{"id":37796,"date":"2013-07-03T20:15:26","date_gmt":"2013-07-03T10:15:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=37796"},"modified":"2023-06-17T16:12:49","modified_gmt":"2023-06-17T06:12:49","slug":"what-the-budget-means-to-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2013\/07\/03\/what-the-budget-means-to-you\/","title":{"rendered":"What The Budget Means To You"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Kingaroy<\/a>
The average South Burnett household will face a rise of $6.15 a week in council rates and charges<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

July 3, 2013<\/strong><\/p>\n

The average South Burnett ratepayer will be asked to pay an extra $80 per quarter – or about $6.15 per week – as a result of the South Burnett Regional Council’s 2013-14 Budget handed down today.<\/p>\n

The Budget introduced a 5.8 per cent rise in the general rate; a $26 increase in the annual waste management levy; a $1 increase in the State Government’s Community Rescue and Evacuation levy; a 6.9 per cent increase in water access charges and a 7.5 per cent increase in sewerage charges.<\/p>\n

There has been no increase in the rural fire levy; the environmental levy; or the domestic refuse collection service fee.<\/p>\n

The biggest imposition in this year’s Budget is the new $200 per year Roads Infrastructure Levy, which will be used to pay for some road works after last year’s sudden loss of $1.4 million in Federal and State road grants.<\/strong><\/p>\n

As the table below shows, the average annual cost of owning a residential property (urban or rural) in the region will rise from $1628 to $1946 a year (pensioners will receive a $400 discount).<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

In return, Council will be spending a near-record $66.2 million on roads and almost $8.8 million on water and wastewater infrastructure.<\/p>\n

It will also invest close to $1 million on upgrading Nanango\u2019s CBD streetscape; $205,000 on Wondai\u2019s Village Green; and $630,000 on kerbing, channeling and sealing works in Blackbutt-Benarkin.<\/p>\n

No existing Council services or subsidies to community and sportings groups will be lost, and the council’s schedule of fees and charges will only rise by 2 per cent in line with CPI.<\/p>\n

In today’s Budget speech, Mayor Wayne Kratzmann was adamant all funds raised by the new Road Infrastructure Levy will be spent on the region’s roads, and a list of Road Levy projects was included in the Budget papers.<\/p>\n

He was also confident the Council will return a $1.5 million surplus in 12 months time providing any change in the Federal Government didn’t lead to further reductions in Commonwealth grants.<\/p>\n

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