Formally adopted on May 14, Indigo’s draft budget is on public exhibition for a period of 21 days from Wednesday May 15 to close of business by 5.00pm, Tuesday, June 4, 2024.
As well as the draft budget, other documents on public exhibition are the 2024/25 Draft Ten Year Financial Plan, the 2024/25 Draft Revenue and Rating Plan and the 2024/25 Draft Operating Income and Expense by Service.
The document titled ‘Operating Income and Expense by Service’ is voluntarily disclosed by the Indigo Shire Council to enhance transparency and comprehension of the budget details. “This comprehensive data surpasses the set of documents mandated by the Local Government Act, showcasing council's commitment to full transparency with the Indigo Shire community,” Indigo’s acting finance manager Sharon Phillips said.
The draft budget proposes a total of $18.657 million of capital works, comprising $7.067 million of new works for 2024/25 and $11.590 million of carry forward capital works, $465,000 to improve urban and rural drains; no new borrowings, council maintaining its low-medium risk as assessed by the Victorian Auditor General’s standardised measures and no rate cap variation.
The budget reflected priorities of the communities according to Mayor Sophie Price, especially regarding roads and community wellbeing.
She said that council had to balance current economic factors that are beyond its control such as inflation and ensure community needs, largely expressed through pre-budget community engagement, were met.
“We had 87 responses to our pre-budget survey, with the feedback being very similar to that received over the past two years,” Mayor Price said.
“Respondents want council to focus spending on maintaining and improving existing infrastructure (roads, drains, footpaths, community buildings) and to also prioritise community wellbeing. To this end, council is proposing to spend more than $4M on roads, bridges, footpaths, drainage, community facilities, council buildings. We are again proposing a huge capital works program of more than $18.5M.”
Council will work with the Essential Services Commission to transition the Environmental Management Levy income to General Rates, and that it is anticipated that this will be achieved for the 2025/26 financial year.
In her report to council, Ms Phillips said the draft budget is the product of extensive collaboration between councillors and staff, and extensive community consultation.
“Input from the community, gathered through formal budget consultations as well as ongoing feedback throughout the year, serves as a central factor in shaping the budget,” she said.
“This budget has been crafted to ensure that council can continue delivering the array and calibre of services expected by the community, spanning road construction, maternal and child health services, libraries, town planning, environmental conservation efforts, provision of leisure facilities, waste services, and more. Furthermore, it outlines the necessary expenditure to sustain and maintain critical assets and infrastructure.”
Deputy mayor Cr Bernard Gaffney expressed disappointment at the substantial reduction in the state government’s budget regarding tourism.
“Times are tough. Small businesses are doing it really hard, some I know of a 30 to 40 per cent drop in turnover,” he said.
“The state government this year has cut the tourism budget by 75 per cent. Council is spending over $2 million on tourism, it’s an increase; tourism is the lifeblood of this shire. Tourism is what brings us out better. The state government to cut the tourism budget to that extent won’t go well for this shire.”
Cr Gaffney welcomed council spending of over $2 million on road patching, sealing and resheeting.
Like other councillors, Cr Gaffney urged the community to provide feedback on council’s budget. “Your feedback is important to us,” he said.
Cr Sue Gold, who acknowledged the amount of work undertaken by council staff in preparing the budget and associated documentation, encourages the community to read the documentation, “particularly the parts that are exciting to them” and that the budget is “well balanced considering the conflicting demands”. “I think there’s something in this budget for everyone,” she said.
Cr Emmerick Teissl also commended staff, mentioned staff framed the budget “under considerable constraints”.
He said the budget was a balance between cost of living and service needs of communities, and welcomed increased expenditure for ageing well communities and drainage.
Cr Roberta Horne said the 87 submissions received was a big drop from recent years of 311 and 315 and wondered why “just over 50 per cent of capital projects are not finished on time or within budget”.
The latter situation is not uncommon in shires according to council’s director of planning and corporate services Greg Pinkerton, who said it is “fairly standard occurrence in councils” regarding long-term projects which can be affected by weather and other circumstances, and that councils would prefer not to be in those situations and do meet regularly regarding to discuss progress.
A number of adjustments to the waste fees are proposed, as a result of various factors including the tendering and awarding of a new 10-year kerbside waste contract.
Council is in a position to pass on savings achieved from its new waste contract to ratepayers for kerbside bin collection (a $9.45 reduction per urban property, and a $23.75 per property reduction per rural property).
The Rates and Valuations Guidelines for councils make other recommendations about linking waste management charges directly with those services provided directly to the property. It recommends that other waste related charges should be included in General Rates rather than waste management charges.
In Indigo Shire’s case this means the costs currently recovered by the Environment Management Levy should instead be included in General Rates. Full compliance with the guidelines will require the discontinuing of the current Environmental Management Levy and a transfer of this charge to the General Rates.
Mayor Price said Indigo Shire has had great success in recent years in securing grant funding to enable the construction of new community facilities and recreation upgrades which could not possibly be funded any other way, such as the $5M federal funded Rutherglen Loops project.
Funds have been set aside in this year’s budget to help fund projects throughout the shire subject to grant funding including Rutherglen Visitor Information Centre heating upgrade and Wahgunyah Rail Reserve playground improvements.
“We’d like to take the opportunity to thank everyone who contributed to the development of this budget,” the mayor said.
“Responses were constructive and have helped council better understand community priorities,” she said.
Any person wishing to give feedback on the draft budget can do so online (links will be provided) or can address an email or letter to the CEO. Feedback must be received by 5 pm on Tuesday, 4 June 4 for further council consideration before formal budget adoption on Tuesday, June 25.
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