{"id":181544,"date":"2017-06-18T17:09:11","date_gmt":"2017-06-18T07:09:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=181544"},"modified":"2020-09-11T12:47:06","modified_gmt":"2020-09-11T02:47:06","slug":"fees-and-charges-to-rise-2pc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2017\/06\/18\/fees-and-charges-to-rise-2pc\/","title":{"rendered":"Fees And Charges To Rise 2pc"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The South Burnett Regional Council’s fees and charges, covering everything from overdue book fines to food vendor licences, will rise by an average 2 \u00a0per cent from July 1<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Finance portfolio chair Cr Ros Heit<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

June 18, 2017<\/strong><\/p>\n

The cost of doing business with the South Burnett Regional Council will rise an average of 2 per cent from July 1.<\/p>\n

Councillors voted unanimously to accept next year’s Fees and Charges Schedule at last Wednesday’s monthly meeting.<\/p>\n

Most charges in the new schedule will rise to keep in step with CPI.<\/p>\n

But some will stay the same as last year while others – such as hall hire fees for not-for-profit community groups – will rise.<\/p>\n

The Council brings down a new schedule each year in advance of its Budget so pricing changes can be made to its billing and IT systems before July 1.<\/p>\n

The schedule governs everything from how much the Council charges for photocopies to entry costs at the region\u2019s swimming pools.<\/p>\n

By law, Councils are encouraged to levy fees for their services on a cost-recovery model which should not be higher than the Council’s out-of-pocket cost to provide a service.<\/p>\n

The latest rise is the lowest since 2013, and follows 2.5 per cent rises in 2014, 2015 and 2016.
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Finance portfolio chair Cr Ros Heit said every effort had been made to keep this year’s rises in line with CPI.<\/p>\n

Following an announcement made at the May meeting, though, the new schedule will introduce a flat 50 per cent discount rate for community groups who hire Council halls.<\/p>\n

The new charge will prevent community groups being able to obtain a 100 per cent fee waiver by applying to Council for it.<\/p>\n

The South Burnett Regional Council will hand down its 2017-18 Budget at a special meeting on June 26.<\/p>\n

The new 2017-18 Register Of Fees And Charges will be available as a PDF download from the Council’s website<\/strong><\/a> on July 1.<\/p>\n

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