LGA Elections | Rate capping | Salaries & wages | LGA Member Survey | LGAP electricity procurement | LG Strategic Population Policy | Heritage inquiry | Media round up No Images? Click here Vol 3: Issue 31 - Monday 20 August 2018 As you would be aware, nominations for the next LGA President, South Australian Regional Organisation of Councils (SAROC) and Greater Adelaide Region of Councils (GAROC) are drawing to a close. This is a great opportunity for elected members to further their leadership within the local government sector and I encourage you to give serious consideration to nominating. While nominations for President and SAROC close this week, GAROC nominations have been extended until Friday 7 September. We are continuing discussions with Members of Parliament against the proposed rate capping legislation, and advocating for sensible local government reforms I encourage you all to take every opportunity to advocate for the position of your council and contribute to strengthening the collective position against rate capping - and for sensible reforms. LGA President Sue Clearihan LGA ElectionsThe nomination process for the next LGA President and SAROC and GAROC members is well underway. Following feedback from several metropolitan councils regarding the deadline date for nomination for members of GAROC, and subsequent legal advice on the Constitution and Ancillary documents; the LGA CEO has confirmed to GAROC councils that an elected member can be nominated by another GAROC council to be member of GAROC. While the nomination process for SAROC is now almost complete with regional LGAs nominating their members, as Returning Officer, the LGA CEO has made the decision to extend the nomination period for members of GAROC to 5pm on Friday 7 September 2018 to allow for further council meetings to consider GAROC nominations. I encourage Elected Members (in GAROC councils) to nominate for GAROC - it will be an exciting opportunity as the LGA forges ahead with its new governance arrangements and implements exciting new services for LGA members. Also, the new LGA Board of Directors will be comprised of members from both SAROC and GAROC. So put your best foot forward! Nominations for LGA President and SAROC members will close at 5pm on Friday 24 August 2018. If you have any queries please contact Dr Andrew Johnson at andrew.johnson@lga.sa.gov.au. Rate cappingIt was very disappointing to hear the Minister for Local Government last week advocate for party politics and interference in the democratic election process of an independent sphere of government. The Minister has labelled the upcoming council elections a ‘referendum on rate capping’ and is encouraging people to represent and support a Liberal Party policy that could have a detrimental effect on their community. As we all know, being a councillor or Mayor involves so much more than this. While the LGA ran a campaign during the state election period to highlight the risks of rate capping, this was a campaign against poor policy, and we made no call to action for voters to support any parties or candidates over others. We believe the people of South Australia should receive the facts, and then decide for themselves who is best placed to represent that in all spheres of government. The Minister also claimed on 5AA that the cost of applying to ESCOSA for a rate variation would be a ‘fraction’ of the $25,000 to $250,000 that it costs councils in New South Wales and Victoria. This confirms that councils will be expected to use ratepayer funds to ask an unelected State Government bureaucracy about which services communities can and cannot receive. Even at a ‘fraction’ of $250,000, this is another red tape cost that will be borne by rate paying households. Even though rates have been trending downward over the past five years, we know that communities want councils to work hard to contain costs and show that we are delivering value of money. We are committed to working with the State Government and the Parliament to make changes and improvements in our sector. Reforms like benchmarking for councils, standardising our council auditing processes, improving our code of conduct and establishing service standards will enable us to become more efficient and better serve our communities – not rate capping. Will the State Government support us in containing costs by slashing their Solid Waste Levy, which has just risen by another 15 percent? Salaries and WagesYou might have heard claims broadcast on 5AA this week that council salaries in South Australia are $9,000 higher than those interstate. To test this claim we reviewed the McArthur 2017/18 Local Government National Remuneration Survey. Here’s what we found:
