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Rating structure

Information on Bega Valley Shire Council's Rates and Charges.

The rating structure for general rates is based on a combination of two elements, the first being a base rate that is equally applied to all properties. The remainder of general rates are calculated on a rate in the dollar, often referred to as the ad valorem rate, based on unimproved land value assigned by the Valuer General.

Land Valuation

Land valuations are supplied to Council by the NSW Valuer General. For equity purposes, the Valuer General provides Council with updated land valuations at a minimum of every three years. These land valuations are used by Council to levy ordinary land rates. The Valuer General provided updated land valuations in early 2025 based data as of July 2024. These will be used for the rating years 2025-26 and 2026-27.

Routine changes in total land valuations received from the Valuer General do not change Council’s total permissible annual income; they simply redistribute the rate burden between individual properties based on that property’s change in comparison to others.

More information about land valuations and their use by councils is available from the Valuer General NSW website.

Land categories

Categorisation of all ratable land in the Bega Valley Shire has been undertaken in accordance with section 514 of the Local Government Act 1993 to be within one of the rating categories below. Sections 515 to 519 describe how land is to be categorised for rating purposes.

  1. Farmland - Applies to all properties in the Bega Valley Shire that satisfy the farmland criteria.
     
  2. Residential - Applies to all properties where the dominant use is residential or in the case of vacant land, where it is zoned or otherwise designated for residential purposes.
     
  3. Business - Applies to all properties that cannot be categorised as farmland or residential.

Change in Categorisation

If we receive an application to change the rateable category or have on reasonable grounds, information to believe that the rateable category should be changed, we may do so at any time. As a consequence of declaring a new categories effective date, changes to land rates shall be applicable from 1 July, 1 October, 1 January or 1 April provided the declared effective date is prior to one of these dates.

Land Value Changes due to Supplementary Valuation

Council will undertake rating on a pro-rata basis to reflect any changes to land valuation by the Valuer General. These changes may be the result of a subdivision, boundary adjustment, a sale resulting in a split, an amalgamation of parcels, or other changes affecting the valuation of your property. Changes to land rates shall be applicable from 1 July, 1 October, 1 January or 1 April provided the declared effective date is prior to one of these dates.

Exempt land

Some land is exempt from the base rate and ad valorem rates. These exemptions are defined in the Local Government Act 1993.

Rate Peg

Rate pegging limits the amount by which Council can increase its rate revenue from one year to the next. The rate peg each year is set by the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal of NSW (IPART). The rate peg amount for Bega Valley Shire Council 2025-26 is 4.9% inclusive of a 0.8% population factor.

Yield calculation Amount $
Rating permissible income 2024-25 39,877,645
49% rate peg 1,950,716
Le excess from previous year 3,289
Maximum totaate revenue for 2025-26 41,82,361

 

Projected General Rates Income

The rate peg for 2025-26 is set at 4.9%.

Category Base Rate $ Ad Valorem Amount cents in dollar Base Rate % Number of Assessments Rate Yield $ Rate Yield %
Residential 843 0.00240455 46 18,551 34,924,933 84
Farmland 843 0.00240455 25 784 2,655,935 6
Business 843 0.00645049 18 895 4,247,432 10
Mining 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total       20,530 41,828,361 100

 

Special Variations

Each year Council obtains income through a range of existing Special Variations to rates. These increases were approved either by IPART or the Minister for Local Government and provide funding for a specific purpose.

Name Purpose 2025-265
Revenue		 Status
Environmental Levy Biodiversity management, waterways protection and sustainability $519,050 Ongoing
Emergency Services Emergency Services, engineering administration for RFS and loan repayments $1,080,960 Ongoing
Libraries, Gallery, Tourism Centres and Weeds Libraries, gallery, tourism and weeds management $1,230,700 Ongoing
Various Transport and Recreation Infrastructure and Lifeguards Road stabilisation, timber bridge rehabilitation, culvert restoration, footpath trip hazard, recreation buildings and pools, ocean lifeguards, urban street construction, kerb and guttering $1,469,100 Ongoing
Tourism Promotion and Merimbula Airport Tourism promotion and Merimbula Airport $883,840 Concludes 2031
Collector Roads, Recreation Facilities, Public Domain Areas and Buildings Renewal of collector roads, recreation facilities and access roads and infrastructure renewal of public domain areas and buildings $1,858,330 Ongoing
Asset Renewal and Services Reduce infrastructure backlog, fund ongoing operation, maintenance and renewal of assets and services, improve Council’s financial sustainability $10,94,630 Ongoing

 

Stormwater management levy (Section 496A)

Council introduced a stormwater levy in 2007-2008 under Section 496A of the Local Government Act 1993. The charge applies to all developed lots that benefit from Council’s stormwater system, whether built or natural. The funds are used to improve the performance of Council’s stormwater management services. Total estimated income for the stormwater management levy in 2025-26 is $306,852.
The NSW Government caps the charges for all properties and the proposed charges are either at or below the cap levels.

 

Land Use Charge
Residential $25.00
Residential strata $12.50
Commercial (in excess of 1,200 sqm but not exceeding 3,000 sqm) $100.00
Commecial strata $5.00

 

Asset Renewal and Services SRV allocation

The Asset Renewal and Services SRV will support the following services and projects in 2025-26.

Cost Centre Amount
Information Technology 7000,009
Records Management 109,370
Strategic Plann 109,370
Development Assessment review 60,000
Administration Buildings 103,500
Bridges on Sealed Rural Roads - Local 1,321,497
Bridges on Sealed Rural Roads  Regional 103,500
Bridges on Unsealed Rural Roads - Local 253,400
Civic Centre 68,813
Drainage 911,250
Footpaths 127,500
Library Services 119,025
Parks and Gardens 2,501,717
Roads Rural Sealed Local 1,357,702
Roads Rural Sealed Regional 223,579
Roads Rural Unsealed Local 1,238,249
Roads Urban Sealed Local 765,967
Roads Urban Unsealed Local 19,806
Sports Grounds 273,389
Swimming Pools 596,988
Total 10,964,630

 

Read the Revenue Policy

Related information

 

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