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 Murray River as a Large Rural council, so it is benchmarked at under 10% for rates outstanding (metropolitan councils are benchmarked at 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.
- $934 / yearAbout 17% below the NSW council average of ~$1,140. It rose to $996 in 2024–25 (NSW ~$1,203). A separate annual waste charge applies. (OLG 'Your Council' data.)
- Operating deficit — performance ratio −7.1%Below the >0% benchmark (misses).
- Self-funding vs grants
- Own-source revenue 34.7% (misses >60% benchmark)Very low — the council relies heavily on grants and other external funding for its income, which is common for large rural councils with small populations spread over a big area.
- Liquidity & cash
- Unrestricted current ratio 2.85×, 15.6 months cash, debt service cover 11.43× (all pass)Liquidity, cash buffer and debt-service cover are all above benchmark.
- 11.9% (misses <10% benchmark)The share of rates and charges uncollected at year end, just above the <10% benchmark for a rural council.
- Infrastructure
- Backlog 5.9% (misses <2%); maintenance 100.4% and renewals 131.6% (pass)The infrastructure-backlog ratio is above benchmark. The OLG's 2024–25 data shows these ratios weakening — backlog 9.4%, maintenance 74.7%, renewals 77.0%.
- Average waste charge
- $370 (2023–24) → $532 (2024–25)A separate annual charge that funds the kerbside service.
| Indicator (2023–24) | Murray River | Meets? | |
|---|---|---|---|
| −7.1% | > 0% | No | |
| 34.7% | > 60% | No | |
| 2.85× | > 1.5× | Yes | |
| 11.43× | > 2× | Yes | |
| 11.9% | < 10% | No | |
| 15.6 months | > 3 months | Yes | |
| 5.9% | < 2% | No | |
| 100.4% | > 100% | Yes | |
| 131.6% | > 100% | Yes |
Murray River Council'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. Murray River met 5 of the 9 benchmarks in 2023–24. The misses cluster around income and infrastructure: an operating deficit (−7.1%), a very low own-source revenue ratio (34.7%, meaning heavy reliance on grants), rates outstanding just over the rural benchmark (11.9%), and an infrastructure backlog above benchmark. Its residential rates are about 17% below the NSW average, and its liquidity, cash buffer and debt-service cover all pass comfortably. The council's adopted 2026–27 budget projects an operating deficit of about $5.79M. 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.