Wollongong City Council is preparing to hand back $4.17 million it is no longer entitled to, with more than $2.2 million to be refunded directly to ratepayers.
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No, that’s not a misprint. And you don’t need new glasses. Council will be giving money to you. We’ll go through it again to be sure: Wollongong City Council is preparing to hand back $4.17 million it is no longer entitled to, with more than $2.2 million to be refunded directly to ratepayers.
The money was raised from ratepayers and other non-resident users of the Whytes Gully tip under the carbon tax regime, which has since been repealed by the Federal Government.
Because council had charged residents and tip users upfront for the “anticipated future carbon tax liability”, it has found itself with millions of dollars it should not own.
In particular, council charged its citizens for “anticipated costs” including the forecast rise in carbon pricing over the many years the waste would take to decay.
Since the carbon tax was repealed, there are no longer “future charges” to anticipate – but council has already collected the money.
That’s an extra $4.17 million collected for fees which will not eventuate.
A report to be voted on at Monday night’s council meeting recommends handing the $2,276,540 back to ratepayers via the 2016-17 rate notices.
The remaining $1,848,444 would be used for carbon abatement projects, or for buying “high-quality” carbon credits, and voluntarily transferring them to the Commonwealth.
Council will keep about $50,000 to cover the cost of administering and auditing the refunds.
Wollongong is not the only body handing back these fees – there were 371 liable entities Australia-wide required to pay carbon tax on greenhouse gas emissions from landfill.
The refunds are being administered under the voluntary waste industry protocol.
Of the $1.8 million that did not come from ratepayers, the proposal for Monday’s meeting insists that any projects it may fund must be undertaken for emissions reduction purposes, and all must be publicly disclosed.
The projects must not be “business-as-usual” exercises. They could include landfill gas capture, waste diversion, energy efficiency or renewable energy.
All future carbon charges would have to be fully acquitted by the end of 2016.