Are rates increasing in 2021-2022?

The Draft Budget 2021-2022 includes the rate cap increase of 1.5 per cent across all properties announced by the Minister for Local Government, Shaun Leane, in December 2020.

How much will Brimbank residents pay in rates?

In 2021/2022, 30 per cent of residential properties in Brimbank will have an increase at or below the rate cap of 1.5 per cent.

Based on the average residential property value in Brimbank of approximately $585,000 the average rates and charges calculated will equate to $1,658.13 for the year, including the Municipal Charge and Environmental Charge (140 litre bin).

What other charges will be included on my rates notice?

In addition to the rate amount, there is the Municipal Charge, Public Amenities Cleansing Levy, Environmental Charge, and User-pays Green Waste Charge, all ratepayers must also pay the State Government Fire Services Property Levy, which is expected to rise.

Municipal Charge – this is the contribution that ensures all ratepayers pay an equal amount toward administrative costs of Council. The Municipal Charge will increase by 1.5 per cent, from $76.48 in 2020-2021 to $77.63 in 2021-2022.

Public Amenities Cleansing Levy - the new fee applies to all rateable properties and incorporates the cost of street sweeping, waste and rubbish collection and disposal from public places. The Environmental and Green Waste Charges have been reduced to reflect this new fee, and therefore Council is not collecting additional income. The proposed amount for 2021-2022 is $90.51.

Environmental Charge - this applies to residential properties and incorporates the cost for weekly rubbish and fortnightly recycling collections, the annual hard waste collection, and the State Government landfill levy. The Environmental Charge, which includes the State Government landfill levy is proposed as follows:

80 litre garbage bin	$188.00
140 litre garbage bin	$304.19
240 litre garbage bin	$546.10

The Environmental Charge for the 140 litre and 240 litre garbage bin will decrease from 2020-2021 fees to reflect the newly introduced Public Amenities Cleansing Levy of $90.51. The fees are set on a full cost recovery basis, where the income received from the charge offsets the cost of delivering the service.

User-pays Green Waste Charge – this charge applies to residential properties that have opted to use Council’s user-pays fortnightly green waste collection service. The Green waste charge is proposed as follows:

140 litre green waste bin	$95.21
240 litre green waste bin	$104.61

The fees are set on a full cost recovery basis, where the income received from the charge offsets the cost of delivering the service. The Green Waste Charges will decrease from 2020-2021 fees to reflect the newly introduced Public Amenities Cleansing Levy of $90.51.

Fire Services Property Levy – The Fire Services Property Levy (FSPL) was introduced by the State Government with the introduction of the Fire Services Property Levy Act 2012 and replaced the existing FSL charged by insurance companies in individual’s home insurance premiums. In 2021-2022 Council will again be collecting the FSPL on behalf of the State Government, and although it will appear on the rates notice as an item for payment, the Fire Service Property Levy is not a Council charge, and is not part of Council rates.

Council’s role is to act as a collection agency on behalf of the State Government, and the levy collected will be transferred directly to the Government - the responsible authority.

The FSPL will contain a fixed component ($113 for residential properties and $230 for non-residential properties) as well as a variable charge assessed on the property’s capital improved value.

Property owners who already receive a Council rates concession in respect to their principal place of residence will automatically receive the Fire Services Property Levy concession rate, which is a $50 discount from the total levy amount.

For more information call Council on 9249 4000 or visit www.firelevy.vic.gov.au

Is Council continuing with the Financial Hardship Policy?

Brimbank City Council will continue to deliver the Financial Hardship Policy to support ratepayers that are experiencing financial hardship, by providing relief in the form of payment arrangements and deferrals, as well as provide additional pensioner rebates of $25 on top of the funding provided by the State Government.

Ratepayers having difficulty paying rates should contact Council’s Rates Department for help on 9249 4000.

How are rates calculated?

Council uses the Capital Improved Value (CIV) system of calculating rates. This enables Council to apply “differential” rates to help in achieving a more equitable levying of rates and charges on individual properties.

To calculate the rates charged on a property, the following formula is used:

Rates = Capital Improved Valuation (CIV) of each rateable land X cents (rate) in the dollar

Differential rates are where Councils set a different rate in the dollar for different categories of rateable land. This is a useful tool to address equity issues that may arise from an annual property valuation cycle, which most often causes a redistribution of the rating effort. This is due to the rate of change in property values varying between areas, individual properties and types of property from one revaluation to the next.

For example: Council may charge a higher differential rate in the dollar for commercial properties if their overall value (CIV) has risen at a lower rate than residential properties.

Will the value of my property change and how does the revaluation of my property affect the amount on my rates notice?

A general revaluation of properties is carried out by all municipalities in Victoria annually, in accordance with both the Local Government Act 1989 and Valuation of Land Act. Revaluations were previously conducted every two years until 1 July 2018 when the State Government made changes to the legislation requiring the Valuer-General to conduct annual revaluations.

The 2021 revaluation will be completed by 30 June 2021 and the valuations will be effective from 1 January, 2021. The revaluation will affect rates bills for the 2021-2022 financial year.

As property values across Brimbank have generally increased since the last revaluation in 2020, this will affect the total rates bill people receive. This is despite Council keeping costs down and meeting the State Government’s 1.5 per cent rates rise target.

The next revaluation is due to be completed by 30 June 2022 and will be used for the 2022-2023 financial year.

Where can I find a breakdown of the Councils budgeted income and expenses for the 2021-22 financial year?

