MILDURA Rural City councillors unequivocally condemned the Victorian Government’s new Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund at Thursday’s council meeting.
An urgent agenda motion to write to Premier Jacinta Allan was passed unanimously.
The letter will call on the Victorian Government to repeal the fund, and failing that, calls on the Victorian Government to administer and collect the tax themselves, rather than rely on council to do their bidding unwillingly.
The ESVF will be larger tax than the tax it is replacing, the Fire Services Property Levy.
From June 1 this year, the ESVF will be introduced to collect funds not just for for the Country Fire Authority and Fire Rescue Victoria, but also Triple Zero Victoria, Victorian State Emergency Service and six other government-related agencies.
To do so, there will be an increase to the variable rate charge.
For the coming financial year, the residential variable rate will almost double, commercial variable rates will double, and farming rates will be 2.5 times higher than before.
A summary in the council motion said it would cause a “multi-million dollar drain” from the region, and Mayor Cr Helen Healy had previously said it would amount to about $4 million in takings.
SES and CFA volunteers who have been in their positions for at least 12 months are eligible for rebates for ESVF payments, but only on their principal place of residence or farm.
For farms, the maximum rebate is $3865.
Council’s letter to the Premier will point out that MRCC is one of the lowest socio-economic regions in the state.
It will also emphasise that volunteers are crucial to the fabric of the community; that the increases in tax will financially burden homeowners, businesses, and farmers, while the latter are facing drought, low commodity prices and high production costs; and that the ESVF will reduce the effect of financial pressure relief provided to farmers in the recent MRCC rating strategy.
Cr Glenn Milne said the rises in the tax were “totally unfair”.
“I want the community to realise that we’re standing up here for the general ratepayer, the CFA, dryland and irrigated farmers,” he said.
“It’s going to affect all of us and we’re saying to the government it’s really not good enough.”
Cr Ian Arney said the widespread condemnation of the tax demonstrated a lack of gratitude for volunteers.
“It’s absurd that volunteers are being charged more to pay for the privilege of volunteering. In my mind that makes no sense,” he said.
“We should be displaying gratitude to these people, not asking them to reach further into their pocket for the honour of being a volunteer.”
Cr Ali Cupper described the tax as “fundamentally wrong”.
“It’s still difficult to get accurate modelling on the impact but generally speaking, based on what I’ve read, residents and businesses can expect increases in the tens and hundreds of dollars and farmers can expect increases in the thousands and tens of thousands,” she said.
“It’s going to disproportionately hit our farmers right when they’re staring down the barrel of another drought, when the effects of climate change are becoming less theoretical and more and more real, and when land valuations have caused quite extreme increases in rates, especially in places like the dryland.
“These were some of the factors that led to our council granting dryland farmers some relief in the recent rating strategy.
“Just when they get a bit of relief they get hit with this.”
Cr Greg Brown, who has been a CFA volunteer for 65 years in the Mallee Track, called for the State Government to take the fund out of council rates notices.
“I’m totally upset at the Victorian Government’s greedy cash grab, basically from farmers. Ninety per cent of volunteers in my area are farmers who give their time, equipment and training consistently for the greater good of the communities,” he said.
“Let them collect their own little ill-gotten gains.”
