North Wagga Wagga flood mitigation works funding: Statement from Council General Manager Peter Thompson

Wagga Wagga City Council General Manager Peter Thompson has today responded to a recent claim directed at Council around funding for flood mitigation in North Wagga Wagga.

Mr Thompson has issued the following statement:

Council has recently been accused of receiving funding from the NSW State Government for North Wagga Wagga flood mitigation and that Council has diverted this funding to “other purposes”.

This accusation is completely denied by Council. It simply is not true in any way.

In fact, the truth of the matter is quite the opposite. Council has not received any funding from the NSW Government for new flood mitigation works in North Wagga. It is hoped such funds will be provided in the future when the works themselves are finalised.

Council is, however, already collecting funds from Wagga Wagga ratepayers through a special rate variation which has been in place since 1 July 2016. As of the 30 June 2019 a total of $4,466,687.45 has been collected.

This special rate variation was for both works to protect the City and North Wagga Wagga with a total of $7,800,000 budgeted to be collected over the five years (ending 30 June 2021).

Council’s construction for the City Levee is within the budgets initially set in May 2017.

Council has not received NSW government funding for North Wagga Wagga flood works and diverted it elsewhere. To the contrary, Council is collecting a fund from Wagga ratepayers which is accumulating in a reserve for application to North Wagga flood mitigation works.