Shellharbour council loses $5.5 million after funding formula reversal
NSW Grants Commission abandoned funding changes that would have boosted Shellharbour by $5.5 million after other councils objected.
A plan to reform how federal funding is split among NSW councils has been scrapped. Shellharbour City Council is now angry and poorer.
The NSW Local Government Grants Commission had proposed changes that would have increased Shellharbour's annual grant from $6.8 million to $12 million. Wollongong City Council, facing a $16 million cut, and Kiama Council, which would have lost more than half its $2.5 million allocation, successfully lobbied to keep the old system.
Shellharbour's CEO has written to the commission questioning whether political pressure influenced the reversal. He accused the commission of maintaining a system with acknowledged transparency and fairness problems.
The commission had flagged the old method as inequitable before backing away from reform.
- 5.5 million dollars
- Shellharbour missed increase
- 16 million dollars
- Wollongong annual cut avoided
- 6.8 million dollars
- Shellharbour current allocation
- 2.5 million dollars
- Kiama allocation at risk
Why it mattersCouncil funding directly shapes local infrastructure and services; reverting to an outdated system means some communities stay underfunded while others retain unfair advantages.
AustraliaShellharbour ratepayers lose out as their council receives less federal support than a reformed system would have provided; the decision signals that political weight matters more than expert reform.
✓ Claims checked against the source. checked 2 h ago
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