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Community Update - Local Government Reforms
Following the Minister for Local Government’s announcement in February this year of a package of wide-ranging local government reform strategies, the Shire of Morawa has received an external consultant’s report on a possible structural alignment between the Shires of Morawa, Perenjori, Mingenew and Three Springs.
The report has investigated four possible alignment options for the four Shires;
(1) Do nothing
(2) Implement a resource sharing model
(3) Endure forced amalgamation, or
(4) Implement voluntary sustainable amalgamation model
The report recommends the voluntary sustainable amalgamation model as the ‘best fit’ for the four Shires.
Importantly, the voluntary sustainable amalgamation model delivers a balance between social sustainability and economic benefit.
Essential elements include;
- Retention of ‘shop fronts’ for all Shires (offices and workshops / depots)
- Existing Shire services such as a library and bill payment, licensing and general enquiries capacities are retained as part of a continued customer service support ethos
- Each Shire will be represented on the new Council. Two Councillors from each existing Shire will make up a Council body of eight. Present Shires will become four wards of the new Council, under existing boundaries.
- Senior executive structural change; the new Council will exist with one Chief Executive Officer and three senior line managers in support, with the aim of having one of the four senior officers located in each of the four towns.
The State Government has recently increased the ante by stating that future grant funding will only be supplied to those Local Governments that embrace structural reform through an amalgamation process.
The Shire of Morawa is heavily reliant on grant funding, without which it is unable to operate.
The Shire of Morawa will be formally considering the report and its recommendations to enable a final position to be adopted, with advice provided to the Minister for Local Government prior to the deadline for submissions on Wednesday, 30 September 2009.
An open invitation is extended to anyone within the Morawa community to discuss this matter with Shire Councillors and the Chief Executive Officer, or seek further information or clarification.
Background
The reform strategies are based on voluntary amalgamations of the 139 local governments in Western Australia, the reduction of elected members and the formation of appropriate regional groupings of local governments.
The strategies are aimed at achieving greater capacity for local governments to better plan, manage and deliver services to their communities with a focus on social, environmental and economic sustainability.
The process offers an opportunity for local communities, such as the Shire of Morawa, to control the process, in order to deliver preferable outcomes.
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