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Hundreds of thousands of ratepayers in Sydney are bracing for rate rises of up to 52 per cent after the state’s independent pricing regulator approved increases to levies for five metropolitan local governments.
North Sydney residents face a 52 per cent jump in rates over three years, the highest of any council in Sydney. It means residential rates will jump from $743 to $970 in July, and $1216 in 2028. The financially embattled council was knocked back by the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) after it applied for an 87 per cent increase last year.
More than 40,000 upper north shore ratepayers in Ku-ring-gai Council will pay 29 per cent more in the first year alone, while nearby Hawkesbury City Council’s application for a 39 per cent rise over four years was also approved. Rates in Blacktown, the state’s largest council with more than 100,000 ratepayers, will increase by 37 per cent over three years. Central Coast council rates will also rise by 12 per cent in one year.
A total of 10 councils – five metropolitan, and five from regional and rural NSW – applied to IPART to increase rates beyond the maximum annual increase that local councils can levy ratepayers, known as the “rate peg”. For more than a decade, the tribunal has been charged with setting this standard rate peg. It handed down its decisions on Tuesday.
Councils applying for special variations had to demonstrate the need for extra revenue, establish the financial toll on affected ratepayers was reasonable, and show residents were adequately informed about the proposal, among other criteria.
Councillors must decide whether to apply the approved rise in full, in part, or not at all, before the increase comes into effect.
The rate rises come as debate simmers about the financial sustainability of local councils across NSW, and their ability to deliver large-scale infrastructure projects. A recent government audit revealed that less than a quarter of major council infrastructure projects costing more than $30 million were delivered on time and within budget.
In the north shore, blown-out rebuild costs of the $122 million North Sydney Olympic Pool had limited the council’s capacity to invest in critical asset renewal, increased their debt levels, and has placed pressure on operational capacity.
North shore Liberal MP Felicity Wilson said she was “deeply disappointed”.
“Council should be tightening their belts – just like the people they represent,” she said.
In Ku-ring-gai, long-delayed plans to upgrade Norman Griffiths Oval resulted in costs ballooning sixfold from $3.3 million to $20.2 million – but the council said this was unrelated to their bid for a rate rise.
Matt Cross, whose electorate covers Ku-ring-gai, said it was “disappointing news at a time when families and businesses are already facing significant cost-of-living pressures”.
Ku-ring-gai Mayor Christine Kay said the council was “trying to fix past under-investment and a growing backlog of ageing infrastructure,” and that the 29 per cent rate rise would generate an additional $20.7 million in annual revenue.
With Megan Gorrey
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Cindy Yin is an urban affairs reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via email.From our partners
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