A two-week online survey on Council’s Revenue Collection and Financial Hardship Policy opened on Monday 5 October and closes on Monday 19 October.
Council says it wants feedback on “payment plans, hardship applications and other ways we can help ratepayers manage their rates, while improving the collection of outstanding amounts”.
It also wants advice on how the rate collection process can be improved so that overdue rates are collected.
Why now
The review comes as Council’s finances are under pressure. At its September meeting, Council heard that about 1,000 of the shire’s roughly 8,000 residential ratepayers are behind on their rates, and only about 200 are on payment plans.
In his Councillor Column this week, Mayor Tony Clark put outstanding rates debt at more than $5 million. He said Council would be reaching out to residents having trouble paying, and he warned that the next couple of years would be financially challenging and could bring unpopular changes to how Council operates and delivers services.
The first rates instalment for 2026/27 was due on 30 September, and the second is due on 30 November.
The policy under review was adopted in May 2021. It was meant to be reviewed by May 2025, so the review is more than a year overdue.
What the current policy says
- Paying: ratepayers can pay in four instalments or, if they are not in arrears, in ten monthly direct debits from September to June.
- Payment plans: people who can’t pay on time can arrange a plan of up to two years, based on what they can afford.
- Hardship: owner-occupiers and farmers in hardship can apply to have payments deferred, or rates or interest waived, for up to two years. Applications over $1,000 are assessed by an independent financial counsellor, paid for by Council.
- Interest: penalty interest is charged on overdue rates at the rate set each year by the State Government.
- Recovery: debts more than 120 days overdue can be referred to a debt collector and then pursued in the Magistrates’ Court. Where rates have been unpaid for three years or more, Council may begin the process of selling the property.
The survey is on Council’s Participate Hepburn site, where you can also read the current policy (PDF).
What happens next
Council will consider the feedback in October and develop a revised draft policy in November. A final decision is expected at the Council meeting on 15 December 2026. Depending on how much the policy changes, the draft may be put on public exhibition first.
Separately, the second phase of an independent review of Council’s long-term financial plan is due in November.
