Council finalise application for a Special Rate Variation.
Cootamundra-Gundagai Regional Council councillors gathered this afternoon at the Alby Schultz Meeting Centre for an Extraordinary Council Meeting to finalise an application for a Special Rate Variation.
Councillors agreed unanimously to make an application to the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal for a SRV to be included in the rate base, of a cumulative 53.5 per cent increase over four years.
According to the Council Business paper, this translates to a successive rate increase of 20 per cent, 16 per cent, five per cent and then five per cent, which would commence from 2021/22. An SRV of 62.6 per cent was investigated, until financial investigation by Deloitte Australia for a Boundaries Commission summary indicated that only a 53.5 per cent SRV was needed.
CGRC Mayor Abb McAlister said the meeting yesterday went well and there was lots of passion by councillors. “Overall everyone [councillors] was on the same page about having to do this especially since this is the last thing council wants to do, which is to impose a 53.5 per cent rate increase on the community,” he said. “I’ve been on local government for the past 18 years and this is the worst recommendation I had to pass, on behalf of the community. “But, as we engaged and spelt out at the meeting, this all came about because of the amalgamations. Due to a merged council, this has put us in a terrible financial situation.”