The rebuilding of infrastructure in flood ravaged areas should not overshadow the need for ongoing funding in the Federal Budget for local roads, active transport, and community infrastructure to address Australia’s growing infrastructure backlog. That was the sentiment of President of the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) Councillor Genia McCaffery when recently announcing the release of ALGA’s 2011–12 Budget submission today.
The submission – Building Our Regional Capacity, and Supporting Our Urban Communities – is available at www.alga.asn.au under ‘recent updates’.
“In the aftermath of the horrific flooding in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania, as well as the Western Australia cyclone and bushfires, it is Local Government that is left to pick up the pieces of shattered communities and to rebuild broken lives,” Councillor McCaffery said.
“Local Government is at the forefront of the recovery. The flooding will cost Queensland councils up to $2 billion alone.”
Councillor McCaffery said she welcomed the Prime Minister’s recent announcement of an ‘upfront’ payment of $2 billion to Queensland and ongoing support for the reconstruction and recovery of flood affected communities.
“Local Government is a strong supporter of the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements (NDRRA),” she said. “However, given the extent of the 2011 natural disaster, it is likely that a number of councils will not be in a position to adequately fund the restoration of local infrastructure.
“Special payments, in addition to the NDRRA if required, should be made to councils so that they can expedite their essential work.
“There is also a strong argument for a separate Local Government disaster mitigation program as the current Disaster Resilience Australia package is likely to be drained by the heavy demands of State Governments.”
At a broader level, ALGA’s Budget submission calls for a review of the support Local Government gets from the Commonwealth.
“The proportion of Commonwealth tax revenue that Local Government receives has dropped from one per cent in 1996 to less than 0.7 per cent today,” Councillor McCaffery said. “With the increasing number of responsibilities shouldered by Local Government, a solid financial footing is essential for the continued financial viability of local councils and the diverse communities we serve.
“While we all know that these are challenging economic times, and the Government is under pressure to bring the Budget into surplus in 2012–13, there are serious and pressing national issues that require the Commonwealth’s attention.
“These are raised in ALGA’s Federal Budget submission and include support to reduce the backlog of Local Government infrastructure spending, measures to enable councils to undertake climate change risk management assessment studies, build flood levees and other urgent and strategic infrastructure projects in high risk areas, and a national civics education campaign in the lead up to a 2013 referendum on the recognition of Local Government in the Australian Constitution.”
