Local firefighters clearly delivered their message to the state government, “Scrap the levy. Stop calling it a levy. And be upfront.”
They are concerned about the recently introduced Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund (ESVF).
The government has introduced this legislation to raise an extra $2.1 billion for emergency services through a tax which replaces the Fire Services Property Levy from 1 July and expands coverage to other emergency and disaster response services.
The Gruyere Fire Brigade sent a tanker with several members to support the thousands of CFA volunteers and farmers protesting against the new levy at the Victorian Parliament House on 20 May.
However, the brigade remained active over those chaotic days for the sake of community safety while many other CFAs around the state chose to strike.
David Westbury, Terry Burgi, Ray Sartori and Tom Wilkinson are firefighters at Gruyere CFA, the four have a collective experience of nearly 200 years.
Mr Burgi, who has volunteered for community safety for over 55 years, said he was disappointed with the government’s decision.
“Going back to the word volunteer, we don’t do it for any compensation. If the CFA folded tomorrow and we all stayed home and watched TV, the state would burn. Fire Rescue Victoria and Forest Fire Management are good at their job, but they can’t cover the whole state,” Mr Burgi said.
“We even have to bring firefighters from interstate because we’ve gone from 50 or 60,000 active volunteers down to somewhere in 20 or 30,000 already because of age, interest, workload elsewhere, family load elsewhere, volunteerism across the board is declining.
“You don’t do it for compensation. You do it because you are community-support.”
The ESVF was projected to lift the average annual bill for residential home owners by $63 and $678 for primary producers, sparking backlash from some farmers and firefighters.
The ESVF is calculated using the following formula: ESVF = fixed charge + variable charge – concession (if eligible) – rebate or other relief (if applicable).
The fixed charge is based on the property’s classification which is divided into five different categories depending on the primary use of the land: residential, commercial, industrial, primary production and public benefit.
Mr Sartori, who has volunteered as a firefighter for over 46 years, said it’s an extra charge which people in residential properties need to pay.
“All the other services currently are being financed from consolidated revenue. Now the government’s going to keep all that consolidated revenue, therefore it’s a new tax on us,” he said.
“That extra charge would put over $1000 onto my rate bill on my 40-acre property. Currently, it’s a grazing property. You can’t run any more animals on it.
“Therefore, you have no way of increasing your income or passing on the costs. It’s just an extra charge against the costs of running a property, and it could turn a profit into a loss.
“Let’s say you’ve got a 10-acre property worth $2 million with that including the house, you’ll pay nearly $2000 in the levy. If your neighbour’s got 10 acres next door and it’s not levied as a farm but as a primary producer, he is going to pay much less in levy.”
Mr Westbury, the third lieutenant, said it hasn’t been advertised that residential places are going to have to pay more.
“The emphasis has been primarily on primary producers. Because they own more land, their fees will be a great deal higher, but everybody’s fee will be higher,” he said.
“My family only lives on 11 acres, and our fee is going to be certainly a lot higher, and I don’t think that’s been put out to the general public.
“What the other issue is we know that all this money that they’re going to get is not purely going to be spent on the emergency services, it’s just another tax to get more money to try and pay their debt off.”
The third lieutenant said the government hasn’t funded them enough to fit their needs.
“Our brigade has paid for two of those trucks in our station. There’s only one truck supplied by CFA, and that’s a 96 model,” Mr Westbury said.
Another firefighter Mr Wilkinson said the big issue is that the levy charges the volunteers for their work they are committing their lifetime to protect the community from fire risks.
“I’ve come here under a different emergency management scheme to support them. I volunteer just not to go out in the truck. I volunteer many, many hours in respect to training, supporting the community, fundraising with the community, engaging with them so that they actually self-manage as well,” he said.
“I am now expected to go and pay a levy for something that I actually do as a volunteer and support. If they were to actually pay the brigades, they’ll leave you the amount to go and support them to do those things, but it’s not allocated for that purpose. And we get nothing at all.
“The best they can do is probably cover us with some work cover type thing, and support us with some protection gear and those sorts of things.”
After the contentious legislation was passed at the Victorian Parliament House to come into effect from 1 July, not only voluntary firefighters but also local governments across the state expressed concerns.
Many of the councils joined a council-led revolt against the levy or at least released official statements raising worries.
Yarra Ranges Council expressed disappointment in the ESVF and joined the protest.
Mansfield Shire Council confirmed its commitment to advocating against the new ESVF tax in its meeting on 24 June.
Baw Baw Shire Council has written to the Victorian treasurer to formally oppose the ESVF, following a Notice of Motion raised by West Ward Councillor Ben Lucas at the 27 May Council meeting.
Although Cardinia Shire Council released a media release, expressing concern about the impact of the ESVF on its community and seeking clarification in May, the council decided to rule out joining any boycott or legal challenge against the controversial legislation.
