Council’s auditor John Thompson from Crowe Horwarth presented the year’s financial results to councillors at last Thursday’s November Council meeting.

Council recorded a $6.608 million surplus, before capital grants and contributions brought the total to $8.874 million.

It was a big shift from the 2016-2017 surplus of $410,000, but the auditor said the real result lay somewhere in the middle.

Council had funded many of the repairs for flood damage out of its previous budget, bringing its anticipated financial result down, he said.

The funding came in in this financial year. 

While a significant percentage of Council’s increased income was around the timing of flood funds, there was an increase of more than $200,000 in rates and charges income. 

Council’s expenses also increased: employee costs were down but materials and contracts were up.

Other variations included Vanfest revenue ($1.2 million) and expenditure ($1.7 million).

Mr Thompson also outlined how Council performed against Local Government standards, with Forbes meeting and in some cases well exceeding each of the benchmarks.

Those include markers such as operating performance ratio, a measure of Council’s ability to contain its operating expenditure, reliance on external grants and funds and its debt service cover ratio.

One area of improvement on the previous financial year’s results was the percentage of uncollected rates and charges, that has now been brought under the benchmark after being slightly over in 2016-17. 

General Manager Steve Loane added to the meeting that a recent sale of properties for unpaid rates and charges went ahead as scheduled in October, and this should see Council’s performance against that standard improve again in the next financial year.

A report to the Council meeting on the sale said 13 properties were put forward for auction and sold.

Three of those that had been advertised were withdrawn from sale after rates were paid in full. 

“Sale prices were pleasing, with the majority selling above the reserves, allowing Council to cover outstanding rates and associated costs for these properties,” the report said. 

Overall, auditor Mr Thompson described Council’s position as “stable to improved positive”.