Rural council rates took centre stage at the NSW Farmers annual conference in Sydney yesterday.
The Association voted to adopt a new policy to push for state government to form an independent appeals panel to challenge councils’ rates.
The motion was moved by NSW Farmers board member Mitchell Clapham, who said state government’s push to consolidate local councils through forced mergers, as well as broader trends of residential growth, had disadvantaged rural ratepayers.
“Farmers are becoming an increasing minority constituency paying an increasing proportion of rates,” Mr Clapham said.
Complaints about disproportionately high rural rates in his local Mid Western Council, which had fallen on the deaf ears of council bureaucrats highlighted the predicament, he said.
An average farm in Mid Western Council is about 1000 hectares, which costs farmers about $10,000 per year. Farmers in adjoining council areas of Lithgow and Bathurst paid half the rates of those in the Mid West, Mr Clapham said.
Rural ratepayers lobbied local Mid Western Council to reduce the burden on rural ratepayers, to no effect. A review of local rates even recommended council implement a modest rate reduction, of 10 per cent over 10 years - which was rejected by council.
Now, the only avenue of appeal is through the expensive and time consuming process of NSW Land and Environment Court.
Farmland contributes $98 million to the local economy and rural ratepayers contribute $4.5m in rates. Mr Clapham said the fact the local mining industry contributed a relatively small $2m in rates, despite the industry generating $580m and heavily impacting roads and infrastructure, demonstrated the disparity of the situation.
Mr Clapham’s proposal to establish policy to lobby for an independent rates panel was approved by NSW Farmers delegates.
Wellington district delegate Peter Carter warned the conference that a rate panel could backfire.
He said rural rates were set by council to subsidise town rates.
“You’ll be outvoted on an independent panel,” he said. “Don’t set yourself up with something that can be used to beat you over the head.”
But the broad consensus was encapsulated by executive councillor John Ainsworth, who backed the panel as a way for farmers to influence local decision making.
“We as farmers have to get more active in local government,” he said.
