Wellington City Council
Rates and revenue
The work of local government is funded mainly by property taxes in the local area, known as rates. This makes up around 60% of council expenditure, with the rest coming from user charges, investment income, regulatory fees and roading subsidies. Councils can also borrow money to spread the cost of large investments such as infrastructure over a longer period of time.
Rates and revenue
The work of local government is funded mainly by property taxes in the local area, known as rates. This makes up around 60% of council expenditure, with the rest coming from user charges, investment income, regulatory fees and roading subsidies. Councils can also borrow money to spread the cost of large investments such as infrastructure over a longer period of time.
Ensure smart spending so every dollar goes towards sustainable, people-centred outcomes.
Improve management of rates by focusing on long-term investment, not short-term deferrals.
Prioritise essentials such as pipes, water, transport, housing and community resilience first.
Consider public and private partnerships as a possible management approach in all areas described.
Consider selling all playgrounds to a child services supplier as an example.
Switch to land value based rates to more fairly charge owners the actual cost of infrastructure provision to each section.
Investigate options to tax or rate unearned benefits captured by land bankers through rezoning using land value uplift charges.
Grow Wellington's population to reduce per person rates; at Hamilton's growth rate, rates would be approximately $1,500 per household per year lower.
Borrow responsibly to fund the work required to maintain and replace critical infrastructure.
Investigate options to close the insurance gap, including growing the disaster resilience fund, without selling strategic assets.
Replace current rating system with one based on land-value to encourage more development of good-quality affordable homes.
Keep rates low by cutting wasteful projects and focusing on essential services ratepayers rely on.
Review underused council assets and reinvest funds into infrastructure such as roads and water.
Scrutinise every dollar of spending to guarantee maximum value for ratepayers.
Explore the pros and cons of possible amalgamation of WCC, PCC, UHCC, HCC and GWRC.
Recognise that the current level of rates increases and council debt is unsustainable and pledge to reduce this trend.
Review the proposal that Wellington switches to land-based valuation to assess its support for development versus its impact on ratepayers.
Investigate new tools to incentivise growth in good locations such as a new development levy regime or a land value rating system.
Maintain the council's share within Wellington International Airport noting its status as a natural monopoly and money earner for Wellington City Council.
Reassess how council uses debt limits to ensure asset and investment decisions are distributed fairly, accounting for the new water entity.
Ensure smart spending so every dollar goes towards sustainable, people-centred outcomes.
Improve management of rates by focusing on long-term investment, not short-term deferrals.
Prioritise essentials such as pipes, water, transport, housing and community resilience first.
Consider public and private partnerships as a possible management approach in all areas described.
Consider selling all playgrounds to a child services supplier as an example.
Switch to land value based rates to more fairly charge owners the actual cost of infrastructure provision to each section.
Investigate options to tax or rate unearned benefits captured by land bankers through rezoning using land value uplift charges.
Grow Wellington's population to reduce per person rates; at Hamilton's growth rate, rates would be approximately $1,500 per household per year lower.
Borrow responsibly to fund the work required to maintain and replace critical infrastructure.
Investigate options to close the insurance gap, including growing the disaster resilience fund, without selling strategic assets.
Replace current rating system with one based on land-value to encourage more development of good-quality affordable homes.
Keep rates low by cutting wasteful projects and focusing on essential services ratepayers rely on.
Review underused council assets and reinvest funds into infrastructure such as roads and water.
Scrutinise every dollar of spending to guarantee maximum value for ratepayers.
Explore the pros and cons of possible amalgamation of WCC, PCC, UHCC, HCC and GWRC.
Recognise that the current level of rates increases and council debt is unsustainable and pledge to reduce this trend.
Review the proposal that Wellington switches to land-based valuation to assess its support for development versus its impact on ratepayers.
Investigate new tools to incentivise growth in good locations such as a new development levy regime or a land value rating system.
Maintain the council's share within Wellington International Airport noting its status as a natural monopoly and money earner for Wellington City Council.
Reassess how council uses debt limits to ensure asset and investment decisions are distributed fairly, accounting for the new water entity.
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