City includes carbon, other taxes with rates

By John Van Klaveren
GEELONG’S council has opened a public relations war with state and federal governments over the level of taxes included in rates.
Council leaders said they would detail state and federal taxes in rate notices following a 5.1 per cent rates rise, with .2 per cent due to the carbon tax.
Council passed its budget for 2012/2013 this week.
Mayor John Mitchell said the rate rise was really 4.9 per cent.
“We put together a fiscally responsible budget with a 4.9 per cent rate rise but we have no control over what the government does,” Cr Mitchell said.
“It would be unfair to council and the public not to know what goes into the fees and charges.
“We will give ratepayers a breakdown of state and federal government taxes with their rate notices.”
Cr Mitchell said the increased carbon tax costs represented a $60 rate increase.
The .2 per cent carbon tax was directly attributable to council’s Drysdale landfill, he said.
The landfill breached a 25-million-tonne benchmark, so council had a direct carbon tax liability of $6 million to $7 million over 14 years.
Cr Mitchell said council had absorbed increased utility costs of $1.2 million.
“The power, gas and water issues people have at home are no different here.”
The budget included $160,000 in allowances for Geelong’s first directly elected mayor as well as $650,000 for this year’s council elections.
Cr Mitchell said external influences were behind a 3.7 per cent rise in council fees and charges.
Three per cent was due to inflation and .7 per cent to the carbon tax, he said.
Increases affected leisure and aquatic centre fees, animal registrations, parking fines and childcare.
Federal Member for Corio Richard Marles said assistance measures in this week’s federal Budget would cover the carbon tax impact on Geelong residents.
“The provisions to households in assistance will be considerably more than the increase in rates. There is also an opportunity for council to earn carbon credits by cutting methane emissions at Drysdale landfill.”