The government appears increasingly isolated in its proposed reforms to emergency services funding, with numerous organisations and councils on the island lining up to oppose the plan that would see some residents paying less but forcing many others to pay more.
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Local governments presently collect the fire levy used to fund fire and emergency services, and the state government is planning to overhaul the system in draft bill it hopes to implement next year.
People have until December 1 to comment on the proposed changes, which could see some urban residents paying lower fire duty, but rural and regional residents, as well as businesses and farmers, paying substantially more.
Police and Emergency Management Minister Felix Ellis has previously said emergency services needed a sustainable funding model to effectively fight fires and keep Tasmanians safe.
He said the present model was unjust, with residents in different parts of the state paying different rates.
It is also presently funded through a levy on commercial insurance that many businesses avoid by either not taking insurance or buying from an overseas insurer.
Under the proposed reforms, the Tasmania Fire Service and State Emergency Service will be merged, and the fire levy currently collected by local councils will be overhauled.
One option under consideration is a single-rate levy of 1 per cent of assessed value for all households across the state, and the other option is for a two-tiered rate depending on where people live.
These proposed models are now being criticised by organisations across the island, including powerful lobby groups for business, farmers and property owners.
Farmers Criticise Reforms
In a scathing attack this week, Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers' Association president Ian Sauer said the reform proposed could increase farmers' fire levy contribution by as much as 1000 per cent.
The TFGA would not support the changes in their present form, he said.
"Under the proposed bill Tasmanian Farmers will bear the financial burden of both of the governments' suggested funding models," Mr Sauer said.
"Farmers want to contribute but cannot be expected to carry the weight of such large increases, it is unreasonable."
Campbell Town wool farmer John Atkinson said he was paying about $1900 per year in both insurance and council fire levy contributions.
He calculated that his contribution would increase to $5712 under the government's preferred first option, and to $2856 under the second option.
"We're supportive of the new system, it's a more equitable system than having it on the insurance levy, having it purely on rates makes sense," he said.
"But as a primary producer and looking at the different rates they're charging, the increases we are looking at are just discriminatory."
He said the government hadn't considered the volunteer firefighting work most farmers already do.
"It is good that the government says they are listening to this feedback. It's just unfortunate they didn't consult more beforehand," Mr Atkinson said.
Coalition of the Opposed
In parliament on Wednesday, Labor leader Rebecca White highlighted the growing opposition to the government's proposed reform.
The TFGA joined the Property Council of Australia, the Small Business Council and the Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in criticising the reforms.
Earlier this week, Property Council of Australia Tasmania chair Heather Mason urged the government to go "back to the drawing board" on its plan, while TCCI chief executive officer Michael Bailey labelled the proposals "unconscionable" at a time business were struggling with rising costs.
Local Government Association of Tasmania chief executive Dion Lester has previously criticised the reforms and what he said was the government's lack of consultation before the release of the draft bill.
On Wednesday, he provided more information from councils showing their estimates of the effect of the fire reforms.
Under the existing system, the fire levy is charged based on the location of a property and how the land is zoned, with rural and regional residents, which are not serviced by professional firefighters, typically paying a fraction of what urban residents pay.
Commercial insurance customers also pay a levy which funds the fire service, but many companies are able to avoid this.
Mr Ellis has said Tasmanian firefighters and emergency responders need to be better funded to combat the increasing number of fires and floods in the state.
"We have one of the most fire-prone places on earth, and we've had three once-in-100-year flood events in the last 10 years.
"Ultimately, we need to deliver a system and a framework that keeps Tasmanians safe."
He also said the present system was unfair.
"There are currently more than 29 different rates and multiple levies for households and businesses across Tasmania."
