Draft Annual Plan 2023/24

for 2023/24
What's driving the increase?
We know that 16.9% is a big increase - and it isn’t a plan we make lightly. The increases reflect the cost pressures that are coming at us from all directions: inflation, interest rates, insurance, tougher water regulations and central government reforms and more. Most of these things we have no choice but to fund, and the majority of our funding comes from rates.
Here is a summary of how the 16.9% increase breaks down. Check out the consultation document or the FAQs below for a more detailed explanation of these increases:
- +4.4% for increased cost of asset replacements (roads, water and wastewater treatment plants and pipes, etc)
- +3.3% for changes to kerbside collections
- +2.7% for water supply operating costs
- +2% for transfer station operations
- +1.7% for interest rate increases
- +1.6% for electricity costs
- +1.2% for small increases across other Council budgets
Your rates increase will vary depending on the property value and the services you receive
We need to collect just over $7 million more in rates next year (a 16.9% increase), but that doesn't mean everyone's rates will increase by 16.9%. This is because some rates are 'targeted' - or only charged to the people who receive that service - like kerbside collection, or water supply, or wastewater.
Search for your property to see exactly how the proposed changes will affect you
The consultation document also includes some example properties so you can see how the proposed increase effects the different property types.
Online conversation cafe
In addition to in-person meetings we also had an online question and answer session. If you're looking for a specific question please check the video chapters below.
More detail
Read a summary of what is being proposed (including what's driving the increase)
Read the draft Annual Plan 2023/24 in full
Make a submission
Our options this year are limited due to the nature of what is driving the proposed 16.9% rate increase. We believe this draft budget strikes a balance - it includes a number of cut backs, as well as some risks in how we manage our finances to keep rates down, but it also means we can continue to deliver all our existing services and make progress on projects that are already under way.
We know that 16.9% is a massive increase - but we’re also wary of deferring any more costs, as prices only go up.
There are a few areas that we could partially fund or take greater risks (we’ve provided examples in the consultation document), however, we don’t believe these options would be financially responsible. They would only make the overall rates increase slightly smaller (lowering it to around 14.6%), and are likely to cause problems or even bigger increases in years to come.
If you think that those risks are worth taking and that we should kick these costs to the future for the sake of saving 2.3% this year, then we want to know about it. If you can think of anything else we haven’t considered to make significant savings that can be implemented as soon as 1 July (noting that we legally can’t make drastic service cuts without a lengthy Long Term Plan review) then we’d also love to hear your ideas.
Submissions are now closed.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you aren’t going to be able to afford your rates with this increase please contact us to discuss options with our rates team.
Note that if you had a low income during the 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023 financial year, you may be eligible for a rates rebate of up to $700. You can find more information about rates rebates here
Project Timeline
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Consultation opens
8 May
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Consultation closes
4pm, 26 May
Hearing
7 June
Council consider submissions and make decisions
7 June
Changes/amendments made to plan and budgets
7 - 27 June
Council adopt final Annual Plan 2023/24
28 June
Related Information
- See what we originally planned and consulted on in the Long Term Plan
- View the 2023/23 Annual Plan