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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2022-07-07 Daily Xml
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Parliamentary Committees

Economic and Finance Committee: Emergency Services Levy 2022-23

Mr HUGHES (Giles) (11:03): I move:

That the first report of the committee, entitled Emergency Services Levy 2022-23, be noted.

Under the Emergency Services Funding Act 1998, the Economic and Finance Committee has an annual statutory duty to inquire into, consider and report on the Treasurer's Determination regarding the emergency services levy. The committee must provide a report on the written determinations within 21 days after referral to the committee. This year, the committee received the Treasurer's statement on 28 May.

The Emergency Services Funding Act 1998 compels the Treasurer to include determinations regarding the funding targets required via the levy to deliver emergency services, the expenditure on specific kinds of emergency services and the benefits for South Australians across the state. The emergency services levy funds the following organisations to deliver vital emergency services across Adelaide and the regions:

South Australian Country Fire Service;

South Australian Metropolitan Fire Service;

South Australian State Emergency Service;

Surf Life Saving SA;

Volunteer Marine Rescue organisations;

South Australia Police;

The Department for Environment and Water;

SA Ambulance Service;

State Rescue Helicopter; and

Shark beach patrol.

On 10 June, the Economic Finance Committee held a public hearing with representatives from the Department of Treasury and Finance, the South Australian Fire and Emergency Services Commission, the MFS, the CFS and the SES. The witnesses outlined the funding targets, rate setting and expenditure for the proposed levy for the 2022-23 year. Commensurate with its 21-day obligation under the act, the committee considered the determinations and tabled its report on 16 June 2022.

Firstly, I want to thank the frontline responders, staff and volunteers who provide valuable and vital support to our communities in times of crisis. I would also like to take this opportunity to pay my respects and honour the work of the volunteer CFS firefighter who lost her life in the Coles fire earlier this year, as well as those suffering from cancer, exposure to chemicals or trauma from any of the incidents they have to attend.

Our emergency services are expending more resources attending to an increasing number of incidents. These include road crash incidents as well as those arising from extreme weather events such as fires, storms and floods. The SES provided data indicating an increasing trend of incident counts. In 2021-22, the SES recorded 10,305 incidents. This was a significant increase from 6,329 incidents in 2021 and 6,567 incidents in 2019-20. The number of major incidents and their average days of duration are steadily trending upwards. In 2021, there were 11 major incidents of three days' average duration. In just the first half of 2022, the SES has already experienced eight major incidents of an average seven days' duration.

Our emergency services overcame many challenges last year. Agencies responded to many large-scale events, including major structural fires, floods in the Far North and the West Coast and the Coles fire in the South-East. The CFS also attended approximately 3,000 road crash incidents. The COVID-19 pandemic has strained resources at all levels across all services. The committee commends staff and volunteers for the grit and resilience that they demonstrate every day.

I would also like to highlight the key elements of the 2022-23 emergency services levy and report the following as observed by the Economic and Finance Committee. Total expenditure on emergency services for 2021-22 is projected to reach $351.6 million, a figure slightly less than the original projection of $353,400,000. ESL receipts for 2021-22 are expected to be $4.2 million above original expectations, due to the higher than expected remission payments and fixed property ESL revenue.

Cash balances in the Community Emergency Services Fund were forecast to be $17.7 million on 30 June 2022. The total expenditure on emergency services for 2022-23 is projected to be $365.1 million. This will be funded primarily by ESL payments from fixed property of $310.5 million, and mobile property of $51 million, in addition to minor revenues ($0.5 million) and a run-down in cash in the Community Emergency Services Fund ($3 million). For 2022-23, the government will pay $139.1 million into the Community Emergency Services Fund. The total of remissions is fairly similar to previous years. The majority comprises remissions for private land at approximately $131 million. The average residential ESL bill will receive a remission of $175.85, equating to a more than 50 per cent reduction.

Emergency services levy bills are calculated by applying a prescribed rate on assessable property value in accordance with the property's purpose and location. In 2022-23, the committee can provide the following information: metropolitan residential households and commercial property owners should receive a 2 per cent increase in the emergency services levy. With calculations based on an average median house value of $600,500, the average residential bill in metropolitan Adelaide should be $144.35. This is $2.75 more than last year.

For a median commercial property figure of $1 million, the average bill for commercial property owners should be $1,352.75. This is a $26.25 increase on last year. Rates in major country towns were based on a median sales value of $295,000. Residential ESL bills in these areas should be $87.05, a decrease of approximately 2.2 per cent. For a $750,000 industrial property in metropolitan Adelaide, emergency services levy bills will rise by approximately 4.4 per cent. Property owners should receive their bills from the beginning of August through to the end of September.

