Burying someone in the Cowra cemetery is about to cost more courtesy of a NSW state government levy that the Minns government expects Cowra Shire Council to collect on its behalf.
The levy, Cowra Council’s Director-Infrastructure and Operations Dirk Wymer, estimates will cost Cowra ratepayers nearly $25,000 a year.
The first Cowra Council knew of the levy was when it received a letter from Cemeteries and Crematoria NSW in May this year stating they were “pleased” to let Council know of the new charge.
At an extraordinary meeting of Cowra Council last week councillors voted unanimously to let the NSW Government and member for Cootamundra Steph Cooke know of their opposition to the levy.
Council wrote to the Minister for Lands and Property Stephen Kemper after its meeting in May opposing the levy but has yet to receive a reply.
Council is currently placing notification of the levy on public exhibition for 28 days.
The levy will see families who wish to bury a loved one in a Cowra cemetery a further $63 for each ash interment performed and a further $156 for each burial performed.
Cowra Council operates the Cowra, Woodstock, Morongla and Gooloogong.
“We have to have a policy going forward but we oppose this,” mayor Paul Smith said at last week’s meeting.
Former mayor Ruth Fagan had even more to say, pointing out Cowra Council had “tried to go through the proper channels” in opposing the levy.
“This does not seem to be getting through,” Cr Fagan said “It’s ridiculous, we should be fighting it”.
“I agree we have to put (the charge) in place but I think we should be saying to everyone, ‘No one wants to pay this’, it is an enormous amount of money to put on grieving families”.
In its letter to Cowra Council, in May Cemeteries and Crematoria NSW said the changes were part of a focus on strengthening it as the industry regulator, “allowing it to proactively address bad operators, improve consumer protections and manage risks for the government and community”.
Addressing the letter Cr Cheryl Downing pointed out the regulator’s own report showed the total number of facilities in the year 2022-23 was 1544.
Local Government is responsible for 1017 of those.
“It’s a money grab by the NSW government to be paid by our local ratepayers and we have to follow up with a new levy to pass on to be fiscally responsible,” Cr Downing said.
“Sixty five percent of facilities are run by Local Government, this is a money grab to be paid by our ratepayers which we have to follow up with a new levy.
“Their annual report and audited financial statement showed an expense budget of two million nine hundred and seventy two dollars.
“I don’t know what they do with it, we don’t have any representation from them. We send them one report per year.
“Their annual report states there were 97 complaints in 22-23. Their main objective is to handle complaints with the most complaints being about Crown operators with 38.1 per cent of complaints. 19.6 (per cent) were accountable to Local Government.
“The Crown operators, it should be noted, provide the majority of burial services in metropolitan Sydney, so we’ll be paying for that.
“The total number of interment services in NSW for 22-23 was 78,750. Ninety seven complaints out of that equals a miniscule amount of 0.12137 per cent, so if (the levy) is about complaints and they’re trying to raise money to manage those, I think they’ll be right,” Cr Downing said.
Having the final word, Cr Fagan added "Let's hope they change their mind, I don't think we should be paying".