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April Meeting Wrap 

Publish Date: 15 April 2019 

Council’s April Ordinary Meeting was highlighted by the making of the Buloke Community Local Law 2019, the inviting of submissions to the draft Revenue and Rating Strategy and Policy and the adoption of Council’s Customer Service Charter.

Council has made its Community Local Law 2019 after extensive consultation with the community and other agencies such as Victoria Police, VicRoads and the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning.

The Local Law focusses on community amenity and safety and embrace best practise of local law making by employing the principles of accessibility, accountability, compliance, consistency, efficiency, enforceability, education, necessity and transparency.

Council has placed its draft Revenue and Rating Strategy, and aligned draft Rating Policy on exhibition, inviting submissions from the community on the proposals contained in the two documents.

The purpose of the Revenue and Rating Strategy, and the Rating Policy is to set out the system of rates and charges adopted by Council for the purposes of distributing the rates burden across the municipality on a fair and equitable basis. 

The development of the Revenue and Rating Strategy included consultation with a Council-appointed Reference Group and the wider Buloke community.

Council will issue a notice of refusal to grant a planning permit for an illuminated sign proposed for Charlton. Council received an application for a 12.6 x 3.35 metre illuminated sign at the Charlton Roadhouse site.

Two objections were received and Council assessed the application against local and state provisions in the Planning Scheme and decided the sign did not fit the character of the area, which is on the entrance into Charlton.

Council is participating in a grouping of Councils that have made an application for funding under the Victorian Government Rural Councils Transformation Program.

The Victorian Government through the program has committed $20 million of funding in the 2018-19 financial year for the implementation of large-scale transformation projects at a regional level. The program aims to improve the sustainability of rural and regional Councils who would otherwise not be able to invest in large-scale transformative projects.

Buloke will partner with other eight other Councils on the project which is being led by Horsham Rural City Council to seek funding to transition to unified Information Technology solutions. If successful, beginning with finance software, it is proposed that the Councils would share resources where there are current skill gaps. This would increase efficiencies through business intelligence and automation as well as providing a better customer experience through interface and streamlined access.

The Buloke Shire Council Customer Service Charter has been adopted. The Charter is an action of the Buloke Shire Council Customer Service Strategy, adopted by Council in September of 2018, which set out the organisation’s commitment to customer service excellence, both internally and externally.

The Charter outlines Council’s commitment to its customers and builds on the ‘all of organisation’ approach to customer service outlined in the strategy.

You can view all documents referred to in this release as well as the minutes from the meeting on Council’s website.

The next Ordinary Meeting of Council will be held from 7.00pm on Wednesday 8 May 2019 in the Wycheproof Supper Room.

End release 
For further information contact Manager Customer Engagement, Travis Fitzgibbon on 03 5478 0181 or tfitzgibbon@buloke.vic.gov.au

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