Given the increases in the cost of living, I would like to draw attention to flexible payment policies available to property owners. ESL bills can be paid in four monthly instalments or over an extended payment period upon contacting RevenueSA prior to a bill's due date. Revenue raised from the ESL strengthens the frontline and operational capacity of our emergency services. This year, expenditure will update and improve ICT, refurbish clubs and facilities and implement an innovative system to track real-time locations of firefighting and other emergency response vehicles during incidents.

The 2022-23 target expenditure of $365.1 million is $13.5 million more than the 2021-22 figure of $351.6 million. This additional expenditure is required for:

base funding for supplies and services ($6.3 million);

SAFECOM's emergency services sector ICT licensing, migration and security costs ($1.8 million);

carryover of expenditure from 2021-22 for the surf lifesaving club facilities redevelopment program ($3.1 million);

expenditure for the implementation of the automatic vehicle location system ($0.5 million);

bringing forward funding from the SES's building program ($1 million); and

reinstatement of MFS investing annual program ($5.6 million).

The committee has fulfilled its obligations under the Emergency Services Funding Act 1998. I would like to thank the members of the Economic and Finance Committee, the representatives from the Department of Treasury and Finance, the Chief Executive of the South Australian Fire and Emergency Services Commission and the chief officers of the Metropolitan Fire Service, Country Fire Service and the State Emergency Service for their contribution and assistance. I would also like to thank the parliamentary officers who assisted.

Therefore, pursuant to section 6 of the Parliamentary Committees Act 1991, the Economic and Finance Committee recommends that parliament note this report.

Mr COWDREY (Colton) (11:14): I rise today to provide a contribution on the noting of this report of the Economic and Finance Committee in regard to the ESL report for the financial year 2022-23 and the determinations made by the Treasurer.

I, too, begin by thanking the departmental Treasury staff for their attendance at the public hearing that was held, as well as the heads of emergency services who provided their time and, in all good faith, answered questions provided to them by the committee. I also extend my respect to the family of the CFS firefighter who passed away in service earlier this year and my thanks, and the thanks of the house, for her service and dedication.

The emergency services levy, as you are well aware, sir, provides funding to all streams of the emergency services in this state. There are contributions made by the grant fund that is established and collects the ESL levies that are paid by South Australians and also remissions that are provided by the government. The payments are then made each year to the corresponding services.

This year, funding was provided to the CFS, the MFS, the State Emergency Services, Surf Life Saving SA, the Volunteer Marine Rescue organisations, South Australia Police, the Department for Environment and Water in their capacity of providing emergency services, the State Rescue Helicopter as well as the shark patrol plane, or the shark beach patrol plane as it is coined in the report.

Those of us on this side of the house are obviously very proud of the ESL and its current comparative rate settings. It is something that we were very keen to see changed in coming to government in 2018 after the former Labor government removed the remissions, effectively jacking up the price of the emergency services levy, adding to the cost-of-living pressures of families, businesses, as well as community and sporting organisations. I think that is one thing that many may not be aware of, that those organisations also pay the emergency services levy based on the facilities that they own or operate.

In coming to government, we returned the remission in the end, cutting emergency services levy bills by approximately $184 for an average household, which is an approximate 50 per cent reduction. This investment of $95½ million went back into the hip pockets of South Australians, and we were glad this financial year to see this approach continue.

One thing that we were keen to tease out and get a little more information on during the hearing this year was around the Keelty review, obviously undertaken by former Australian Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty in response to the 2019-20 bushfire season that saw multiple significant bushfire events across our state. On the back of that, a number of recommendations were made and projects commenced by a range of the emergency services to deliver improved communications and outcomes for both the community and the firefighting services in regard to the activities they undertake in major bushfire events.

We have obviously been very happy to see the automatic vehicle location system rolled out across the services, the burnover protection project, the development of new apps and the real-time vehicle location project—all these things on the back of what was an event that I think all South Australians will remember for quite some time. I cannot remember, certainly in my lifetime, a bushfire season when we had so many significant events so close together over that period. The impact of those events across multiple communities in South Australia will be felt for quite some time still.

One of the things that I wish to highlight from this report in particular was the carryover funds in regard to the surf lifesaving club redevelopment project. For those who are unaware, or new to this place perhaps, there is a fund and a funding arrangement that have been in place for quite some time that effectively funds a pipeline of redevelopment of the surf lifesaving clubs across South Australia.

