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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. Upper Lachlan's rate base is unusual: there are more farmland assessments (2,799) than residential ones (2,471), and a separate Rural Waste Charge applies to properties that don't get a kerbside bin.

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

4.9%Set by IPART — a core peg of 3.5% plus a 1.4% population factor. Council adopted the full 4.90% increase to its total ordinary rates income, an estimated additional $473,000.
5.0%IPART's peg for 2025–26 — a core peg of 4.1% plus a 0.9% population factor.
~$636 / year (2024–25)About 47% below the NSW council average of ~$1,203 (OLG time-series data). Rate levels reflect land values and each council's rating structure, so they are not a measure of service levels.
What the peg caps
Total rates income — not your billIt doesn't cap the domestic waste charge or the Rural Waste Charge, which are separate annual charges.
Instalment due dates
31 August, 30 November, 28 February and 31 MayDates as published by the council for the 2025–26 rating year; confirm the current year's dates on the council's rates page.
Overdue interest (2026–27)
9.5% per annumThe maximum rate of interest on overdue rates and charges is determined each year by the Minister for Local Government under s566(3) of the Local Government Act 1993. For 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027 it is 9.5% (Office of Local Government Circular 26-06). The council's adopted Operational Plan still shows the previous year's 10.50% figure, marked "to be determined".
Waste charges (2026–27)
Domestic Waste Management annual charge $703 per service; Rural Waste Charge $305.80 per assessmentBoth rose 7% for 2026–27. The Rural Waste Charge applies to properties not on a kerbside service and comes with a Rural Waste Card for free tip entry.
Concessions
Eligible pensioners can receive a rebateApply using the council's Pensioner Concession Rebate form; check eligibility with the council.
Special rate variation (SRV)
None in force — the 2023 process was discontinuedCouncil engaged AEC Group for an independent financial sustainability review and consulted the community on two SRV options in late 2023. On 5 November 2023, after that consultation, councillors discontinued the SRV process and did not apply to IPART.

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 revaluation — the 2026–27 rates use a Valuer General base date of 1 July 2024.

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.