Hilltops dodge $2.5 million funding loss

State politicians and local councillors have welcomed the announcement from the NSW Local Grants Commission to not proceed with changes to funding distribution. The methodology behind the reallocation of financial grants was never made public, and would have seen Hilltops Council lose $2.5 million a year in state funding. In all, the Commission received 102 submissions from the 128 councils within NSW, 54 of them raising significant concerns or proposing changes, and 38 outright opposing the methodology. Hilltops Council mayor Brian Ingram said he was pleased to receive the announcement, but challenges remain on the road ahead. “Hilltops was facing a potential reduction of close to 25 per cent in its annual Financial Assistance Grant allocation, which would have placed significant additional pressure on Council's financial sustainability," Cr Ingram said. "This decision removes a significant immediate financial risk for Hilltops. “However, our broader financial sustainability challenges remain, and we will continue working to improve Council's financial position while advocating for fair and sustainable funding for rural and regional communities." "While this is a welcome outcome, it does not resolve the broader financial pressures facing local government or diminish the need for adequate and sustainable grant funding." Acting general manager Sarah Karaitiana also spoke to the announcement, saying the news is positive, but adequate support is still required. “Councils are still not getting enough financial support from state and federal government, so there's still work to be done in that space,” Ms Karaitiana said. "Hilltops maintains an extensive infrastructure network that supports our communities and approximately $500 million in agricultural production. “It is critical that funding arrangements recognise the genuine cost of delivering services across large rural areas and the important economic contribution these regions make." With this issue resolved for the time being, Hilltops Council have an eye on the Federation Compact, announced earlier in the year as a support for local government. “We just hope that there will be a larger bucket of money to be distributed to all, especially regional councils,” Ms Karaitiana said. “It was acknowledged that local government required more funding to be sustainable, and then to have this announcement made that the proposed methodology was going to leave a lot of councils worse off, it just left people scratching their heads.” Member for Cootamundra Steph Cooke spoke of her support for the decision, following the mayoral summit earlier this month which focused heavily on Financial Assistance Grant distribution. “I commend our councils for speaking up and making their concerns known, and I am pleased that these changes will not proceed in their current form,” Ms Cooke said. “When councils are being asked to comment on reforms that could have significant financial consequences, they need access to all the relevant information to make informed decisions.” “While I welcome this outcome, it must also serve as a reminder that regional, rural and remote councils cannot continue to shoulder more uncertainty at a time when they are already facing increasing cost pressures and growing demands on local services.” The Local Grants Commission noted in a letter sent to all councils the allocations may be re-examined in 2028, the next term of local government, but will remain unchanged until then.