Red Fleet Asset Changes – Council position and actions

Published on 02 September 2022

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In a move that could potentially add hundreds of thousands of dollars to Council’s budgeted deficit, the NSW Auditor General is insisting that Council recognises the “RFS Red Fleet” as Council owned assets.

This is blatant nonsense and contrary to the legislative requirement for Council to certify that its financial statements conform to the appropriate accounting standards. For the Red Fleet to be an asset of Council, this requires Council to have full control over the fleet, which it patently does not.

The peak body for councils, Local Government NSW (LGNSW), has a very clear policy position that councils do not control nor own the Red Fleet. Snowy Monaro Regional Council (SMRC), along with more than sixty other councils, endorses this policy.

We confirm our support of and commitment to local RFS brigades noting that Snowy Monaro Regional Council’s action is entirely directed towards the NSW Government’s unacceptable position that rather than being owned and controlled by local brigades, RFS assets are somehow controlled by councils.

Council has written to the local State Member Nichole Overall MP, the Treasurer the Hon Matt Kean MP, Minister for Emergency Services and Resilience the Hon Stephanie Cook MP and the Minister for Local Government Wendy Tuckerman MP noting:

  • our objection to the NSW Government’s determination on ownership of RFS assets
  • the impact of the Government’s position on Council finances of this accounting treatment
  • that Council will not carry out RFS assets stocktakes on behalf of the NSW Government and will not record RFS assets in Snowy Monaro Regional Council’s financial statements
  • that we call on the NSW Government to take immediate action to permanently clear up inequities and inconsistencies around the accounting treatment of Rural Fire Service (RFS) assets by acknowledging that rural firefighting equipment is under the control of and the property of the RFS
  • proposal to amend s119 of the Rural Fires Act 1997 so that the effect is to make it clear that RFS assets are not the property of councils

    Your Council has also written to the Shadow Treasurer Daniel Mookhey MLC, the Shadow Minister for Emergency Services Jihad Dib MP, the Shadow Minister for Local Government Greg Warren MP, the Greens Spokesperson for Local Government Jamie Parker MP and the leaders of the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers, Animal Justice and One Nation parties Robert Borsak MLC, Emma Hurst MLC and Mark Latham MLC to:

  • advise Members of Snowy Monaro Regional Council’s position, including providing copies of correspondence to NSW Government Ministers
  • seek Members’ commitments to support NSW Councils’ call to amend the Rural Fires Act 1997 as set out in correspondence.

We have also written to the Auditor General advising that notwithstanding any overtures of future qualified audits, Council will not carry out RFS stocktakes on behalf of the NSW Government and will not record RFS assets in Snowy Monaro Regional Council’s financial statements, noting that the State Government’s own Local Government Code of Accounting Practice and Financial Reporting provides for councils to determine whether or not they record the RFS assets as council assets.

 

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