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 Moree Plains 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.
- $1,249 / yearAbout 4% above the NSW council average of ~$1,203 (2023–24 was $1,194, vs NSW ~$1,140 — about 5% above). A separate domestic waste charge (~$457 in 2024–25) applies. (OLG time-series data.)
- Operating surplus — performance ratio 6.0%Above the >0% benchmark.
- Liquidity & cash
- Unrestricted current ratio 3.79×, 6.1 months cash; debt service cover 3.98× (all pass)Liquidity, cash cover and debt service cover are all above benchmark.
- Self-funding
- Own-source revenue 57.8% (just below benchmark)Below the >60% benchmark — a meaningful share of income comes from grants, common for rural councils with a small ratepayer base over a very large area.
- Infrastructure
- Backlog 3.5% and asset maintenance 100.9% at the line; renewals 123.5% (passes)The infrastructure-backlog ratio is just outside benchmark (2024–25: 4.4%); asset maintenance and renewals both pass (2024–25: 97.2% and 109.2%).
- 10.7%Just above the under-10% benchmark that applies to rural councils.
| Indicator (2023–24) | Moree Plains | Meets? | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.0% | > 0% | Yes | |
| 57.8% | > 60% | No | |
| 3.79× | > 1.5× | Yes | |
| 3.98× | > 2× | Yes | |
| 10.7% | < 10% | No | |
| 6.1 months | > 3 months | Yes | |
| 3.5% | < 2% | No | |
| 100.9% | > 100% | Yes | |
| 123.5% | > 100% | Yes |
Moree Plains' 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. Moree Plains met 6 of the 9 benchmarks in 2023–24, including a genuine operating surplus — unlike some comparable rural councils. Two ratios sit just on the wrong side of the line: own-source revenue (57.8% vs a 60% benchmark) and rates outstanding (10.7% vs a 10% benchmark for rural councils). The OLG's 2024–25 time-series shows the infrastructure ratios moving: backlog 4.4%, asset maintenance 97.2% (now just below benchmark), renewals 109.2% (still above). 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.