Budget breakdown: What 2022-23 South Burnett Regional Council budget means for residents

Residents in the South Burnett will fork out more for rates and waste fees, while the region will finally receive kerbside recycling. Here’s how the budget will affect your wallet:

Ratepayers will be hit with a modest rate rise and increased waste fees, but kerbside recycling will finally be implemented after the South Burnett Regional Council handed down its 2022-23 budget.

At a special budget meeting on Friday, the council adopted the 2022-23 budget.

The meeting wasn’t without its controversies, with the Mayor joining two councillors in voting against the budget, which outlines a 1.75 per cent general rates rise and the introduction of kerbside recycling.

Mayor Brett Otto described the budget as “a work in progress” that would need to be reviewed continually over the next 12 months.

“This is your money. This is your budget. This is your council’s commitment to responsibly applying the funds provided by ratepayers and taxpayers towards building our region and providing you with a brighter future,” Mr Otto said

“Having said that, this budget is far from perfect.”

Mr Otto joined councillors Jane Erkens and Kathy Duff in voting against adopting the budget, citing issues relating to the allocation of funding to a major water project.

Ms Duff had earlier unsuccessfully moved an amendment calling for $1.5 million of Works 4 Queensland funding to be redistributed from the proposed Mt Wooroolin reservoir water project to 13 smaller projects spread across the region.

The motion was seconded by Ms Erkens, who criticised the amount of money spent in the Kingaroy region, while smaller projects in other areas such as Nanango were not being funded.

Councillor Danita Potter noted many of the proposed projects in Ms Duff’s amendment were not scoped and the debate over the funding had be hashed out “countless times”.

When the council moved to adopt the full budget, the Mayor informed the meeting he would be voting against it.

“It would be inappropriate for us to spend the $1.5 million on the reservoir in Kingaroy,” he said.

“I'm not comfortable voting for a budget … that takes away the opportunity to deliver these projects that I believe under the Works4Queensland would have been a tremendous uplift for our community.

“As the Mayor, I won't be supporting the budget.”

Despite the objection, the budget was adopted unchanged, with councillors Potter, Schumacher, Henschen and Jones voting in support.

The budget also gave the green light for kerbside recycling to finally roll out across the region from January, 2023.

The scheme will see recycling material sent to Cherbourg for processing, with ratepayers to cover the cost of the scheme through payments of $35 every six months.

An amendment to include a 50 per cent discount for concession cardholders was voted in unanimously.

The budget projects a $3.52 million deficit over the next financial year, with $33 million dollars slated for asset renewal and upgrades as well as $28 million for road maintenance.