Edward River Council budget and finances

Budget & finances

Comparing raw dollar totals between councils isn't very useful — bigger councils naturally have bigger numbers. What does tell you about a council's financial health are normalised indicators: the standard ratios that every NSW council reports against the Office of Local Government's benchmarks, plus per-property figures you can compare to the NSW average. The ratios below are from the NSW Government's OLG time-series data for 2023–24, cross-checked against Edward River's audited financial statements for the year ended 30 June 2024. (The OLG classifies Edward River as a Large Rural council, so it is benchmarked at under 10% for rates outstanding; metropolitan councils are held to under 5%.)

New to these terms? Read them in plain English

Operating performance ratio: Whether everyday income covers everyday running costs.
Own-source operating revenue ratio: How much of the council's income it raises itself vs. grants from other governments.
Unrestricted current ratio: Whether the council has enough spare cash to pay its short-term bills.
Debt service cover ratio: How comfortably operating cash covers the council's loan repayments.
Rates & annual charges outstanding ratio: The share of rates bills that haven't been paid by year-end.
Cash expense cover ratio: How many months the council could keep paying bills if income stopped.
Infrastructure backlog ratio: The cost of fixing run-down assets, as a share of what those assets are worth.
Asset maintenance ratio: Whether the council actually spends what it should on maintaining its assets.
Building & infrastructure renewals ratio: Whether assets are being renewed as fast as they wear out.
Operating result (surplus / deficit): Income minus expenses for the year's normal operations.
OLG benchmark: The healthy target set by the state for each financial ratio.
Average residential rate: The typical yearly general-rates bill for a home in the area.
Office of Local Government (OLG): The NSW body overseeing councils; publishes the financial data.

See the full explainer, with formulas →

The numbers

: $1,180 / yearAbout 2% below the NSW council average of ~$1,203 (2023–24 was $1,113, vs NSW ~$1,140). A separate domestic waste charge (~$524 in 2024–25, up from ~$385) applies. (OLG time-series data.)
: Operating performance ratio 27.7% — a $16.23M net operating resultWell above the >0% benchmark. The audited statements attribute the increase (up 24.9 percentage points on the prior year) to a rise in operating grants and contributions, which went from $13.4M to $25.2M; the result before capital grants and contributions was $10.8M on total income of $53.6M.
Liquidity & debt: Unrestricted current ratio 6.30× (passes); 17.2 months cash (passes); no external borrowingsThe audited statements record no external borrowings as at 30 June 2024, so the debt service cover ratio is reported as infinite and the Audit Office narrative records the benchmark as exceeded. The OLG time-series stores that cell as 0.00×, which is a nil-denominator artefact rather than a real reading — see the table note.
Self-funding: Own-source revenue 42.9% (misses)Below the >60% benchmark. The audited statements note the ratio fell 11.0 percentage points because of the higher level of grants and contributions received that year — the same one-off that lifted the operating result.
Infrastructure: Backlog 3.2% and asset maintenance 98.5% both miss (2023–24); renewals 177.2% passesThe OLG's 2024–25 time-series shows the backlog easing to 2.5%, asset maintenance rising to 120.5% and renewals at 132.5% — we present both years rather than picking one.
: 4.9%Comfortably below the under-10% benchmark that applies to rural councils.

Edward River		Meets?
27.7%	> 0%	Yes
42.9%	> 60%	No
6.30×	> 1.5×	Yes
No borrowings — reported as ∞	> 2×	n/a
4.9%	< 10%	Yes
17.2 months	> 3 months	Yes
3.2%	< 2%	No
98.5%	> 100%	No
177.2%	> 100%	Yes

Edward River's financial-health indicators, 2023–24, against the NSW Office of Local Government benchmarks. 'Meets?' simply states whether the figure is on the benchmark side of the line. Source: NSW Government OLG time-series data 2023–24, cross-checked against Council's audited financial statements for the year ended 30 June 2024.

These ratios are the standard, size-independent way to read a council's finances, which is why we use them instead of raw dollar totals. Of the eight indicators that produce a measurable figure for Edward River in 2023–24, five are on the benchmark side of the line and three are not. The ninth, debt service cover, is not measurable: Council had no external borrowings at 30 June 2024, so the audited statements print the ratio as infinite and the Audit Office narrative records the benchmark as exceeded — the 0.00× stored in the OLG time-series for that cell is an artefact of a nil denominator, not a failed test, and we do not publish it as one. Two figures are worth reading together: the strong 2023–24 operating result and the weak own-source revenue ratio have the same cause — an unusually large year for operating grants and contributions ($25.2M, up from $13.4M) — so a single year is a poor guide to the underlying trend here. Council maintains a Long Term Financial Plan and a Financial Sustainability Review within its Resourcing Strategy. We present the numbers and their benchmarks; whether that's good value is for you to judge from the sources below.

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.