Regional rates hike

A regional rates increase of more than $1 a week is on its way for CHB ratepayers, after Hawke’s Bay regional council confirmed its Long Term Plan.

The plan proposed a 19 per cent rates increase in 2018/19 — a 14.2 per cent rise for environmental priorities, plus a 5.2 per cent dedicated regional civil defence rate.

New Federated Farmers Hawke’s Bay president Jim Galloway slammed the rates hike as “excessive and obscene,” claiming CHB farmers would be slugged with rises of up to 24 per cent based on the value of their land.

Despite some chances being made, and CHB regional councillor Debbie Hewitt and Napier’s Alan Dick voting against some items last week, the full forecast rates rise will now go ahead when the plan is formally adopted on June 29.

In adopting the new regional civil defence levy, concern was expressed at the lack of detail included in territorial authorities’ LTPs about whether the money they had previously collected would result in rates reductions.

CHB district council chief executive Monique Davidson has rejected that, saying the change had been included in her council’s LTP consultation document and budgets as a “key area of consultation”.

She said the civil defence funding that will now be collected by the regional council was a “savings in the overall budget” of $128,000 for CHB ratepayers. The CHB district council will adopt its LTP this Thursday.