The Government's first quarterly payment under the 2018–19 Financial Assistance Grant program has been delivered to the states and territories for distribution to local councils across the country.
Minister for Regional Development, Territories and Local Government Dr John McVeigh said the $307 million allocated this quarter will be spent in local priority areas including health, recreation, environment, employment and road projects.
“These grants are untied which means councils across Australia can spend their funding based on their own priorities and deliver the infrastructure and services their communities need,” Dr McVeigh said.
“In this financial year, the Government will provide more than $2.4 billion in untied funds to 546 local councils under the Financial Assistance Grant program.”
Details of the allocations to councils under the Financial Assistance Grant program are available online at: regional.gov.au/local/assistance/index.aspx
Ahead of the next federal election, ALGA will be calling for the next federal government to restore Financial Assistance Grants to at least 1% of Commonwealth taxation revenue, levels that were last seen in 1996.
For our best chance to get this across the line, it is imperative to demonstrate the sector’s support for our call to urgently repair this important funding assistance to local government.
Mayors and councillors have been asked to confirm their support by completing this form, which will take 5 minutes or less: http://bit.ly/SupportALGAAdvocacy.
For more information about why ALGA is seeking your council’s support, please read this letter from ALGA President, Mayor David O’Loughlin, and see this infographic.