The proposed rates increase is contained in the Taranaki Regional Council draft long term plan.
Taranaki Regional Council (TRC) is proposing an overall rates increase of 16.3 per cent for 2024/2025, higher than in previous years.
TRC chairwoman Charlotte Littlewood says TRC staff and councillors have worked hard to keep the increase as low as possible, as they were very aware of the pressures many in the community were facing.
The council’s rates remain among the lowest in New Zealand, she says.
“However with growing costs and demands, the reality is our budgets must rise if we are to deliver on our plan for the future.”
The proposed rates increase is contained in the draft TRC Long Term Plan (LTP) 2024-34, and TRC is inviting public feedback on the plan in early March.
The LTP shapes the council’s strategic direction and funding for the next 10 years, containing a detailed plan for the first three years and an outline for the following seven years.
Charlotte says the LTP will enable the council to respond to the gathering pace of regulatory reform and funding changes while ensuring work continues on improving lifestyles, supporting livelihoods and taking the region forward.
Decisions have to be made on six areas which are crucial to many of the work programmes the council delivers including how it continues to care for freshwater, protect biodiversity, control predators, adapt to climate change and manage resources.
“The six key focus areas cover many parts of our core work. Public feedback will help determine what we prioritise and where the funding goes to ensure we keep delivering services essential to the wellbeing and future of our communities. We want as many people as possible to get involved with our community conversation and share their views on the big decisions we have to make.”
The key focus areas are improving resource management, delivering on freshwater, adapting to and mitigating climate change, TRC’s approach to possum control, the future of Towards Predator-Free Taranaki and protecting indigenous biodiversity.
“These areas affect everyone’s day-to-day lives and livelihoods so we’ve got to get our approach right. These are long-term issues and we need long-term planning,” says Charlotte.
“Improving resource management is about how we can plan for the future of Taranaki. Given that central government regulations can be uncertain and change after an election, we think a coherent and consistent approach to planning is vital for the region and will help protect our natural resources and environment.”
Climate change is another key topic, as is freshwater, she says.
“We also need to think about how we respond to climate change. It’s an existential threat to our environment and we need to take action sooner rather than when it might be too late. The same goes for how we care for freshwater. Although the rules are uncertain, we need a plan to protect this precious resource in the short and longer term.”
Future funding uncertainty for some of the council’s programmes and initiatives raised questions, she said.
“We’ve seen so much improvement in how we’re protecting biodiversity and dealing with predators in recent years. The question now is how we build on this, especially when there is no guarantee or continued external funding for some of our programmes.”
A consultation document explains the options and financial implications across the subjects, she said, to enable people to give informed feedback.
“We’ve summarised things in a consultation document which sets out all the options including the key question of the impact on costs. We’re urging people to read this and we’re looking forward to hearing their views.”
Consultation on the draft 2024/2034 Long-Term Plan will run from March 10 to April 12. Information will be available on the TRC website: trc.govt.nz. Submitters to the LTP will have the option to share their thoughts in person as well, at LTP hearings scheduled for early May this year. The finalised LTP will become active on July 1.