GREAT Lakes Council will spend $150,000 to engage consultants in an attempt to justify future rate rises.
Meanwhile a decision to push ahead with a 9.5 per cent rate rise, which would generate $1.2 million in extra funds, was reaffirmed at an extraordinary meeting of council held on April 3.
While the financial sustainability review of council's operations by Review Today Pty Ltd will provide quantifiable and qualitative data to guide expenditure for the next 10 years, it is undoubtedly a controversial decision.
Review Today Pty Ltd is headed up by Professor Percy Allan who chaired the Independent Inquiry into the Financial Sustainability of NSW Local Government (Local Government Inquiry) which was commissioned by the Local Government & Shires Association and handed down its findings in May 2006.
Among the key findings of the Local Government Inquiry was that NSW local government needs to find an extra $900 million to overcome its infrastructure crisis, a fact not lost on Great Lakes Council mayor John Chadban.
"This is a very important crossroad for council," Cr Chadban said.
"The Department of Local Government has put a great deal of onus on council over recent years.
"Many councils were denied rate increases last year and invariably it ended up being because the council's asset management plan was considered not to be satisfactory."
Cr Chadban said the sustainability review, which will take four months to complete, would effectively give the ratepayers a choice how their money is spent and serve as a guide for the next 10 years with three technical reports covering infrastructure, finances and funding.
"If the community wants all roads to be repaired and footpaths to be fixed and halls to be maintained they have got to make the decision as to whether they are prepared to pay for those things.
"This document will give us a great deal of information we can show to the community. "For example, we have got a $70 million to $80 million backlog in roads and it will take us 20 years to do it."
Council's general manager Keith O'Leary said the financial sustainability review package being offered by Review Today Pty Ltd to councils was fairly unique in local government.
"If we went individually to do this it would cost in the vicinity of $400,000," Mr O'Leary said.
"Obviously $150,000 is a big amount of money, but when we look at what we are doing it is quite small.
"Council has a projected 2007/08 budget of $61.8 million. The report addressing council's financial sustainability over a 10 year time horizon equates to 0.2 per cent of the total budget.
"It is considered that the investment will be recouped many times over through the value of the information provided.
"This documents everything and puts it in place. We will have to have asset management plans and strategic management plans, there is no question that is going to be legislated next year by the Department of Local Government. This will give us a head start on it."
Fellow councillors deputy mayor Jan McWilliams and Linda Gill said they were ardent supporters of the review.
"As a guide and something that is going to direct this community which way they choose to go I could not endorse it more," Cr Gill said.
Likewise, Cr McWilliams said, "The whole exercise is telling the community where their money is going to go for the next 10 years."
But Cr John Stephens does not share their optimism.
"We need money, we don't need advice about things we already know," he said.
"I have total confidence in council's staff. The presentation for a rate increase last year could not have been better.
"(Then Local Government Minister) Kerry Hickey made a political decision (not to approve council's application for a six per cent rate rise above the 3.6 per cent allowed by rate pegging last year.)
"This $150,000 is money we need for infrastructure."
A decision on council's application for a special rate variation of 9.5 per cent (including the rate pegging limit which is yet to be determined) is expected from the new Minister for Local Government, Paul Lynch after June 30.
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