The documents are open for feedback until mid-May. Image: Google Earth.
Increased sewerage costs, project consolidation and a delayed FOGO rollout are among the priorities proposed for part of the state’s south.
At a recent meeting, Snowy Monaro Regional Council (SMRC) voted to place major planning and operational documents on public exhibition.
These documents, known together as the Integrated Planning and Reporting (IPR) Framework, include information about council’s planned project delivery, revenue policy and fees between 2026 and 2036.
Council papers state the 2025-29 Delivery Program is being reviewed, with these proposed changes to be exhibited alongside the draft 2026-2027 Operational Plan.
The documents outline various changes to the council project delivery, spanning minor changes to delays.
“While project plans are developed, all projects can be subject to variation due to many factors, often outside the control of council,” council meeting papers state.
“One of those factors is the timeframe for delivery, with several of council’s projects currently at the delivery phase seeking variation to extend the timeframe for delivery.”
Among those seeing delays are Cooma and Bombala pool upgrades, which are now slated for delivery in 2026/27.
Expansion of Cooma’s Lawn Cemetery is also set to take longer than initially planned, meaning stage three will also be finished in 2026/27.
There are also several changes to plans around the Monaro’s waste management infrastructure.
A compost facility for Cooma has been deferred to 2027/28 (depending on the outcome of a feasibility review), while upgrades to Cooma’s landfill have been declared an unresourced project.
A FOGO service rollout has also been deferred to 2027/28, with its future depending on a feasibility study.
SMRC also plans to develop a compliance register, which is expected to be delivered between 2026 and 2028.
Plans for a footpath along Barry Way have also been added to the council’s workload.
The draft Long Term Financial Plan 2026-2036 notes that SMRC has largely been relying on “highly variable” grant funding.
“Growth in rating revenue will be pursued and supported to reduce reliance on external grant funding as a source of revenue and to facilitate the spread of the rating burden over a larger ratepayers base,” the document states.
Other income sources are expected to increase by 3.5 per cent each year.
The change comes as the council seeks to reach its goal of having $5 million in unrestricted funds by June 2028.
It predicts increases to water charges of 7 to 8.5 per cent and sewer charges of 5 to 8 per cent over the next 10 years.
The document states that increases to SMRC’s other waste collection services might be needed to cover things such as landfill remediation.
Council papers also note it is proposed that commercial waste fees be counted as annual fees and will be included on rates notices.
“This is a much more efficient approach, rather than manual invoicing, and is more equitable for all commercial customers.”
Councillor Williamson spoke against placing the documents on public exhibition, saying they risked increasing “harm” to the residents.
He called for SMRC to “substantially curtail” its spending and delay “a lot” of its planned projects, to create a “more prudent plan and budget”.
“Our community’s been suffering from a long-term cost-of-living crisis … Now is not the right time to be slugging the ratepayer more.”
Councillor Narelle Davis called for her fellow councillors to let the community have their say.
“We cannot deny this council a budget that needs to be prepared, consulted and endorsed before 30 June. … He is two months too early [to raise issues with the proposed budget].”
She described the council as being between “a rock and a hard place”, pointing to urgent upgrades needed to the area’s wastewater and water infrastructure and the council’s need to continue delivering essential services.
“Those essential services cost money. … We have no choice [but] to provide those services, and we need to be able to fund them.”
Ultimately, councillor Williamson was the only councillor to vote against releasing the IPR documents for feedback.
The documents are open for feedback through the Your Say Snowy Monaro platform until 4 pm on 18 May.
