The City of Launceston are pushing for a Greater Launceston Metropolitan Council in its submission to the state government's Local Government Board Review into the Future of Local Government in Tasmania.
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The proposal will be brought before council during their meeting on Thursday, May 5.
The City of Launceston's draft submission focuses on the 'spill-over effect', which occurs when a central municipality provides services that are used by residents from surrounding municipalities who do not contribute to their costs.
Launceston mayor Albert van Zetten said the City of Launceston's position in the Northern Tasmanian region was unique among all councils in Tasmania, as it was impacted by the 'spill over effect' more than any other council in the state.
"The draft submission suggests a metropolitan council model should be explored for the Northern Region so that the costs of regional assets are more equitably dispersed across the communities which benefit," Cr van Zetten said.
"As it currently stands, Launceston is required to provide and maintain regional level infrastructure, which is not required to be provided by surrounding councils.
"While the residents of surrounding council areas live close together and are most benefited by the regional assets provided by the City of Launceston, they are not providing any funding for their maintenance - aside from fees and charges for use of these assets where it is applicable
"In fact, the costs borne by City of Launceston ratepayers and avoided by the residents of other municipal areas are in excess of $4.2m annually."
Other reasoning behind this model is that it would help deliver services across councils, and help with resource sharing across rural and metropolitan services.
The council did highlight that the reform process should not change roles or functions of local government but look at how to address emerging needs and trends such as demographic change, technological advancements, and financial sustainability.
Minister for Local Government, Nic Street said the purpose of the review was to hear from councils about supporting communities.
"The Tasmanian Liberal Government has commissioned the Local Government Board to undertake a broad review into the future of local government in Tasmania which will enable all Tasmanians to have the opportunity to have their voice heard in the Future of Local Government Review," he said.
"The review is looking at the fundamentals of the local government system: the role it should play in supporting communities, the services it should be delivering, and the most effective ways of doing so."
The review will run until June 2023 and is being undertaken by the Local Government Board.
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