facing an increase in the levy from about $12,000 to $20,000. “It’s a massive hit,” he said.

News of the increased cost had come at a terrible time, Hosking said, with farmers across much of the state struggling to run their businesses.

“We know our yield potentially reduces every time we wait another week for rain.”

RMIT emeritus professor of public policy, David Hayward, said the new levy would raise an additional $600 million, bringing the total to $1.6 billion next year.

He said the fire services levy was introduced more than 10 years ago in response to a recommendation from the bushfire royal commission following Black Saturday.

“It was done on the value of the property and the land, which was deemed to be the fairest way of striking the tax,” Hayward said.

Julie and Stuart Green are hoping for rain. Credit: Joe Armao

But Hayward said that maintaining the cost of running emergency services was increasing with climate change resulting in more extreme weather.

In north-eastern Victoria, farmers are now looking to the skies in hope. But Stuart Green’s wife, Julie, said even if it rained consistently now, it would still take months for the grass to grow.

“We’re hoping and praying for rain because this has got to come into a hay crop in October,” she said.

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