Voice president Herb Ellerbock said there was much fanfare and back-slapping at the Indigo Shire Council meeting on June 25 when six of the seven councillors voted to approve the 2024-25 budget.
The Free Press reported on the council’s budget adoption in the July 3 edition, with Mayor Sophie Price commenting in the article about community responses.
“Our pre-budget survey responses reflect the community’s desire for prioritised spending on maintaining and enhancing existing infrastructure, such as roads, drains, footpaths and community buildings, alongside a strong emphasis on promoting community wellbeing,” she said.
“Indigo Shire Council will invest $4 million on roads, bridges, footpaths, drainage, community facilities and council buildings, which is part of a $18.7 million capital works program, of which $11.6 million is being carried forward from the current budget to complete projects already approved.”
But Indigo Community Voice members are unhappy with the council-adopted budget.
“Yet again, Councillor Roberta Horne stood alone and voted against the budget. After carefully studying the budget, she recognised that the council continues to ignore community wishes and expectations,” Mr Ellerbock said.
“There were 700 respondents who completed the pre-budget survey over three years and clearly stated what they want their rates spent and not spent on.
“The top eight priorities for spending being roads sealed, drainage, unsealed roads, footpaths, community facilities, parks, playgrounds and open spaces. Cycling paths and trails ranked fifteenth which shows that it is not a high priority.”
Despite this, the president said, the most recent budget shows big dollars yet again being spent on maintenance and renewal of existing cycle trails, plus budget blowouts on new trails currently being built.
Mr Ellerbock quoted the Beechworth to Yackandandah cycle trail now standing at $6.9 million, as an example.
“It is very nice getting grants but not at the expense of the ratepayers who must cough up more each year for maintenance of the cycle trails as they expand across the shire,” he said.
“Murray Trail users pay nothing towards using the trails. Funding is being directed to tourism and not towards essential services for the community at large.”
Mr Ellerbock cited the Essential Services Commission report 2023 Fact Sheet financial position, stating; “Indigo Shire Council reported an average adjusted underlying result of pf minus - 18.7 per cent”.
“An ongoing negative result suggests that, without an increase in ongoing revenue or the receipt of one-off grants, ongoing revenue may not fund the range and level of services being provided.”
He said capital works totalled $18.5 million, of which an astounding $11.6 million was carried over from the previous year.
“Council promises but fails to deliver projects on time and on budget with a substantive proportion being for unwanted, non-essential projects,” Mr Ellerbock said.
“The budget winners include upgrading and creating new sporting facilities. The losers are Ageing Well. Senior’s budget is only $125,894, yet ABS census data from 2021 shows that Indigo has 8,152 residents aged over 50 years.
“This represents 47 per cent of its population with this sector ever increasing. It is well above the state average of 35 per cent.
“Another loser”, the president said, were the farmers last year with six times the 3.5 per cent rate cap and this year residential vacant landowners will be hit with almost eight times this year’s 2.7 per cent rate cap.
“These landowners' hip pockets have been drained with the new state government land tax from January 1, 2024,” he said.
“Plus, council will continue its Environmental Management Contribution Charge, imposing a further impost on ratepayers.
“It is worth noting that over 15 years the charge has collected over $7.5 million. Originally the charge was collected for the rehabilitation of four old, closed tip sites at a cost of $4.2 million, but nothing has been completed. The rest of the funds have disappeared into general revenue – most likely covering project blowouts.
“Councillors and management have failed to act on behalf of its Indigo residents yet again,” Mr Ellerbock concluded.
