Council funding at mercy of state, federal govt

FROM THE MAYOR’S DESK: CR JAMIE CHAFFEY

The Federal Budget will be delivered next Tuesday, and Gunnedah Shire Council will be monitoring carefully to see the flow-on effects for local government.

Local government funding is partly at the mercy of both the state and federal governments who decide what funding is allocated for a range of vital programs and services, including Resources for
Regions and Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements and many more programs that impact on our daily lives.

We have just seen an unfortunate decision by the NSW government to increase the State Emergency Services Levy. The increase will see local governments paying an extra $77 million extra per year.

Our emergency services are essential to our community, but this decision will cost hundreds of thousands of dollars more for every council, including our own. That money must come from somewhere and councils source the majority of their budget through rates.

It is a clear example of cost shifting from the state government.

Our population is growing and with it, our costs.

We want our community to continue to grow and to thrive – to be able to develop our economy and our lifestyle.

We need to ensure that our budget can stretch to all the things our community needs it to cover.

The Federal Budget has a big impact on local government every year. Gunnedah Shire will be going through the details thoroughly to see what this will mean for the Shire and our community.

On a brighter note, the Youth Expo was held in Gunnedah Town Hall last week as part of Youth Week. This great event brings a whole world of opportunity to our young people, from university options through to some of the well-paying careers they can pursue right here in the community they love.

It’s always encouraging to see so many happy faces on the brink of the next exciting phase of their lives.

A big congratulations must also go to the organisers of the Gunnedah Show, one of the biggest events in our calendar.

As always, the show captured the spirit of Gunnedah in the exhibits, the activities, the competitions, the events and the fun.