New South Wales Premier, Nathan Rees, told delegates at the Local Government Association Annual Conference staged in Broken Hill from 25 to 29 October that he will consider the removal of rate pegging. NSW is the only State in Australia that has rate pegging, and to date successive Labor and Coalition Governments have ruled out any removal of it. However the Productivity Commission’s Australia wide study, titled ‘Assessing Local Government Revenue Raising Capacity’, released last April, found that State Government legislation and regulatory factors can limit the ways councils raise revenue.
This report singled out NSW when it stated, “The combined impact of rate pegging and partial reimbursement of concessions in New South Wales clearly constrains revenue raising by councils in that State.”
Premier Rees said that the removal of rate pegging would require the support of communities. He added that he believes the community would not rule this out if it delivers better roads, libraries or increased services.
“The Premier has proved he is committed to better services and facilities for NSW residents and a positive relationship with Local Government by considering the removal of rate pegging,” said President of the Local Government Association, Councillor Genia McCaffery. “Councils would rate fairly and based on local needs – and if they didn’t they would face the wrath of their communities at the ballot box.”
