Shoalhaven Council mayor Patricia White reveals plan to turn dire financial tides

A newly-elected south coast mayor has revealed her plan to turn the tide of her council’s dire financial situation, creating a committee in a bid to avoid major rate rises and cancelling projects.

Shoalhaven Council voted in favour of the financial committee, with an amendment.

A newly-elected south coast mayor has vowed to use the skills of finance professionals outside local government as her council grapples at ways to stay economically viable without massive rate hikes.

In her first ordinary meeting as Shoalhaven mayor on Monday night, Patricia White successfully lobbied for a new panel to oversee the organisation’s ongoing money woes, after a November 2023 review by economics specialists AEC Group labelled Shoalhaven Council’s financial situation as “dire”.

Ms White told this publication she wanted a committee that looked over Shoalhaven Council’s expenses and finances, to ensure they were saving money and making the right decisions.

The committee was set to be made up of one councillor from each ward, a chief executive officer, a chief finance officer, the director of city performance, five community members with “demonstrated financial experience” and the mayor.

However, a last-minute amendment was made at council’s Monday night meeting.

Shoalhaven mayor, Patricia White.

The amendment stated all councillors would be part of the panel, with the newly-elected Shoalhaven council voting through the committee with the change.

Ms White said the committee was needed to “save council”.

The ‘Finance Committee to Council’ was discussed at Shoalhaven Council’s ordinary meeting on Monday evening.

“Last term, we closed down 90 projects to try and save some money,” she said.

“That can’t happen again.”

Last year’s AEC economics review found the financial situation was so dire, that they warned coastal council could go into voluntary administration if changes were made.

The review found bushfires, floods and the Covid-19 pandemic “significantly impacted” revenue and stated the local government was operating at a major deficit, noting that no changes would result in a financial loss for the next decade.

Former Shoalhaven mayor, Amanda Findley.

Former Shoalhaven mayor, Amanda Findley, proposed a mammoth 44 per cent rate rise across three years in a bid to turn the financial tides, before it was voted down in February this year, with council instead opting for a 4.5 per cent increase across one year.

However, newly elected mayor Ms White said she could not promise that there would be no rate rises this term.

“I’m looking at a rate rise of about eight per cent,” she said.

“But we are going to need to save money, especially if we want to not repeat the former council and start cancelling projects.”

Shoalhaven Council will continue to discuss the ‘Finance Committee to Council’ at their October 28 meeting.

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Originally published as Shoalhaven Council mayor Patricia White reveals plan to turn dire financial tides