Central Coast Council has endorsed the process for the preparation of the draft pricing proposal to the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) for its water, sewerage and stormwater drainage prices from 1 July 2022.

IPART sets the maximum prices for Council’s water, sewerage and stormwater drainage services. Council’s pricing proposal has been developed and is now ready to submit to IPART for their review.

Administrator Rik Hart said that Council’s current water, sewer and stormwater rates, which were significantly reduced by IPART in its 2019 determination, are not financially sustainable.

“I want to be upfront with the community about our pricing proposal. As it stands, the current pricing levels will see ratepayers having to subsidise the operations of the water, sewer and stormwater drainage businesses. But even worse there will be insufficient funds to invest in maintenance and upgrades to ensure the community can be provided with a safe, clean and reliable water supply as well as an effective sewer and drainage system that does not harm the environment,” Mr Hart said. 

“We are proposing to IPART that we increase our revenue for our water, sewer and stormwater services. We’re suggesting we return our prices for these services similar to 2018-19 levels, with an allowance for subsequent inflation.

“By doing this, we can be prudent and efficient with our expenditure, and still deliver the needs that the community outlined during the consultation program we ran earlier this year.

“IPART will fully test our proposal and may make changes to what we have submitted.”

Mr Hart added that Council is continuing to move forward in its financial recovery and also driving productivity gains. 

“Over the relatively short period of the last six months, Council has significantly reduced its expenditure across the entire organisation in both materials and contracts and staffing numbers and their associated costs.   There has been close to a 25% reduction in Council’s gross weekly payroll due to the significant restructure of the organisation and particularly the reduction in the management staffing levels by around 35%.   

“This has not resulted in the 25% reduction of services delivered to the community.  

“This is a straight productivity gain and the community are the ones who benefit from this,” Mr Hart said. 

Below is an outline of the timeline to follow for Council’s pricing proposal:
•    September 2021: Council submits their pricing proposal.
•    September/October 2021: IPART will review the pricing proposal and make it public on their website. They will undertake a public consultation process, giving the community an opportunity to provide feedback – which is encouraged by Council.
•    October/November 2021: IPART will hold a public hearing with locations and times advertised in local newspapers, on IPART’s website and via Council’s communication channels.
•    March/April 2022: IPART will release a draft report and determination detailing proposed prices. The community has a further opportunity to respond to the draft reports by making submissions to IPART.
•    May 2022: Following consideration of submissions, IPART will release their final report and determination on prices that will come into effect on 1 July 2022.

Council will inform the community once the pricing proposal is made public on IPART’s website in the coming weeks.
 

ENDS