Hume City Council supports new waste charge for ratepayers

There has been criticism of an inner-city council’s new waste charge after it was labelled as a “cash cow” waiting to happen. See why here.

Some of Victoria‘s lowest-income households could be slugged with increased fees under Hume’s new controversial bin tax according to a leading ratepayers association.

A new service charge for waste and recycling was approved by Hume councillors due to the “increased costs” of recycling. It comes after Mayor Joseph Haweil labelled illegal dumping and waste – which costs the council $4.3 million a year – “selfish and disgusting” earlier this year.

The council will charge residents a flat fee for kerbside waste services and public waste services. It will consider its model for commercial and industrial properties at a future meeting.

Cr Haweil said the flat fee model could see a company with a $225 million property pay just $214 compared to $70,000 under the CIV model.

“(The flat fee model) is not a reflection of justice, it’s not a reflection of fairness and I accept that my colleagues are genuinely in their hearts motivated to create a fair scenario but they’ve misread what is and isn’t fair,” Cr Haweil said.

Ratepayers Victoria’s Dean Hurlston said making a waste levy as an individual charge could see waste fees rise dramatically because it would be exempt from the general rate cap.

“It’s completely disingenuous of the councils to say this is about being more transparent, it’s not, it’s an attempt for councils to take a large part of their expenditure and place it out of the cap,” he said.

“We’ve just handed the ability to all 79 councils to take something out of the rate cap and hope they do the right thing.”

Several Hume councillors argued for the flat fee model to help out people in lower socio-economic areas.

“If our residents are paying for exactly the same service, they should be paying for exactly the same amount,” Cr Carly Moore said.

Cr Overend added: “It doesn’t matter whether you live in Greenvale, whether you live Broadmeadows, we’re all accessing the same thing.”

The council’s report cited the “increased cost” of its recycling program was due to global market changes and “significant increases” to the Victorian Government‘s Municipal and Industrial Waste Levy. It believes the Victorian Government’s rate cap has “limited” their ability to raise revenue.

Ratepayers Victoria wants to see a full audit system to ensure the costs the council claim as part of its waste charge are “appropriate”.

“There should be severe financial penalties ... there is no fine, no penalty, nothing if they don’t do the right thing,” Mr Hurlston said.

“Otherwise this is a cash cow waiting to happen.”

Hume was in the minority to not have a waste charge and funded the program from the general rate which it labelled “no longer financially sustainable”. It came as Yarra Ranges Council approved a similar measure during a feisty council meeting in Richmond.

It comes after Wodonga Council was found to have collected at least $18 million from its waste management levy in 2018.