Local government: Farmers’ body warns against special rate variations

Farmers and other ratepayers in southern NSW have got one last chance to oppose a massive rate rise.

NSW’s peak farming body is pushing for a better funding model for councils to avoid cases of a potential rate rise of almost 70 per cent headed for primary producers and other ratepayers in a southern Riverina local government area.

Federation Council, which includes Corowa, Mulwala, Howlong and Urana and vast areas of farmland, has a 69.94 per cent increase in general rates over two years starting July 1 awaiting approval from the NSW Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal.

Farmers David Bott, Derek Schoen and Richard Nixon, who were elected to council last year on a “back to basics” platform, were the only councillors to vote against the proposal in late January.

Coreen farmer and Federation councillor David Bott, right, with his father, Bill, who was a former Corowa Shire mayor.

A ratepayers’ group previously headed up by Cr Bott has conducted four meetings in the last two weeks to help residents and farmers prepare submissions opposing the rate rise.

But NSW Farmers business economics and trade committee chairman John Lowe said special rate variations weren’t the long-term solution.

“Better funding for our local councils is the only way we’ll build better communities,” he said.

“We need to remove local council rate exemptions on Crown lands and pause special variation rate applications, if we want fairer funding.

“Boosting federal support for financial assistance grants to 1 per cent, prioritising more indexed block grants for roads and providing better training for local governments to handle finances and administration would also go a long way to supporting local councils and the services they provide.

“It’s all about proper resourcing, so we can do the work that needs to be done to keep our local communities strong and sustainable well into the future.”

Federation councillor and former NSW Farmers president Derek Schoen.

Farmers are contributing more than 40 per cent of the rate take in Federation this year, but Federation Ratepayers president Phil Penny said the big issue was council’s cost-containment strategies and efficiencies.

“What we’ve been trying to achieve is to make people aware of the real numbers and real facts of this proposed increase,” he said.

“People are crying out for information.

“They were granted a temporary increase of 19 and 17 per cent over the last few years and basically told to get their house in order.

“They had to control their spending, they had to be accountable, but they haven’t grasped the amalgamation process properly or rationalised assets.

“It just goes on and on.”