Council
6 October, 2026
Yass Valley council facing some tough decisions
Yass Valley Shire Council is facing some tough decisions as it struggles to restore financial sustainability.
Yass Valley Shire Council is facing some tough decisions as it struggles to restore financial sustainability.
Council has called an extraordinary meeting for Wednesday, October 14, to consider its options.
Those options may include changes to service levels and an application to the Independent Pricing and Administrative Tribunal (IPART) for a Special Rate Variation (SRV).
Council gave a commitment to the community in November 2025 to explore all options for achieving long-term financial sustainability before making any decision on an SRV.
Over the past 12 months, it has undertaken a comprehensive review of its revenue, expenditure, cash position, service delivery, growth forecasts, property portfolio and infrastructure condition.
A spokesperson said this work had confirmed that council faces a “significant long-term financial challenge requiring a timely and sustainable response”.
Council has engaged Australian Economic Consultants (AEC) to undertake a financial sustainability review so it can better understand its current financial position, the pressures it faces and the options available to address them.
AEC will be presenting a range of scenarios to Yass Valley councillors at a forum being held on Wednesday, October 7 in the Council Chambers.
The forum will commence at 4pm and will be open to the public.
Council says it is “committed to transparency and to keeping the community informed and engaged throughout the financial sustainability journey”.
The business paper for the October 14 extraordinary meeting will be published this Thursday, October 8.
Members of the public will have an opportunity to speak on the agenda item during the open forum, which will be held immediately before the meeting commences at 4pm.
Residents have taken to social media to express their concern over the possibility of another SRV given the current cost-of-living crisis.
It would be council’s second SRV application in the space of 10 years.
“Back in 2016 the SRV was supposed to fix all of council’s financial woes but here we are again,” one resident said.
The October 7 financial sustainability forum and October 14 extraordinary meeting will both be livestreamed on council’s YouTube channel for those people who can’t attend in person.
--------------
Subscribe to The Southern Wire Newsletter for free at the link below.
https://subscribe-forms.beehiiv.com/1986abc6-c89e-4781-9db2-cf35c9dd71e4
If you value independent local journalism across the Highlands, Tablelands and Wollondilly, please click the link below to support us to ensure we remain paywall free.
Read More: Yass, Southern Tablelands