While the commission acknowledged that the council was in the process of reviewing its spending priorities, it said the financial modelling showed that “the sought-after rate increase only served to postpone (by about two year) an ongoing deterioration in council’s financial sustainability”.
“Not clear Council has done all it can to stabilise its financial position”
The commission described the rate increase Warrnambool asked for as “very significant” and would have seen rates rise by over 14 per cent over three years.
It allowed council to raise rates for two years instead of the three it had sought, saying it was “inappropriate” to approve the full rate hike above the cap because the council did not provide sufficient evidence of long-term funding needs. “It is not clear to us that the council has done all it can to stabilise its financial position,” it said