The Victorian Government has issued its response to the Parliamentary Inquiry into the Sustainability and Operational Challenges of Victoria’s Rural and Regional Councils. View full response here.
Rural Councils Victoria (RCV) has welcomed the Victorian Government’s response to the Parliamentary Inquiry into the Sustainability and Operational Challenges of Victoria’s Rural and Regional Councils.
RCV Chair, Cr Mary-Ann Brown notes that eight of the fourteen recommendations were Supported in Full and is pleased to see the announcement of the Victorian Local Government Rating System Review as a means of progressing some of these recommendations sooner rather than later.
“The current rating system lacks equity and fairness. Our submission to the Parliamentary Inquiry called for a fairer rate system that would result in a property tax that is more equitable between local government areas and between property owners of varying socioeconomic capacity” said Cr Brown.
“While it is disappointing that the review will not consider the Fair Go Rates system, RCV will be making a submission to the Rating System Review encouraging the review panel to host consultation and public hearings in regional and rural communities as well metropolitan centres to ensure the views of these communities are not lost in a metro-centric process,” she said.
“However, most concerning is that the three recommendations Not Supported by the Government all address the increasing financial pressures felt by rural councils to deliver more with fewer resources.”
Cr Brown said RCV will continue to advocate strongly to Government to;