Today Ballina Shire Council is meeting for the first time since the flood crisis which devastated the Northern Rivers. Ballina’s Mayor Sharon Cadwallader has flagged her intention to introduce a multi-faceted mayoral minute this morning.
Cr Cadwallader will move:
1. That Council acknowledges and thanks the many members of the Ballina Shire community, the Emergency Services Personnel, our local Clubs and community based organisations, as well as our Ballina Shire Council employees, for the support they have provided to date through this natural disaster and we look forward to everyone working together to ensure that all local government areas in our region recover as quickly as possible.
2. That Council write to the Federal Government seeking the inclusion of the Northern Rivers region of NSW (Tweed, Byron, Ballina, Clarence Valley, Lismore, Kyogle and Richmond Valley Councils) in the reinsurance pool established for Northern Australia. This submission is based on this region having similar impacts and frequency of events from flooding that resulted in the Federal Government creating the Northern Australia reinsurance pool.
3. That Council write to the State Government seeking the removal of the 12.5% funding contribution from councils to emergency services (i.e. Rural Fire Service, NSW Fire and Rescue, and SES) to better recognise that it is the State Government that has management and control of these services and to assist in removing the ambiguity that occasionally results in the provision of emergency services to disaster hit communities. This review of funding should also remove the liability on councils to provide headquarters and stations for the Rural Fire Service and SES when councils do not have control over the services provided from those facilities.
4. That Council write to the State Government seeking support for the State Government to undertake a land acquisition program of suitable properties in the Northern Rivers region, such as existing long term resident caravan parks, to provide additional and suitable social housing, to help address the significant homelessness and lack of affordable housing issues that existed prior and that have now been compounded by these floods.
5. That Council authorises the General Manager to waive any interest due on overdue rates and charges for property owners impacted by the recent flooding, as an interim level of assistance, to 30 June 2022.
6. That Council authorises the General Manager to provide refunds to ferry pass holders, on a pro-rata basis, for the period in which the ferry is not operating, due to damage incurred by the flood waters.
The Echo will be reporting on the results of the Mayoral Minute debate and the rest of today’s Ballina Shire Council meeting in detail over subsequent days.
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