Invitation to have a say on rating

Western Victorian communities have an invitation to share views on council rates and charges at consultations sessions in Horsham and Ballarat.

People can provide feedback during the Grampians regional sessions as part of a review into Victoria’s local government rating system.

The Horsham session will be at Federation University Australia’s Horsham campus at 7pm on October 15.

The Ballarat session will be at Craig’s Hotel at 7pm, October 16.

Public feedback generated from the sessions will help form the basis of a Local Government Rating System Review.

An independent three-person panel, chaired by former Melbourne City Council, Royal Children’s and Royal Women’s hospital chief executive Kathy Alexander, is overseeing the review.

Dr Alexander said the panel was almost halfway through a three-month consultation period.

“So far these sessions have given us valuable information about what people think of the rating system,” she said.

“Communities can provide critical insight into how the application of rates affect them and help identify where the rating system can be improved or strengthened.

“The review’s discussion paper covered key issues around the many rate exemptions, discounts and rating practices by councils.

“We want to hear from community members and businesses about their experience with rates, along with any issues we may not have covered.

“At each stop we’ve heard different points of view from community members in regional cities such as Geelong, Mildura, Bendigo and Warrnambool, as well other parts of western Victoria.

“More than a thousand people have also provided feedback online.

“The panel is accepting written submissions and will be holding public hearings in Melbourne in November.”

Dr Alexander said local government rates would total more than $6-billion this year, which meant it was essential to ensure the fairness and equity of the system that supported local government services and infrastructure.

“It is important that this review is done right and we’re expecting to be able to share our findings with the Minister for Local Government by March 2020,” she said.

“The Fair Go rate cap will not be covered in this review and will be separately reviewed by 2021.”

People keen to find out more about upcoming sessions and to get involved can visit website engage.vic.gov.au/ rating-review.