The Australian Government has made the decision to direct the revenue from the first two years of the fuel excise programme back into the Roads to Recovery programme to help local government and councils make vital repairs to Australia’s roads.
Local government and communities stand to benefit enormously from this latest announcement as the additional funds will help boost the road spend budget. This will in turn help create more job opportunities in local areas, further improving the lives of local residents and the wider community.
The amount of additional funding is forecast as being approximately $1.1 billion dollars, which is to be taken from the main fuel tax in Australia, known as the excise tax, to which is added a Goods and Services Tax. Both taxes are levied by the federal government and is applied on top of the fuel excise tax. In some cases, businesses may be entitled to exemptions or rebates for fuel excise tax, including tax credits and certain excise-free fuel sources.
This is an important step for councils that will be called upon to roll out the road funding. The ASU has compiled a report that details how local councils can ensure that the funding results in the best outcomes for the community and advises local government to utilise local skilled workers to inject the money back into the community.
To read the ASU report, click here.