There are significant carryover funds in this year's report, and there have been for a number of years with regard to one surf club, the West Beach Surf Life Saving Club. One of the reasons those funds have been continually carried over each and every year is that the surf lifesaving club sits on a beach that historically has been a beach, and then in the last 15 to 20 years it has started to erode—and there is no better way to describe it—and then to disappear.

Up until last summer, there was effectively no high-tide beach in front of the surf lifesaving club, which had made the activities of the club in regard to providing water cover and surf lifesaving activities near impossible in the current location. To access the beach to the south, the club had to go down to the Adelaide Sailing Club boat ramp and enter the beach from that direction, not being able to gain access directly in front of the club. To the north, depending on how high the tide was and the weather conditions on the day, they were not even able to have nippers access the beach from the ramp because the water level was above that.

As everyone in this chamber I think is aware, there was a significant contribution of funds allocated to a project to rebuild that beach. On the back of that project, and the commitment the former government made, the West Beach Surf Life Saving Club for the first time was confident enough to make an investment decision to rebuild that surf club in its current location. That was not an easy decision for them. They had been exploring other options, potentially, but the history of and the rightful place for that surf lifesaving club is on its current location.

They are currently financially viable based on the tourism opportunities that are available to them from patrons of the West Beach Caravan Park just down the road. The club does operate as the pub, for the lack of a better word, in the West Beach area, as there is no other facility of that type in the area. So that decision was made and these funds will be expended eventually out of the emergency services levy and the fund here to rebuild a beach. My only hope, and the hope of the West Beach community of course, is that there is a beach to patrol at West Beach into the future, because this investment could look very silly in a number of years' time if there is not a beach there to patrol.

Those decisions were made, as I said, based on the confidence provided to the surf lifesaving club on the back of the commitment the previous government made. I cannot fathom that the political party of the other persuasion was happy to provide funds from a federal perspective to rebuild the surf lifesaving club, which was different from most every other allocation of funding that we have had through the surf club redevelopment process, but I will put that aside. The key issue here is that this government has a responsibility to the people of West Beach.

This government has a responsibility to ensure that the investment made out of the emergency services levy into the redevelopment of that club is able to serve its community in the way that it should. Obviously, we have seen significant improvements and increased funds from the emergency services levy over the last number of years. There has been an increase this year in terms of the levy for the people of South Australia, and a modest one I might add.

In closing, can I please extend my thanks to all those people in the emergency services for their service and everything they do for our communities.

Mr TELFER (Flinders) (11:24): I rise to speak very briefly on the report of the committee. As a member of the Economic and Finance Committee, I appreciated the process to go through and the presenters who came from the representative bodies, and I thank them, as has been already mentioned in this place. They include the CFS, the SES, the MFS, SAFECOM and the Department of Treasury and Finance. It was an incredibly important process to go through because of the importance of the need for appropriate expenditure of the funds raised by this levy.

In my electorate, there are many volunteers, especially in the CFS and SES. The moneys that are collected and expended from this fund are really important to ensure that people volunteering their services and their time during some of the most stressful times in our community are appropriately looked after with equipment and arrangements that are sustainable into the future. Can I just recognise those volunteers in particular who, as I said, work in the most stressful times for our communities. At times, when lives and properties are at risk, they are the ones who are willing to put their hands up. I encourage people across the state to consider volunteering with these organisations and doing their part for the safety and protection of our state in some incredibly challenging times.

Many of us have been touched very closely by some of the challenging fire times we have faced over the last couple of years, and I am one of them. I had a fire event that got to within a couple of hundred metres of my house. We evacuated my family and belongings. To know that there were volunteers, that were community members near us and doing their bit to protect not just my family but also the whole community, was really important, as it is to make sure they are properly equipped and able to do that job in a safe way.

I also acknowledge the important role volunteer farm firefighting units play in conjunction with the CFS to protect our communities. I am someone who is often on those volunteer farm fire units when our communities are at risk. They are an incredibly important part of the tapestry of emergency services and a vital tool that the CFS can use not just to defend properties but also, in the long time it has always had, to mop up after fire events.

I think there is a really important role for the CFS to play. I have always been one to encourage the CFS to continue to work collaboratively and constructively with these volunteers to ensure protections and structures are in place. I am encouraged, in the questioning through this committee process, to see that they are indeed involved in looking at making sure those arrangements are appropriate going into the future.