Each week I send out an LGA ‘snapshot’ to media and stakeholders to provide an update on key issues within the local government sector. Our sector is often not well understood by those who have not been a part of it, and increasingly the snapshot has become a ‘mythbusting’ exercise to address the various claims that have been made about councils in the LGA in the previous week. If you hear something that doesn’t sound quite right, please let us know so that we can uncover the facts. Do you want cheaper food at Adelaide Oval?There are some questions that you know the answer to before you even ask – like asking people if they would prefer to pay less for something. I’m aware that a phone poll on council rate capping and amalgamations is continuing – presumably to put pressure on the political parties ahead of a Legislative Council vote on the Government’s rate oversight legislation. Rate capping and amalgamations are both complex issues - and while on the surface they might have populist appeal, the evidence shows that neither policy delivers the promised efficiencies and cost savings. There are a number of reasons that 57 councils voted to oppose the rate capping bill, and I encourage you all to keep talking to your community about what it could cost them. It is also concerning to see the issues of rate capping and amalgamations being linked together. It might make you wonder whether rate capping is the thin end of the wedge. In April 2018, for the first time the LGA annual Member Survey was conducted by an external consultant, Hudson Howell. Through the survey we directly engage with council members and staff on key priority issues of focus and LGA services. We thank those members who took the time to provide us with this valuable feedback. An annual member survey is embedded in our governance framework under the new LGA Constitution and proposed ancillary documents, along with an annual Value Proposition and a pricing methodology for the services proposed by the LGA to member councils. These measures are part of our commitment to being an engaged, transparent and accountable membership association. The results of the survey were instrumental in developing the LGA’s 2018/19 Annual Business Plan and Budget by providing guidance on the issues and services that are most important to members, and the areas where the LGA can deliver enhanced value for money. A summary of results of the 2018 Member Survey can be found here. The next LGA Member Survey will be launching soon to better align the timing of the survey with best practice business planning processes. Watch this space for a new opportunity to provide your feedback on LGA priorities and services. LGA Procurement – Electricity StrategyYou will be receiving an update from LGA Procurement this week, detailing how they are working hard towards reducing the cost of council electricity bills. The current supply contracts end on 31 December 2019, and the update outlines strategies that LGA Procurement is rolling out ahead of entering the electricity market during 2019 in readiness for 1 January 2020. I’m confident we are in good hands with LGA Procurement as they continue to stay abreast of state and national policies, analyse the National Energy Guarantee, power purchasing agreements and SA/NSW interconnector benefits and seek expert advice and assistance where required. As a reminder, under the current two year contract, electricity charges will decrease in the 2019 calendar year by between 9-18 percent, meaning in real terms that electricity rates will be less than those in 2017. Note: Below 160MWH contract (small sites) pricing does reduce from 2018 to 2019 by 9 percent, but remains higher than 2017 prices. It must be noted that 2017 pricing was locked in by LGA Procurement in 2014 under a three year contract. The net result was councils on the 2014 contract enjoyed a significant price cap compared to market in 2015, 2016 and 2017. For more information please contact Andrew Haste, CEO LGA Procurement on 8224 2073 or at andrew.haste@lga.sa.gov.au. Local Government Strategic Population PolicyThe LGA has engaged the SA Centre for Economic Studies (SACES) to develop a Strategic Population Policy. This policy will provide the LGA with an evidenced-based advocacy tool that we can use to work with the State Government towards a State Strategic Population Policy. Presented as a region-by-region snapshot, the policy will include:
It is anticipated that the policy will act as blueprint and will include State Government and private sector initiatives. It will be less about how many people we need, and more about who we do have, how we retain them, and how we can attract specific demographics as desired. The LGA’s 2018-19 State Budget Submission requests $250,000 from the State Government to support the development of this policy/blueprint. We will be seeking the input of regional LGAs and the RDAs. For further information please contact Sean Holden, Senior Policy Adviser on 8224 2027 or at sean.holden@lga.sa.gov.au. Heritage InquiryThe Parliament’s Environment, Resources and Development Committee is conducting an inquiry into the operation of SA’s heritage system and is seeking submissions from the LGA on behalf of the sector. To assist councils, the LGA has developed a discussion paper containing questions for councils to consider. To help inform the LGA’s submission, we ask councils to forward comments or a copy of their submission by 30 August 2018 to Stephen Smith, Director Policy at stephen.smith@lga.sa.gov.au. For further information, contact Stephen Smith on 8224 2055. Media round upIn case you missed it. The use of weedkiller RoundUp is in the headlines as a US ruling could have implications for SA. Mayors speak out against the Minister’s call to use council elections as a referendum on rate capping, and The Advertiser ran an opinion piece on the issue. For further information or to submit |