Shire of Capel confirms rates under investigation after formatting change ‘open to interpretation’

The Shire of Capel’s annual rates are under investigation following a complaint over the formatting of the cents in the dollar figure in the council minutes. The Times understands a complaint has been lodged with the Department of Local Government by disgruntled former shire president Michael Southwell who has previously expressed anger over the rates being too high. The issue centres around the rate in the dollar passed by the council during its June meeting which reads as 0.0825 cents in the dollar for residential properties in the minutes, compared to 10.1009 cents in the dollar as passed for the year prior. In the 2024-25 budget, a table detailing the rates shows a $0.0825 cents in the dollar figure, meaning the rate would be 8.25 cents per dollar — but this unit isn’t included in the decision itself. If the rate was 0.0825 cents in the dollar, instead of 8.25 cents in the dollars, total residential rates would be one per cent of the intended value. For example, a property with a gross rental value $23,400 would attract a rate of $19.30, instead of $1930. The rating values are voted on as a separate motion to the annual budget. Shire of Capel acting chief executive officer Samantha Chamberlain confirmed the shire was looking into the matter following a directive from the Department of Local Government. When asked about whether the rate in the dollar figure was in a dollar amount or a cent value, Ms Chamberlain said it was “open to interpretation” which was the basis for the investigation. “We’re aware that Mr Southwell has made a complaint to the Department of Local Government of which they contacted us to discuss,” she said. “Then obviously we’re following the complaint management process from the internal perspective and just investigating what the allegation is and then we’ll obviously provide a response once we feel we’re able to based on what the outcome of the investigation looks like.” The council intended to lower the cents in the dollar rate to offset steep rises in property evaluations. Ms Chamberlain told the Times the drastic change in the decimal point placement was down to a planned formatting change. “It’s basically formatting, so how we published the rates in the dollar, we changed it this year so it actually aligns with how we publish it within the annual budget document and it was done for clarity,” she said. “When residents look at the rates table of how the rates are published and then they look at the attachment within the annual budget ... it’s presented exactly the same so there’s no question in terms of the formatting. “That’s why it’s changed.” Ms Chamberlain said she couldn’t comment if the formatting was done incorrectly, or if a potential error would result in almost all ratepayers paying the minimum rate of $1430. The Department of Local Government Sports and Cultural Industries was contacted for comment.