27 April 2009

Chief Executive,
Tasman District Council,
Queen Street,
RICHMOND.

Dear Sir/Madam

NELSON GREY POWER - SUBMISSION TO LTCCP 2009-19

Nelson Greypower, firstly wishes to commend the Tasman District Council on it's attempts to give priority to essential and core services against the demands of some sectors of the community and region to commit ratepayers funds to non essential social activities and facilities.

We understand the difficulties you have in providing essential services such as water, sewage, roading etc, over such a wide rural population, while trying to keep rate increases down to affordable levels.

With the current global financial crisis, the sustainability and affordability of rates must be a paramount consideration when you are setting your capital expenditure/works programmes.

We are concerned however, that the LTCCP 2009-19 is signalling that the "Global" rate take over the 10 year period will increase in excess of 113%.

We believe you must look at the "Global " figure and not just isolate and promote the "General Rate" increase as meeting some target as it gives an erroneous impression of something substantially different.

Our interpretation of "Global" is the total income from all "rates", including targeted rates and all other rateable charges

The LTCCP shows this global increase over the next 10 years as a staggering 113%.

The Minister of Local Government has clearly signalled he intends to bring rate increases down to affordable levels near to the rate of inflation.

By ignoring this, you may be placing yourselves in a very precarious position of being forced into a negative rate increase situation. That will occur if you plan on of imposing rate increases, which will clearly exceed any rates cap the Minister may impose.

We are suggesting to the Minister a budgetary rating system instead of the present demand driven system. Councils should have to live within a budget like everyone else. The budgetary system would be set at last years global rate take plus inflation. instead of the current practice of setting the programme and then deciding how big a rate increase is necessary to fund that programme. This demand system is killing the ratepayers and needs to be stopped in its tracks.

We implore you to give serious consideration to the financial strains your residents and ratepayers are under. Proposals to dramatically increase toilet pan charges and rubbish collection for instance are direct costs on every ratepayer.

How will Widows under 65 living on $199.00 net per week, Single Superannuitants on $310.95 per week and married couples on $227.49 each per week be able to absorb these astronomical increases you are signalling. . We should also be aware that there are 85,000 people between 50 and 64 in New Zealand on some form of pension or benefit.

Many of these people live in your region.

The Rate inquiry has firmly re-established the principle that total revenue from rates should not exceed 50% of the total council income. In fact they recommend it be gradually reduced. We are shocked to see your plan projects income from rates will be over 65% of total income by 2018/19. This is totally unacceptable.

We are well aware you have demands and finding the money is a nightmare. We will be lobbying the Minister to return to Government loans for funding core infrastructure and assist councils to move away from having to raise funds from retail lending institutions.

The review of the RMA may help to alleviate some of the costs imposed on councils by central government but these costs are not the major cause of rate increases, if you look back over the last 10 years or so and work out how much non-core, non-priority spending was indulged in, you may well realise how part of the situation you face today, evolved. Let us not fall into the same trap for the next 10 years and beyond.

It is time to bite the bullet, and make some tough decisions..

Yours faithfully,

(Errol Millar)
Chairperson
Local Body Sub-Committee,
Nelson Grey Power