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 'Your Council' / OLG time-series data for 2023–24. (The OLG classifies Liverpool Plains as a Large Rural council, so it is benchmarked at under 10% for rates outstanding; metropolitan councils are held to under 5%.) With about 7,700 residents spread over 5,082 km² of roads, bridges, water and sewer assets, the shire has one of the smallest rate bases in NSW relative to the infrastructure it maintains — a point the council itself makes in its published financial-sustainability material.
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.
The numbers
- $934 / yearAbout 22% below the NSW council average of ~$1,203 (2023–24 was $899, vs NSW ~$1,140). A separate domestic waste charge (~$562 in 2024–25, up from $529) applies. (OLG time-series data.)
- Operating performance ratio −8.0%Below the >0% benchmark — the council spent more on day-to-day operations than it earned from them that year.
- Liquidity & cash
- Unrestricted current ratio 37.34× and debt service cover 13.02× (both pass); 18.3 months cash cover (passes)All three liquidity and debt measures are well clear of their benchmarks (>1.5×, >2× and >3 months respectively).
- Self-funding
- Own-source revenue 51.4% (misses)Below the >60% benchmark — just over half of the council's income comes from its own rates, charges and fees rather than grants and contributions, which is common for small rural councils with a large road network.
- Infrastructure
- Asset maintenance 138.4% passes; backlog 8.5% and renewals 95.9% miss (2023–24)The council is spending more than the required amount on maintaining assets, but the reported repair backlog is above the <2% benchmark and renewals sit just under 100%. The OLG's 2024–25 time-series shows backlog 8.3%, asset maintenance 138.4% and renewals 93.0%.
- 8.3%Below the under-10% benchmark that applies to rural councils.
| Indicator (2023–24) | Liverpool Plains | Meets? | |
|---|---|---|---|
| −8.0% | > 0% | No | |
| 51.4% | > 60% | No | |
| 37.34× | > 1.5× | Yes | |
| 13.02× | > 2× | Yes | |
| 8.3% | < 10% | Yes | |
| 18.3 months | > 3 months | Yes | |
| 8.5% | < 2% | No | |
| 138.4% | > 100% | Yes | |
| 95.9% | > 100% | No |
Liverpool Plains'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 'Your Council' / OLG time-series data, 2023–24.
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. Liverpool Plains met 5 of the 9 benchmarks in 2023–24. The pattern is a common rural one: liquidity and cash reserves are strong, while the operating result, own-source revenue share and the infrastructure backlog and renewals ratios sit on the wrong side of their lines. Financial sustainability is an explicit council workstream: the council commissioned an independent Financial Sustainability Review in 2025 and has since published a Financial Sustainability Strategy 2026–2030 setting five objectives (sustainable operating position, stronger cash position, asset investment, service-delivery efficiency, and governance and planning). The council also holds an IPART-approved permanent special variation of 18.1% granted for 2023–24, which lifted the rate base. We present the numbers, the benchmarks and what the council says it is doing; whether that's good value is for you to judge from the sources below.
Sources — check it yourself
- Office of Local Government — Time-Series Data 2023–24 (all NSW councils, benchmark ratios) · 2023–24
- Office of Local Government — Time-Series Data 2024–25 (infrastructure ratios update) · 2024–25
- Liverpool Plains Shire Council — Financial sustainability · 2026
- Liverpool Plains Shire Council — Annual and Financial Reports
- IPART — Instrument, Special Variation for Liverpool Plains Shire Council for 2023–24 (PDF) · 13 Jun 2023
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.