THE Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) has welcomed the decision to stall the deeply flawed proposed Fire Services Levy Bill and says the reprieve must be used to iron out the fundamental issues facing farmers and regional communities.
It’s a statement echoed by many in South Gippsland.
The Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund was set to be introduced on July 1 and subsequently change the Fire Services Property Levy. The new fund would support a broader range of emergency services including VICSES, Triple Zero Victoria, the State Control Centre, Forest Fire Management and Emergency Recovery Victoria, not to mention the Emergency Management Commissioner and Chief Executive positions within Emergency Management Victoria and Secretary to the Department of Justice and Community Safety, to the extent of emergency management; alongside CFA and Fire Rescue Victoria.
VFF President Brett Hosking said while farmers would be breathing a temporary sigh of relief, legitimate concerns still linger regarding the proposed cash-grab.
“This is a step in the right direction. The government tried to push through a flawed tax without consultation and they have clearly failed to secure the numbers. I thank those MP’s who have demonstrated strong leadership slowing the passage of this new tax without proper community and stakeholder consultation.
“We have families struggling with skyrocketing costs, and farmers battling drought, bushfires, and rising expenses. A cost-of-living crisis is not the time to introduce an unnecessary new tax. The stalling of the Bill gives us hope and more time, but we must see sweeping changes to the proposal,” Mr Hosking said.
Mr Hosking said there would be no letting up on the opposition towards the Bill, despite last week’s stall.
“Our message to the government couldn’t be clearer. Talk to us, consult with us and work collaboratively to get ideas that actually work and don’t risk taking a sledgehammer to the livelihoods of hard-working Victorian famers,” Mr Hosking said.
Earlier this month, The Nationals Member for Gippsland South Danny O’Brien stated, “Under the pretext of supporting volunteers, what Labor is actually doing is taxing Victorians more for services that have always been core government business funded from consolidated revenue.”
“Victorians already pay for public service agencies such as Emergency Management Victoria, Forest Fire Management Victoria and Triple Zero, and now they’re being asked to pay even more,” he continued.
The Nations Member for Eastern Victoria Melina Bath agrees, stating “Ultimately this fire services and volunteers fund will be used to fund core government services and the fact the government has used the word volunteers is a slight on our volunteers.”
Under the rebranded levy, residents and commercial ratepayers are expected to pay double what they currently are and farmers almost triple.
As previously reported by the Sentinel-Times, a 80.5 hectare grazing property, for example, at Tarwin Lower for $2.9 million, which previously attracted a Fire Services Levy of $1108 on last year’s rates notice, will see a rise to $2683 this year – more than double. Commercial dairy farmers in the region could be expected to pay $5000 or more just for the emergency services levy alone.
And during February’s council meeting both Bass Coast Shire Council Mayor Cr Rochelle Halstead and former South Gippsland Mayor Cr Nathan Hersey spoke out about the Fund with Mr Hersey stating he believed the tax had been “introduced by stealth”.
According to the latest Census data there are 28,734 occupied private dwellings across Bass Coast and South Gippsland.
The only reprieve for the roughly 1000 CFA volunteers, and couple of hundred SES volunteers locally, within the Fund is under section 20D, a volunteer offset, but who and how this offset will be administered by is yet to be determined, and who will even be eligible is another question altogether, that’s not to mention that hardworking volunteers will first have to pay the tax and then navigate the rebate process.
Member for Eastern Victoria Dr Renee Heath didn’t hold back last week when stating” “Despite the Treasurer’s promise that volunteers would be exempt, we’ve now learned that they must first pay the tax out of pocket and then navigate a bureaucratic rebate process that can take up to two months. Worse, the exemption is capped at $4,150 – leaving many farmers to foot bills between $5000 and $10,000.”
On Saturday, Dr Heath followed up stating, “This bill pretends to back our emergency services but most of the money won’t go to CFA trucks or local brigades, and we do know that our firefighters across the state of Victoria will receive less than they do now.”
“This will push up grocery prices, it’ll push up rental prices,” Dr Heath continued.
The Legislative Council will resume in five weeks following the federal election, however, it’s unknown when the debate will continue after the government shut it down during last week’s session.
