L / 1 009e I/ / t-I!
Federal Government assistance to local bodies throughout
Australia will exceed $ 300 million this financial year.
This follows implementation of the Government's commitment
to increase the allocation of personal income tax collections
to local Government to 2 per cent.
Local authorities have received $ 300.79 million compared
with $ 221.74 million last financial year a massive
35.65 per cent increase in general revenue assistance.
Overall, local Government will have received over $ 1,000 million
in untied grants in the five years of the tax sharing
arrangements under this Government.
Details of Government assistance to local Government were
contained in a report of the-distribution of Commonwealth
funds by the States Grants Commission for the 1980-81 financial
year tabled by the Prime Minister in Parliament today.
The Government has accepted the recommendations made by
the States Grants Commission and the amounts to be paid to
each State in 1980-81, together with corresponding amounts
for 1979-80 are:
Local Government Tax Sharing Entitlements 1979/ 80 1980/ 81
New South Wales 80.93 109.78
Victoria 56.44 76.55
Queens land 37.39 50.71
South Australia 19.07 25.87
Western Australia 20.82 28.24
Tasmania 7.09 9.62
Total ( rounded) 221.74 300.79
Funds provided to the States under these arrangements are
allocated to individual local Government authorities by
the States. / 2
I V" Under Federal Government guidelines, at least 30 per cent of
the funds must be distributed to Councils on a per capita
basis which may be weighted for area or population density.
The balance is allocated on a needs basis which is subject to
prior inquiry and report by the individual State Grants
Commissions. General revenue assistance to local Government has increased
from $ 80 million under the previous Labor Government to
$ 140 million in 1976-77, $ 165 million in 1977-78, $ 179.4 million
in 1978-79, $ 221.74 million in 1979-80 and $ 300.79 million
in 1980-81.
In addition to money provided to the States the Federal
Government has made provision for an timount of $ 1.440 million
to be made available in 1980-81 to the Northern Territory
Government for distribution to the local Government authorities
in the Territory. This compares with $ 1.062 million in
1979-80.
Clearly, the Federal Government tax sharing arrangements have
provided a most substantial and rapidly growing source of funds
for local Government bodies throughout the country.
But most importantly, the funds are * Provided without strings.
They have been welcomed by local Governments throughout
Australia because they provide them with the freedom and
the responsibility to determine their own priorities.
The Federal Government believes that local authorities not
the Government in* Canberra are best suited to decide how
money is spent in local areas. 000-
1.