News
8 June, 2026
Petition calls on State Government to intervene
The Friends of Wingecarribee have launched a petition calling for the State Government to intervene as concerns continue to grow over Wingecarribee Shire Council’s financial woes.
The Friends of Wingecarribee have launched a petition calling for the State Government to intervene as concerns continue to grow over Wingecarribee Shire Council’s financial woes.
The petition is being widely distributed and is expected to be presented to the NSW Legislative Assembly next month.
It highlights council’s “unsatisfactory performance” in terms of financial management and its refusal to consider an independent financial committee.
The petition also lists concerns over councillors “consistently voting in a bloc of seven against two” and the performance of council’s general manager Lisa Miscamble.
It calls on the Legislative Assembly to take a number of steps to ensure council “dramatically improves its performance and responsibilities to the ratepayers to avoid further financial loss”.
Those steps include commissioning an independent financial committee to overview and direct all council expenses and financial management, to develop budgets “from actual current expenses” and to ensure transparency on procurement and commercial contracts.
It also calls for all new councillors to have accredited governance training through an independent, State Government-approved course and for the general manager’s performance and contract to be reviewed.
The petition was launched at Tuesday night’s meeting of the Southern Highlands Community Forum and will be available for signing until the end of the month.
Chair of the Friends of Wingecarribee, Pamela Spruce, said the petition was developed after the Forum’s May meeting at which councillors Sara Moylan and Rachel Russell both spoke about the significant increase in rates and charges being proposed by council and its consistent refusal to establish a finance committee.
As part of its Long Term Financial Plan, council is proposing to seek a Special Rates Variation and increase rates by 11.9 per cent in 2027/28, another 11.9 per cent in 2028/29 and another 7.35 per cent in 2029/30.
It says the additional revenue will enable council to plan for additional asset renewals as well as additional maintenance to roads and buildings.
Council is also planning to increase its water access by 15 per cent each year for the next three years and its water consumption charges by 26 per cent each year for the next three years.
Sewerage access, sewerage volumetric and trade waste charges all increase by 8.5 per cent each year for the next three years.
The water and sewerage charges do not require the approval of the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal and could come into effect from July 1 if approved at the next council meeting.
Mrs Spruce said the Friends of Wingecarribee was a not-for-profit, apolitical association working for the betterment of the Wingecarribee.
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