Economic and Finance Committee: Emergency Services Levy 2015-16

Mr ODENWALDER (Little Para) (11:14): I move:

That the 87^th report of the committee, entitled Emergency Services Levy 2015-16, be noted.

The Economic and Finance Committee has an annual statutory duty, as members would be aware, to examine the minister's determination in relation to the emergency services levy. The committee has 21 days in which to inquire into, consider and report on the minister's statement after it is referred to the committee, pursuant to section 10(5a) of the Emergency Services Funding Act. This year was no exception, with the committee receiving the minister's statement on 20 May.

As required by the act, the minister's statement included the determinations that the minister proposes to make in relation to the emergency services levy for the 2015-16 financial year. Section 10(4) of the act requires these determinations to be made in respect of:

the amount that, in the minister's opinion, needs to be raised by means of the levy to fund emergency services;

the amounts to be expended for various kinds of emergency services; and

as far as practicable, the extent to which various parts of the state will benefit from the application of that amount.

On 28 May, the committee heard from representatives from the Department of Treasury and Finance, SAFECOM, the MFS, the CFS and the SES. The witnesses provided the committee with details on the proposed levy for the 2015-16 year, and on 4 June 2015 the committee tabled the report to meet its 21-day requirement under the act.

I would just briefly like to take this opportunity to state, on record, what an excellent and courageous job our volunteer and paid firefighters do. The 2015 Sampson Flat fires were a recent and clear reminder of the dangerous, selfless and challenging work our firefighters undertake. Those fires came very near metropolitan Adelaide; indeed, they came within the bounds of my electorate, and I believe the member for Kavel and the member for Wright were similarly affected. I could smell the smoke clearly from my house. I appreciate, as we all can, the fantastic efforts by all involved in getting those fires under control as safely and as quickly as they did.

In light of that, the committee notes that the total expenditure on emergency services for 2015-16 is projected to be $278.2 million. The committee notes total expenditure for 2014-15 is expected to be $260.4 million, which is $5 million more than projected, and that is largely due to expenses arising from the 2015 Sampson Flat bushfires. The committee also notes that cash balances in the Community Emergency Services Fund are expected to be $6.8 million by 30 June 2015.

The committee notes that the total funding target for the emergency services levy has been set at $285.7 million in 2015-16. This includes projected expenditure on emergency services funded by the ESL of $278.2 million, and $7.5 million to the Community Emergency Services Fund to recover costs associated with the emergency services response to those aforementioned bushfires.

The committee also notes that the 2015-16 target expenditure of $278.2 million is $17.8 million higher than the 2014-15 estimated outcome. The committee was informed that this is mainly due to the extension of workers' compensation entitlements to CFS volunteers who are diagnosed with certain types of cancer and additional training services and equipment for workers and volunteers in the emergency services sector.

The committee notes that there will be an increase in the levy rate for owners of fixed property in 2015-16; however, the effective levy rate remains unchanged for eligible concession holders. The committee also notes that mobile property rates remain unchanged.

The committee has fulfilled its obligations under the Emergency Services Funding Act 1998. I take this opportunity to thank all the members of the Economic and Finance Committee and the departmental representatives who assisted the committee in reporting on the minister's determinations. Therefore, pursuant to section 6 of the Parliamentary Committees Act 1991, the Economic and Finance Committee recommends to parliament that it note this report.

Debate adjourned on motion of Mr Gardner.