2011 National Local Roads and Transport Congress

Everybody knows that Better Roads are Safer Roads and that is why that phrase has been chosen as the theme for the 2011 National Local Roads and Transport Congress. It is fundamental to the safety of our children, our friends and our families that the roads we drive on are well maintained, well managed and built to an appropriate standard. Every day councils around Australia are working hard to ensure that their local roads are the safest they can be.

Of course roadwork is expensive and despite councils dedicating a significant amount of their annual budgets to road works, they still rely heavily of Commonwealth funding from programs such as Roads to Recovery (R2R).

The current Roads to Recovery program is due to expire in 2013-14 and ALGA is spearheading a campaign to have the program extended and made permanent. The campaign is multifaceted involving a political and stakeholder engagement strategy and a public communications campaign.

Councils will all be asked to be part of the campaign which will be formally launched at this year's National Local Roads and Transport Congress, in Mt Gambier, South Australia, from 16-18 November this year.

This year's Roads Congress will include addresses from high profile political representatives, a panel session on roads safety, updates on key policy developments such as the COAG Road Reform Plan and National Heavy Vehicle Regulations as well as road safety work such as the Australian Road Research Board Local Road Safety Program and the Western Australian Local Government Association's Road Wise Campaign.

Registration is now open for the Roads Congress, with registrations received before 18 August accessing the 'early bird' rate of $845 and a saving of $115. To find out more about the Roads Congress or to register click here.

Best Practise Guide for dealing with NBN

Local governments around Australia are keen to understand the implications of the recent announcement of the signing of the Definitive Agreement between NBN Co and Telstra. While subject to a number of conditions, including Telstra's structural separation and approval by Telstra shareholders, the Agreement is another milestone in the roll-out of the National Broadband Network across Australia.

Last week, at the National General Assembly, ALGA and NBN Co launched the Best Practise Guide for Councils when initially dealing with NBN Co. The Guide is based on the experiences of councils in eight of the first release sites to trial the roll-out of the NBN. As well as providing a learning curve for the first release councils, the trial sites also offered learning opportunities for NBN Co. Prepared by Ovum Consulting, the Guide highlights the importance of preparation and engaging the local community.

For councils that have not yet dealt with NBN Co, the Guide provides insights into how NBN Co, elected members and council work groups can collaborate. The Guide also provides useful references to the NBN Co website on a range of relevant issues.

Click here for a copy of the Guide.

Stormwater harvesting and reuse projects grants

The Australian Government is seeking applications for stormwater harvesting and reuse projects that capture, treat and use stormwater to ease the pressure on drinking water supplies and deliver improved water quality to urban waterways.

The grants aim to provide support for urban stormwater harvesting and reuse projects in cities and towns that contribute to improving the security of water supplies; reduce the demand for potable water; and help to reduce the impact on urban runoff.

Australian Government funding is capped at 50 per cent of eligible capital costs, up to a maximum of $20 million per project. The minimum project size is $2 million (eligible for Australian Government funding of $1 million).

Funding and implementation guidelines, the application form and the standard funding agreement are available here.

Campaign for continued Roads to Recovery funding

Now that this year's very successful National General Assembly has concluded, it is appropriate to turn to an issue that is at the heart of much of what ALGA stands for - Roads to Recovery.

The Roads to Recovery program is the best example we have of the Federal Government directly funding local councils. Securing such funding by guaranteeing its legitimacy is what constitutional recognition is all about.

Our local roads - and bridges - are the most important infrastructure assets we have and transport is perhaps the largest single funding commitment of most councils. Therefore, investing in roads must be at the heart of any discussion about funding and infrastructure.

The vulnerability of our roads and bridges has been demonstrated in this year's summer flooding and their future vulnerability to the impacts of climate change are some of the main issues facing councils.

At the 2010 National Local Roads and Transport Congress in Bunbury, ALGA released a report it had commissioned - the Roorda Report - which demonstrates that the annual gap in local roads funding faced by councils over the next 10 years is in the order of $1.2 billion per year. This is a huge shortfall in funding that we all have to grapple with on a daily basis. In addition, the Roads to Recovery program is due to end in 2014.

Our case for an expanded and permanent Roads to Recovery program is very strong and I think it is time that we strengthened our campaign to push the case forward. However, to be successful we need the help and support of all councils.

If we are to win over the Australian Government in our campaign for increased and permanent Roads to Recovery funding to address the annual $1.2 billion gap, we need as many councils as possible to show their support. I intend to write to all councils in the coming weeks to seek your help and commitment to follow it up with direct representations to your local member, senior political figures in Canberra and your local media on the value to communities of Roads to Recovery funding.

The next time we meet will be at ALGA's 2011 National Local Roads and Transport Congress in Mount Gambier (16-18th November). I believe we should aim to have resolutions of support from all councils by that time.

We will be launching a new campaign to continue and expand the Roads to Recovery program in Mount Gambier in the lead up to the next federal election. We need as many councils as possible to attend in Mount Gambier for the launch of the campaign.

