By DANE LILLINGSTONE
THE Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) Annual Conference will be held from October 19-21 and Southern Downs Regional Council will be presenting a number of big local issues at the meeting.
The preliminary agenda for the conference has revealed that council will present a number of issues that have fronted newspapers in the Southern Downs over the past year.
Among the most pressing issues to be discussed will be how the mayor interacts with councillors during the yearly budget process, the first-past-the-post and preferential voting system for local elections, and a study on forced amalgamations.
Recent council meetings and councillor Jamie Mackenzie in particular have brought up concerns over the lack of time council was given to review the budget before it was voted on this year.
Council will present a recommendation that LGAQ push the State Government for a law to be introduced requiring the mayor to consult with councillors at least once before 31 March each year in the process of preparing the budget.
The LGAQ commented that the recommendation would ensure a longer consultation process on the budget.
“Local Government Act 2009, section 107A requires the annual budget to be adopted before 1 August for that financial year and the mayor to give a copy of the proposed budget to councillors at least two weeks for the meeting to consider adopting the budget,” LGAQ said.
Council will also put forward a motion in favour of scrapping preferential voting in place of first-past-the-post for both mayor and councillors in small local governments.
LGAQ confirmed that the State Government was aware of the issue but that it would not be reviewed until after the March 2016 elections.
A push for an independent study into forced amalgamations will also be discussed with SDRC to request an independent study into the impacts on stakeholders since the amalgamations in 2008.
However LGAQ have noted that any such study would cost in the range of $400,000 to $500,000 with the bill to be shared across the amalgamated councils.
In 2008 local governments were reduced from 156 to 73 with subsequent de-amalgamations taking that number to 77. LGAQ said the survey costs would be shared between both the 42 amalgamated councils and the councils that did not change which would cost an estimated $5000-$6000 for SDRC.