There was an aspect in the questioning of the committee that I was a bit concerned about. In the papers, there was a reduction of $1 million towards the funds for the Department for Environment and Water to do some important fire load reduction burn-offs. Those of us who come from regional areas are very much aware of the importance of some of these back-burning and fire-load reduction aspects to try to reduce the risks that come with fires that continually go through national parks, or even SA Water land or the like, that can then intrude on private property.

There were questions around that at the committee level. I trust that the department is still well enough equipped to make sure that these works, which are necessary, are done appropriately. Through this process, it is important to ensure that our communities receive appropriate support and protection during some of those most vulnerable times. I certainly commend the committee report to the house and the process that was followed.

Mr PEDERICK (Hammond) (11:28): I rise to speak briefly on this report by the Economic and Finance Committee into the emergency services levy. I, too, want to commend the many thousands of volunteers right across the state who literally put their lives on the line in the act of saving people's lives and property. I also want to thank the paid and retained staff—in the MFS there are paid staff and retained staff—and all the paid staff in senior roles right throughout emergency services. With the new build at SAFECOM we are getting everyone together in a state-of-the-art building, and it will assist with fighting calamities in the future because they will come; there is no doubt about it.

I note that this levy makes sure that we have state-of-the-art equipment delivered to our communities right across the board. It is not just the Metropolitan Fire Service and the Country Fire Service; it is also the surf lifesaving clubs, marine rescue and the State Emergency Service. I think it was late last year that Murray Bridge was delivered a new rescue boat, which will be put to good use on the River Murray.

Interestingly, the member for Flinders just touched on the issue of cold burns and back-burns. We do need to be in front of fires, including back-burning in the cold months to make sure we reduce fuel load. It is my belief that we should do a lot more of that in areas where it is safe to do so because, if you do not, you run the very real risk of having much bigger fires when they do come through. It does not matter where it is; it can be in the Adelaide Hills, the South-East, the Murray Mallee, the West Coast, the Upper North, the Mid-North or Yorke Peninsula.

I had a meeting this morning with someone from the South-East. When the action is on—and those of us in the CFS have all seen it in live firefighting activities—decisions to back-burn need to be made in a far more timely manner. At the end of the day, every time I have seen it stalled it has held up putting the fire out by up to several days or risked or burnt out many more acres or hectares—however you want to talk about it—of scrub and farmland. Those discussions need to be ongoing because sometimes, in an active fire situation, fighting fire with fire is one of the best tools you can have.

Alongside all those volunteers on the ground are the trucks or the farm fire units, a lot of which are ex-CFS units, and I have seen one or two ex-MFS units out in the country. They are very handy fire trucks, when you know some of your neighbours have these 3,000-litre trucks running around alongside the CFS trucks, which now run everything from quick attack vehicles through to 1,000-litre tankers up to the 4,000-litre trucks plus the backup tankers, some of which have 11,000 litres—and some have a lot more than that—to help keep the water up on the frontline. I want to commend all those people in the service.

I note there was an increase of about $13 million, from what has been indicated by committee members today, of the ESL for functions of the emergency services. I also want to note that in my electorate the new SES building we began in our time in government is well underway at Strathalbyn. I commend all our services and commend that the funding be spent appropriately.

Mr HUGHES (Giles) (11:33): I thank everyone for their contributions. I know, especially for those who come from country electorates, that the emergency services, the Country Fire Service and the State Emergency Service, play an important role. They also do so in the metropolitan area, but it is especially the case in country areas.

I think people will be grateful that the rise in the levy is on the rate of inflation, which is a positive in a time when a lot of people are feeling cost-of-living pressures on households. Once again, I would like to thank all the people who have contributed to the committee deliberations, as well as all those who clearly are not there, especially the volunteers who provide service day in and day out. We should be mindful of the stats provided by the SES and some of the other services about the trendline when it comes to the catastrophic events they are facing.

In my electorate were the floods and the consequences of them; there have been serious fires. We have seen what has happened interstate, so weather events are getting more intense. You just have to ask the people on the frontline, those deniers and those delayers when it comes to greenhouse gas emissions. We are on track for a world that our kids do not deserve to inherit in the form that we are going to give them if we do not take serious action.

We have to realise that a lot of the people who often put their lives on the line are volunteers, and with those trendlines are greater risks, but there is also that whole issue about drawing on volunteers to make themselves available when the intensity and the duration of events are increasing. We know that the fire season is globally increasing and that there is virtually an overlap now between the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere, so that is a lot of serious stuff to think about. Once again, I thank all who have made a contribution.

Motion carried.

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