Sent: Thursday, February 8, 2024 3:54 PM
Subject: LGOIMA request – 2024 Ratepayers Report
I refer to your Official Information request of 19 December 2023 and provide the following responses for the 2022/23 financial year:
1. Average residential rates
- The average residential costs of rates and other Council charges, where average residential costs = (X + Y) / Z. Please ensure that the figures used (X, Y, and Z) are disclosed in the response, where:
- X is the total of all rates (general and targeted) charged by the Council to residential rating units;
- Y is the total amount of user charges or levies applicable to residential rating units (for example charges relating to metered water, infrastructure contributions, refuse collection, fire protection etc.); and
- Z is the number of residential rating units (however defined by the Council) within the Council’s district or city. If the Council does not have a classification for residential, please use the closest definition (such as urban).
- Please do not include Council charges that are not part of the rates demand (for example retail sales of Council rubbish bags).
- If possible, the median residential rates payment by residential units.
Please include all residential rates in this calculation, regardless of location, as we are aiming to compare residential rating units (i.e. non-income producing) to non-residential (commercial/rural, income-producing). 2022/23
X = $58,431,301
Y – 0
Z = 20,830Therefore (58,431,301 + 0) / 20,830 = average residential rates $2,805
2. Average non-residential rates
- The average non-residential costs of rates and other Council charges, where average non-residential costs = (X + Y) / Z. Please ensure that the figures used (X, Y, and Z) are disclosed in the response, where:
- X is the total of all rates (general and targeted) charged by the Council to rating units except those defined as residential*;
- Y is the total amount of user charges or levies applicable to rating units except those defined as residential* (for example, charges related to metered water, infrastructure contributions, refuse collection, fire protection etc); and
- Z is the number of rating units except those defined as residential* (however defined by the Council) within the Council’s district or city. If the Council does not have a classification for non-residential, please use the closest definition (such as commercial).
- Please do not include Council charges that are not part of the rates demand (for example, retail sales of Council rubbish bags).
- If possible, the median non-residential rates payment for the council.
*Please ensure that this definition matches that used to calculate average residential rates so that the respective X values of both requests add up to total rates income for the 2022/2023 Financial Year. 2022/23X = $51,149,699Y – 0Z = 8,328Therefore (51,149,699 + 0) / 8,328 = average non-residential rates $6,142
3. Personnel
- The total number of staff dismissed due to poor performance.
0 - If applicable, the FTE number of staff employed by council-controlled organisations.
180.11 - If applicable, the total FTE number of staff employed by the council, excluding council-controlled organisations.
348.18 - The total number of staff (non-FTE, including casual staff)
406 - The total number of staff including those employed by council-controlled organisations receiving remuneration in excess of $100,000.
132 - The total number of staff including those employed by council-controlled organisations receiving remuneration in excess of $200,000.
14
3.1. Management
- The FTE number of managers employed.
- The Taxpayer’s Union defines a manager as: any staff member who is responsible for a team of staff, or who has an employee/employees reporting to them and organises them to achieve their department’s or organisation’s specified goal. The Chief Executive team is included in this definition.
26 FTEs
- The ratio of management to total staff numbers.
8.07% - The average and median salary of a manager.
Average - $202,116Median - $189,839
Note: Managers have been identified as tiers 1-3 and who have staff reporting to them.
3.2. Communications
- The FTE number of communications & marketing staff employed.
10.55 FTEs - The average and median salary of communications & marketing staff.
Average - $107,638Median - $105,000
3.3. Consultants & contractors
- Total expenditure on consultants and contractors. Please ensure that this includes CAPEX and OPEX spending.
$36,481,645 - Total number of consultants and contractors paid. Please note that this refers to companies/entities, rather than total employees.
3,955
Core services
- The FTE number of staff employed to work on the delivery and/or maintenance of local infrastructure.
- The Taxpayer’s Union defines Infrastructure FTE as hours worked by staff who are directly responsible for maintaining council assets and services, including physical involvement in environmental services, stormwater, roading, water supply, wastewater, and solid waste management.
50.75 FTEs
- The FTE number of staff employed to provide regulatory functions.
- The Taxpayer’s Union defines Regulatory FTE as hours worked by staff who are directly responsible for upkeeping and enforcing council functions and income, including parking, democracy services, rates collection, building and planning consents, and health licensing.
65.92 FTEs
- The FTE number of staff employed in customer-facing roles.
- The Taxpayer’s Union defines Customer Service FTE as hours worked by staff who are directly responsible for communicating and providing aid for members of the public, such as at libraries, pools, art galleries, venues and events and customer services, whether in person or by phone.
43.38 FTEs
4. Audit
and Risk Oversight
- How many members are on the Council’s Audit and Risk
Committee (or equivalent)?
8 - Of those members, how many are elected and how many are
independent of the council?
2 independent, 6 appointed
by Council
- Is the Chair of the Committee an independent member?
Yes - Does the Council have a lawyer (with a current
practising certificate) on the Committee?
No - Does the Council have an accountant (with a current
practising certificate or a full member of the Chartered Accountants
Australia and New Zealand) on the Committee?
Yes - Does the Council have a code of conduct requiring
political neutrality from Council staff?
Yes
5. Payments to third parties
- The total payments made by the Council (or any council-controlled organisation) to any Chamber of Commerce, including GST.
$33,461 (including Rotorua Lakes Council and three CCOs – Infracore Ltd, Rotorua Regional Airport Ltd, Rotorua Economic Development Ltd) - The total payments made by the Council (or any council-controlled organisation) to Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ), including GST.
$109,052 (Rotorua Lakes Council only – not applicable for CCOs) - The total payments made by the Council (or any council-controlled organisation) to the New Zealand Society of Local Government Managers (SOLGM), including GST.
$34,560 (Rotorua Lakes Council only – not applicable for CCOs)
6. Debt
- Net debt (total for the council) as a percent of rates income
290% - The dollar amount of debt per rating unit
$11,760 - The dollar amount of interest paid per rating unit
$385