Last week Shellharbour Council adopted its 2015-16 budget under which average residential rates will jump by $115 as the council enters its third year of a special rate variation (SRV).

In 2013 the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal approved the council’s application to increase rates by 43 per cent over a four-year period.

Shellharbour ratepayers face another 10 per cent rate hike in the 2016-17 financial year.

Cr Marsh said as soon as the rate increase was approved, some rents were lifted dramatically.

‘‘One lady I spoke to had her rent raised by $80 a week, another’s went up $20 and they had their large bin replaced by a small one,’’ Cr Marsh said.

‘‘I have also heard of other cases of landlords replacing large bins with small ones without any notice.

‘‘The mayor and deputy mayor said the rate rise equated to the cost of a cup of coffee per week ... well they must be drinking Vietnamese coffee out of a 44-gallon drum.’’

Last week Shellharbour Council supported a mayoral minute from Marianne Saliba that proposed the council make a submission to the inquiry into the Fit for the Future reform agenda.

Cr Saliba pointed out that a Local Government NSW survey showed ‘‘cost shifting’’ from the NSW government was costing Shellharbour Council $6.3million a year, including $3million in waste levy charges.

Cr Saliba also raised concern that rate pegging was an ‘‘unfair burden’’ on councils.

The Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) is responsible for setting the rate peg for NSW councils each year. For councils without special approval, the rate peg to apply in the 2015-16 financial year was 2.4 per cent.

Cr Saliba said for councils to cover cost shifting, money had to come from somewhere.

However Cr Marsh said the idea of removing rate pegging ‘‘rings alarm bells with me’’.

’’For councils that have bad financial managers or councillors that are spendthrift, it is like giving them an open cheque book ... having no rate pegging would put families at a disadvantage.’’