Fears that 'shiny bum bureaucrats' will cost our towns millions in flood recovering funding

Concerns have been raised that changes to the way disaster recovery funding is handed out could cost towns around the Central West millions of dollars. In June, the Federal Government announced a raft of proposed changes that would impact communities such as those hit hardest during the 2022 flood disaster like Molong and Eugowra. It was billed as a "simpler and fairer" system which included the implementation of a 50/50 funding model between state and Australian governments. But an analysis provided by Cabonne Shire Council indicated that should this proposed system have been in place since 2019 - in a time where six disaster events occurred across the LGA - they would be nearly $12 million worse off. The figures put forward by the council stated that 50/50 cost sharing alone would have reduced the Commonwealth funding to Cabonne by $4.6 million. "Either the state and/or council would need to fund the shortfall to maintain existing levels of support," the report read. "This would impact on available funding for other programs for local government ... and may have an impact on the ability of councils to deliver essential services." During the August 25 Cabonne council meeting, it was agreed that continued advocacy against the proposed funding model would be undertaken. "What is being suggested by the Federal Government is clearly iniquitous," Cr Andrew Rawson said. "This is not a time to be cost shifting to local government. The amount of money we would lose out if this got up would just be ridiculous, unaffordable. "This should be a time where federal and state governments step up to the plate and actually deal with this impending disaster coming our way." Deputy Mayor Jamie Jones added that it would have been "unaffordable" for the council to provide the necessary millions of dollars in funding following the 2022 floods. "There were really crucial community assets we were able to rebuild because of the funding, which the community would have to go without or we would have to go through a special rate variation ... just to recover," he added. "The Australian government are trying to penalise local government and in particular regional communities impacted at their most devastating times." The new plan has not yet been agreed to with consultation between states, territories and local governments still underway. For Councillor Peter Batten, he was adamant that what was being proposed could not be supported. "We need to get through to them because there's a lack of understanding by the shiny bum bureaucrats in Canberra and most politicians that sit in that parliament and what actually happens out in regional NSW," he said. "Regional councils are under more and more pressure because of behaviour of the state and federal governments."