THERE was a congratulatory atmosphere as Swan Hill Rural City Council adopted its budget for the 2015/16 financial year no more than ten minutes after commencing its special council meeting yesterday.
With no community objections to the draft budget proposal submitted during the statutory consultation period, council staff and members were confident the budget would get through without any hiccups as they sat down for the 1pm meeting.
They were right, with the meeting – arranged with the sole purpose of adopting the budget – finishing by 1:10pm, the budget having already been approved as per the recommendations set out by council’s director of corporate services, David Lenton.
The budget’s adoption means ratepayers will experience a general rate rise of 2.38 percent, with an early-bird discount of one percent for those who pay in full by the end of September 2015.
Several councillors praised the work of Mr Lenton and his staff for a rate rise that was, in Councillor Les McPhee’s words, “one of the lowest, if not the lowest, in the state”.
“The fact that we had no submissions was a testament of the good work the office and council put into this budget,” Cr McPhee commented.
Upon receiving council’s approval, Mayor Michael Adamson pointed out the budget was not only financially responsible, but continued council investment in a number of different projects across the municipality.
“It’s not just about council continuing to go about their business, it’s also about continuing development across the region as well,” Cr Adamson said.
