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Rates & fees

Rates & fees

Rates are the main way residents fund the council. Each year an independent regulator (IPART) sets a 'rate peg' — the maximum percentage the council can lift its total rates income. Here's the current figure, how it compares across NSW, and the things that actually change your bill. Cootamundra-Gundagai is also one of the councils that has been through a large special rate variation in recent years, which is worth knowing when you read the averages.

New to these terms? Read them in plain English
Rate peg
The cap on how much a council's TOTAL rates income can rise this year.
Core peg
The rate peg before the population top-up — the part driven by rising costs.
Population factor
An extra slice of the rate peg for fast-growing councils.
Special Rate Variation (SRV)
Permission for a council to raise rates by more than the peg.
Land valuation
Your land's value, set by the state, used to split the rates bill between properties.
Pensioner rebate
A discount on rates for eligible pensioners.
Domestic waste charge
A separate annual fee for your bins — NOT part of the rate peg.
IPART
Sets the rate peg and reviews council pricing.
See the full explainer, with formulas →

Rates at a glance

3.2%Set by IPART — a base peg of 3.0% plus small population and other adjustment factors. It caps the council's total rates income, not your individual bill.
4.6%IPART's rate peg for the council for 2025–26 — a base peg of 3.6% plus adjustment factors.
~$974 / year (2024–25)About 19% below the NSW average of ~$1,203 (OLG time-series data). 2023–24 was $985 against a NSW average of ~$1,140.
2025–26 residential rate structure
Base amount $414.55 plus an ad-valorem amount on land valueThe same $414.55 base amount applies to the farmland, residential, business and mining categories, with different ad-valorem rates for each. Published on the council's rates page.
Waste and other annual charges (2025–26)
Domestic waste management $590; organics/green waste $77; rural waste $87; residential stormwater $25These are annual charges levied on the rate notice in addition to ordinary rates. Full list on the council's rates page.
Paying by instalments
Four instalments — 31 August, 30 November, 28 February and 31 MayThese quarterly due dates are set by section 562 of the Local Government Act 1993 and apply to every NSW council. Council accepts BPAY, B-Point online/phone, direct debit, mail and in-person payment (a 1% surcharge applies to credit-card transactions).
Overdue interest (2026–27)
9.5% per annumA NSW-wide statutory maximum determined annually by the Minister under section 566(3) of the Local Government Act and gazetted on 15 May 2026, applied by councils to overdue rates instalments.
Concessions & hardship
Eligible pensioners can claim a rebate; a Rates and Charges Financial Hardship Policy also appliesCouncil publishes a Pensioner Concession Form and a hardship application on its rates page. Check eligibility with the council.
Special rate variation (SRV)
A four-year SRV approved by IPART in 2021–22 is permanently in the rate baseIPART approved increases of 20%, 16%, 5% and 5% (including the rate peg) across 2021–22 to 2024–25 — a cumulative 53.5% — which the council retains permanently. IPART's determination noted the council's operating results excluding grants had been in deficit. Further special variations for the two successor councils are among the matters being worked through in the demerger transition, and would need their own IPART approval.

The rate peg limits the council's total rates income, not each household's bill. How your individual rates change depends mostly on how your land value moved relative to other properties at the latest Valuer General revaluation. Note that even after the 53.5% cumulative special variation, the average residential rate here remains well below the NSW average — the underlying land-value base is low, which is part of why financial sustainability is the central condition attached to the demerger.

Sources — check it yourself

Figures are current as at the dates shown and may change — always confirm with the linked source. See the notice at the bottom of the page for full details and how to report a correction.