A unified front is vital if we are going to provide the Federal Government with a convincing argument about the importance of an expanded and permanent Roads to Recovery program.

Mayor Genia McCaffery
ALGA President

Briefs

More support for constitutional recognition

Since the National General Assembly, ALGA has received 334 resolutions from local councils in support of constitutional recognition of local government. This equates to 60% of all councils across Australia. Councils which have recently informed ALGA that they have passed resolutions include:

Tax system review

The Australian Centre of Excellence for Local Government (ACELG) has just published a new Working Paper called The Henry Review of Australia's Future Tax System: The Implications for Local Government.

Prepared by John Passant and John McLaren of the University of Canberra, the research closely examines a range of issues canvassed by the Australia's Future Tax System Review of 2010 (the 'Henry Review') that relate to local government, and concludes that it would be unwise for local government to plan for nothing more than minimal change.

The release of the paper is timely as there will be opportunities for local government in light of the federal government's Tax Forum planned for October 2011.

The paper is available from the ACELG website

Australian property market to avoid crash: BIS Shrapnel

A new report from BIS Shrapnel has found that Australian property prices are expected to remain steady in 2011 and grow moderately during the next two years.

The report pins Sydney, Perth and Brisbane as the cities likely to record the fastest residential property growth in the next three years.

The BIS Residential Property Prospects to 2011-2014 report may relieve fears the current correction will lead to a crash, describing current downward pressure as temporary and tipping long-term growth.

Click here to access the BIS Residential Property Prospects, 2011-2014.

COAG Road Reform Plan Seeks Comments

The COAG Road Reform Plan (CRRP) has released the Preliminary Findings Consultation Report on heavy vehicle pricing and funding arrangements for your consideration.

This consultation paper integrates pricing and funding in its analysis and sets out preliminary views of the findings as a basis for recommendations to be made to COAG by December 2011.

CRRP is seeking feedback from industry and other stakeholders on the preliminary findings of the feasibility study before finalising recommendations to COAG.

To assist in hearing feedback on these preliminary findings, CRRP is conducting eleven public forums nation-wide in July 2011. A list of these and a simple registration process can be found on the CRRP website.

The Housing We'd Choose report launched

The Grattan Institute has this week launched The Housing We'd Choose report, which examines the housing preferences of more than 700 Sydney and Melbourne residents in a detailed survey.

It found that once people took into account real-world factors such as current housing costs and their income, they chose a far wider range of housing types than the stereotype of all Australians wanting a detached home on a large block would suggest.

According to the Institute's Jane-France Kelly, building enough of the right housing is not only vital to meet the range of choices individuals would like to make, but also for the way in which cities will grow.

Click here for the full report.

Developing innovative accommodation solutions for people with disability

People with disability and their families are one step closer to seeing 150 new supported accommodation places rolled out across the country.

The draft guidelines for the new $60 million Supported Accommodation Innovation Fund have been released for public comment with organisations expected to be able to apply in the coming months.

Projects funded under SAIF may include renovations to existing homes, the pooling of resources to build new accommodation services close to community and health services and the modification of existing accommodation in the community.

The draft guidelines, as well as details about how to make a submission, are available here.

The submission period closes 25 July 2011.

South Australians continue to migrate to eastern states

Victoria, Queensland and New South Wales were the top three interstate migration destinations for South Australians, according to the June edition of SA Stats (cat. no. 1345.4) released this week by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

More residents are moving from South Australia interstate than are arriving, with a net loss of 3000 people between June 2009 and June 2010. The highest category of people leaving South Australia was in the 25-29 year age group, with a net loss of 700, followed by the 20-24 year age group with a net loss of 500.

South Australia was one of four states and territories to experience net interstate loss in 2009-10, along with New South Wales, Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory. Queensland recorded the highest net interstate migration gain in 2009-10 with an extra 9,600 people calling Queensland home.

Initiative to build community resilience against natural disasters

The Australian Emergency Management Institute has developed a new course to introduce leaders, employees and elected officials in local government to issues and experiences faced by local governments when dealing with emergency management.

Managing emergencies and natural disasters has always been part of the job description for local government. The enormous task of helping communities bounce back from natural disasters and mitigate the risks of future emergencies was highlighted recently by flooding events over the summer, which affected up to 100 councils.

"Introduction to Emergency Management for Local Government" is a three day course which is recommended for people involved in local government roles related to recovery coordination; fire control; risk and emergency management; infection control; engineering; and community health.

Details of the course are available here.

Community has its say

South-East Queensland Mayors are calling on local residents to share their views on the future of their community through an online forum.

The Council of Mayors (SEQ) is asking community members for their thoughts on housing options and affordability in south-east Queensland as part of the Liveable Compact Cities Project (LCCP).

Mayor of the Scenic Rim and Chairman of the Regional Plan and Growth Management Committee, John Brent said the online forum provided an opportunity for people across the region to shape future policy on housing options and affordability.

The online forum can be found here.