The income and expenses for the 2021-2022 financial year can be found in the ‘Comprehensive Income Statement’, that is located in the ‘Financial Statements’ Section (page 20) of the Draft Annual Budget 2021-2022 that can be viewed under the ‘Document Library’ on the Draft Budget 2021-2022 page.

Further detail and explanation for each of the income and expenses lines can be found in Section 4 ‘Notes to the Financial Statements’ (page 30) of the same document.

How much capital expenditure is proposed in the Draft Annual Budget 2021-2022?

Council is investing in an $82.7 million capital works program to support delivery of vital services for our growing city. This includes:

$43.6 million for sports facilities upgrades, including the new health and wellbeing hub in Keilor Downs, More Park sports facility upgrades, and Green Gully Reserve Oval redevelopment

• $21 million for roads, footpaths, traffic management, drainage upgrades, and pedestrian links
• $7.3 million for playgrounds, parks and gardens including upgrades to Keilor Park Recreation Reserve, Keilor Park; Cary Street, Sunshine North; and Leslie Street St Albans
• $3.6 million for bike and shared paths to connect our city
• $2.2 million for improvements to community facilities and early learning facilities
• $500,000 for town centre upgrades
• $430,000 for sustainability projects

How much in loan borrowings does Council have?

For the 2020-2021 year Council will have total borrowings of $89.96 million including proposed additional loans of $10 million to fund the capital works program.

Where can I see the new initiatives that the Council will be implementing in the 2021-2022 year?

A list of the initiatives for the 2021-2022 year can be found in Section 2 (page 10) of the Draft Annual Budget 2021-2022 that can be viewed under the ‘Document Library’ section of this page.

The initiatives are grouped by their relationship to Brimbank City Council’s four Strategic Themes (People, Place, Prosperity, and Performance). In Section 2 the initiatives can be found at the bottom of each Strategic Themes section.

Climate Change: What is being done by Brimbank Council in response to Climate Change?

Part of Brimbank City Council’s response to the impacts of Climate Change is the implementation of the Climate Emergency Action Plan that includes:

• Partnering with the health and community sector to champion actions to address the health impacts of climate change such as heatwaves, and promote co-benefits such as reduced energy bills
• Continuing to support home composting and other measures that reduce waste to landfill
• Advocate and engage with the Federal Government, State Government, and relevant stakeholders around advancing climate change, sustainability and conservation objectives
• Investigating opportunities for community renewable energy projects such as ‘solar gardens’ on Council owned sites, and
• Collaborating with the Victorian Government to promote community energy.

What is Brimbank Council doing to ‘Green’ our streets and increasing tree canopy cover?

Brimbank City Council will continue developing its new ‘Creating Better Streets Strategy’ to guide transforming streets by increasing canopy cover using stormwater, creating a greener, cooler street that supports walking & cycling, and a positive sense of place for the community.

Local Roads: What local roads will be worked on in the coming year?

A list of local roads that are included as part of the ‘Road Rehabilitation Program’ for the 2021-2022 year can be found in Appendix C (page 78) of the Draft Annual Budget 2021-2022 that can be viewed under the ‘Document Library’ section of this page.

Can I make a submission on the Draft Annual Budget 2021-2022, the Draft Financial Plan 2021-2031, the Draft Revenue & Rating Plan 2021-2025, and proposed Councillor Allowances?

It’s easy to have your say on Council’s Draft Annual Budget 2020/2021, Draft Financial Plan 2021-2031, Draft Revenue & Rating Plan 2021-2025, and proposed Councillor Allowances.

Simply go to complete the online form on the Draft Budget 2021-2022 page before 5pm on Wednesday 19 May 2021 and follow the steps.

What is the timeframe for making submissions?

The submission period for the Draft Annual Budget 2021-2022, the Draft Financial Plan 2021-2031, the Draft Revenue & Rating Plan 2021-2025, and proposed Councillor Allowances is from 22 April 2021 until 5pm on 19 May 2021.

Can I make a presentation to Council in support of my submission?

Yes, anyone who makes a written submission can request to be heard in support of their submission by a Hearing of Submissions Committee.

When making your written submission please nominate whether you would like to speak about your submission at the Hearing of Submissions Committee.

What are the dates of the Hearing of Submissions Committee meetings?

The Hearing of Submissions Committee meetings are being held on Wednesday 26 May 2021, at 6pm, at the Brimbank Community and Civic Centre, 301 Hampshire Road, Sunshine; and if required, an additional Hearing Committee meeting will be held at 6pm on Thursday 27 May 2021, at Keilor Community Hub,704B Old Calder Highway, Keilor.

How will I know which Hearing of Submissions Committee meeting I will be attending?

If you have indicated you wish to be heard at a Hearing of Submissions Committee meeting, once the submission period closes at 5pm on Wednesday 19 May 2021, you will receive correspondence outlining which meeting you will be attending.

Will Council make a decision on my submission at the Hearing of Submissions Committee?

No, the Hearing of Submission Committee meeting is an opportunity for you to present in support of your written submission to Council and for Councillors to ask questions about your submission.

No decisions on submissions will be made at these meetings.

Council will consider all written submissions for the adoption of the Annual Budget 2021-2022, the Financial Plan 2021-2031, the Revenue & Rating Plan 2021-2025, and Councillor Allowances at the Ordinary Council Meeting on the 15 June 2021.

When will I receive feedback on whether my submission was successful?

Following the adoption of the Annual Budget 2021-2022, the Financial Plan 2021-2031, the Revenue & Rating Plan 2021-2025, and Councillor Allowances at the Council Meeting on the 15 June 2021, you will receive a written response outlining Council’s decision on your submission.