CPI percentage increases can obviously vary up or down, impacting on the total increase requiring IPART’s approval for a 6.5 per cent compounding rate increase to deliver the increases council is asking for to remain reasonably viable, in the immediate short term.

On close examination of the documents sent to IPART, it appears council would need to raise a lot more revenue over the next five to 10 years than what is proposed at this time, if it wants to be viable and self-funding, as state government would like councils to be.

There is clearly a future financial dilemma rapidly closing in on council: if the proposed rate rise is approved, it is unlikely to rectify the shortfall in the immediate future.

At this point, the compounding problem appears to have not been considered.

Are more special rate variations going to be asked for in a few short years’ time?

The real problem for councils is the state and federal government funding formulae and redistributions of taxes.

Councillors need to start talking about that, and suggesting changes.

Squeezing more out of ratepayers and residents isn’t the solution to financial problems caused by federal and state governments.

Allan Brown

Batemans Bay