What works are happening in my area?

    A list of major works highlights are provided on pages 3 and 4 and a detailed list of works is provided from page 120 in Part 1 of the Operational Plan 2015/2016.

    How much will Council earn from rates and how are they calculated?

    Council will collect $29.5M in rates. For further information, please refer to Table 1 on page 10 in Part 2 of the Operational Plan 2015/2016.

    Pages 7-10 in Part 2 of the Operational Plan 2015/2016 provides information in relation to how rates are determined.

    How much will Council spend on roads?

    A summary of the costs, totaling $11.3M associated with activities relating to roads is provided on page 27 in Part 1 of the Operational Plan 2015/2016.

    How much will Council spend on rubbish and how much will it cost me?

    Council will spend $11.3M on domestic and commercial waste collection services as shown on page 26 in Part 1 of the Operational Plan 2015/2016.

    Fees in relation to these services are provided in Table 2 on page 12 in Part 2 of the Operational Plan 2015/2016.

    How much will Sewerage Services cost and what do they cover?

    Sewerage charges are listed in Table 3 on page 13 in Part 2 of the Operational Plan 2015/2016 and are charged to recover costs of $6.7M in 2015/2016 and provide for infrastructure renewal in the future.

    How much will Sullage Services cost and what do they cover?

    Sullage Service charges are listed in Table 4 in Part 2 on page 14 of the Operational Plan 2015/2016 and are charged to recover $1.4M of processing and collection costs incurred by Council to provide this service.

    What is Council charging for other services?

    An itemised list of Fees & Charges are provided from page 20 in Part 2 of the Operational Plan 2015/2016.

    What financial assistance is given by Council?

    Council provides sponsorships, access to community facilities, program or activity seeding grants, minor assistance in the form of donations, accessibility improvements and reductions or waiving of fees to certain groups.  For additional information, please refer to pages 17 and 18 in Part 2 of the Operational Plan 2015/2016.

    The following FAQs relate specifically to the 2015/2016 Budgeted Income Statement on page 32 in Part 1 of the Operational Plan 2015/2016.

    See page 32 in Part 1 of the Operational Plan 2015/2016.

    What are User Charges & Fees?

    This category of income relates to fees collected on a user pays basis to partly recover costs incurred by Council in relation to the provision of services.

    This income is collected from a number of areas, including:

    • Development Application and Subdivision fees;
    • Building Inspections and Construction Certificates;
    • Certificates in relation to the sale and purchase of properties;
    • Companion Animal sales and impounding fees;
    • Gate takings at the Waste Management Facility;
    • Septic tank inspections and permits;
    • Cemetery income

    What are Other Revenues?

    Income shown under this category is miscellaneous in nature and does not meet the criteria for inclusion in the other categories of income. Income included in this category includes lease and rental income, penalty fines income and a range of other sundry income items.

    What is Depreciation?

    Depreciation represents in dollar terms, the amount of assets consumed across Council in the provision of services to the community.  In order to remain financial sustainable, Council needs to ensure that enough income is collected to cover the cost of depreciation in order to fund future renewal of assets to continue to provide services into the future at a level acceptable to the community.

    What are Other Expenses?

    This category summaries the expenses that do not meet the criteria for inclusion in other categories of expenditure. 

    Expenses in this category include:

    •   Waste Levy Contributions charged by the State Government for amounts tipped at the Waste Management Facility;
    •   Utilities and street lighting costs;
    •   Insurance;
    •   Contribution to emergency services;
    •   Contribution to Sports Council and the Hawkesbury Leisure Centre subsidy;
    •   Financial assistance;
    •   Licences, Memberships and Subscriptions;
    •   Postage and printing;
    •   Bank charges

    What are Reserves?

    Reserves are allocations of money, collected and retained for specific purposes, for example income collected in relation to Domestic Waste Management and Sewerage Services are kept in reserve to fund the costs associated with these services.

    Need more information?

    Please contact:

    Philip Pleffer

    Strategic Planning Co-ordinator

    (02) 4560 4544