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Logan City Council's minimum general rates bills will increase 4.09 per cent from next financial year, costing ratepayers an extra $2.28 per week.
Key points:
- Minimum general rates in Logan will rise 4.09 per cent or $118.45 next financial year
- Logan Mayor Darren Power says the council is dealing with rising costs
- Mr Power says he is yet to decide if he will run for a second term at the March 2024 council election
Mayor Darren Power handed down a $1.089 billion budget on Monday, as he declared that delivering value for money and maintaining services were key priorities.
The council will spend $379.5 million on water and sewerage services, as well as $265.2 million on roads, drainage, and engineering services.
Another $63 million will be put towards managing and maintaining parks, while the council is expecting to post an operational surplus of $3.89 million by the end of 2023–24.
The 4.09 per cent increase on minimum general rates is bigger than the 2.49 per cent hike delivered last year, but less than Brisbane's most recent inflation rate of 7.4 per cent.
Mr Power said the budget was delivered amid one of the toughest economic periods that the city had faced.
"I think [the rates increase] compares with what we're dealing with," Mr Power said.
"As you know, we've got rising costs. We have to deal with that. We have to maintain the services and we have to continue to build the roads."
The council has also made some changes to the rating categories in a move that will bring in an extra $3.8 million in revenue.
A new annual $1.64 volunteer fire brigade charge will also be added to rates bills in 2023–24, so that the cost of the service does not fall solely on rural property owners.
The council's governance chair, Karen Murphy, said the fire service helped every suburb across the city during last year's floods.
"So rather than our rural properties just paying a fee for that particular fund, we decided that we would spread the cost right across Logan," she said.
"In those floods, we did see them come and step up.
"So [the new charge] was more equitable, we felt, and at $1.64 quite affordable."
Illegal dumping costs council
Ms Murphy also announced funds in the budget for a new "rapid response task force" that will target littering.
She said illegal dumping was a "huge problem" for the council.
"We find, unfortunately, there is a small percentage of residents and people may be even coming into our area who are using our footpaths and our parks for dumping," Ms Murphy said.
"This task force will help us keep those areas clean, collect that information, and then be able to prosecute those people who are responsible for those unsightly messes that we see every day."
Mayor yet to decide on second term
Mr Power said he was yet to decide on whether he would run for re-election at the March 2024 council election.
Mr Power, who previously served as a councillor, was elected mayor at the 2020 election with 36.2 per cent of the primary vote.
"It's not [a decision] that I will make lightly," he said.
"Obviously, my family is involved in that. So I will make that decision very soon.
"But, at the moment, it's about running the council. It's about getting this budget delivered.
"This is one of the toughest gigs in South-East Queensland at the moment, and I want to keep my mind on the job and not on re-election."
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