BULLETIN

• Rate capping report: The Environment and Planning Standing Committee of the Victorian Parliament has released its second report on its Inquiry into Rate Capping. The MAV has welcomed the six key findings and seven recommendations, however we believe further reforms will also be necessary to clarify the appropriate scope of the Essential Services Commission’s role. We will reconvene our Rates Capping Taskforce to review the ESC variation decisions and inform the next steps in our ongoing advocacy to the Minister.

• Ombudsman Victoria report: The Ombudsman Victoria has released a report into the misuse of council resources. It is a timely reminder for all public sector organisations about the need for vigilance in monitoring and enforcing codes of conduct and other policies. We encourage councils to review the report and ask the question: could this be happening here? The MAV has sent an email to all councils with links to IBAC resources that assist in identifying risks and improving processes to prevent problems before they occur.

• Climate Change Act: The MAV has welcomed the release of the State Government’s response to the Climate Change Act 2010 review. In particular we welcome the commitment to enshrine a net zero emissions by 2050 target in legislation while also making climate change a consideration across government decision-making, policies and programs. The government has also announced that it’s introducing a wide-ranging emissions reduction pledge program for the private, government and community sectors. The MAV is proud to be a founding partner of the pledge program.

The full program for the MAV Environment Conference has been released.

Join us at Melbourne Park on 12-13 July to hear the latest on the science and politics of climate change; community, customer and council-led renewable energy projects; the use of drones for ecology and conservation; smart lighting and smart cities; designing thriving built environments; the sharing economy, and more.

Keynote speakers include:

• Rob Gell, Inaugural Fellow of the Environment Institute of Australia and New Zealand
• Dr Richard Denniss, The Australia Institute
• Anthony Carbines, Parliamentary Secretary for the Environment
• Jenny Gray, CEO of Zoos Victoria
• Dr Gillian Sparkes, Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability Victoria
• Dr Dominique Hes, Melbourne School of Design.

Registrations can be made online.

Councils have received a copy of the MAV’s draft submission to Infrastructure Victoria’s All Things Considered paper for feedback.

The paper presents a range of options for Victoria’s 30-year infrastructure strategy. It is accompanied by the draft options book, and the funding and financing draft additional information paper.

Our submission has been informed by the stakeholder briefing, and previous MAV submissions and advocacy. It will be amended based on council feedback and submitted on 17 June.

Feedback can be provided to Michelle Croughan by COB on 10 June.

The MAV will be transitioning to a new event registration system at the end of June, giving our event pages a new look and feel.

The new system will provide registrants with self-service facilities, enhanced security, a mobile-friendly interface, and automated payment and refund processes. If you are currently registered for an event there is no need to re-register.

Councils will also be provided with an online Councillor Credit Points dashboard that allows them to view their points balance, self-manage their list of councillors, and re-allocate points. Council support officers, CEOs and MAV representatives will be briefed on changes to Councillor Credit Points in the coming weeks.

For more information, contact the MAV Events team.

To help guide preparation of Victoria’s second Climate Change Adaptation Plan, the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) recently held a number of workshops for metropolitan councils to gather feedback on climate change adaptation challenges, barriers, opportunities and priorities. In the lead up to the workshops they released a discussion paper.

DELWP is inviting written submissions from councils (formal or informal) to be lodged via email by 30 June. The MAV intends to prepare a brief submission in response to the discussion paper and will circulate our draft to councils for feedback.

DELWP has advised that its regional offices are currently arranging consultation sessions for rural and regional councils to be held over the coming weeks.

• The State Government has announced three grants programs to commemorate war veterans. Grants between $20,000-$80,000 are available for projects with significant commemorative or educational benefit for Victorian communities. Applications close on 29 August.

• Eligible councils are encouraged to apply for the State Government’s $50 million Growing Suburbs Fund to help build and upgrade community facilities. Applications close on 29 July and successful applicants will be announced in November.

• Women in local government have until 30 June to apply for the Women and Leadership Australia scholarships for its Advanced Leadership Program and Accelerated Leadership Performance Program. Expressions of interest can be made online.

• FutureGov is holding an event called Designing Public Services for a Digital Age on 30 June. It will explore a new kind of public service: one designed around citizens and built for the digital age. They will also share case studies from their work in family violence, Patchwork and Casserole Club.

• The State Government has released Rainbow eQuality: a new online guide to support Victoria’s LGBTI community to better access the services they need by helping health and community services to be more inclusive. The guide features information about delivering inclusive services that are welcoming, safe and easy to access for the LGBTI community.

• The State Government has issued a statement advising they are still considering the findings and recommendations from the Parliamentary Inquiry into unconventional gas in Victoria. It will respond to the Inquiry’s recommendations when Parliament resumes in August.

• Infrastructure Victoria is hosting a regional and rural online discussion to help inform Victoria’s first 30-year infrastructure strategy. It’s on 15 June from 8-9pm. All you need is a current browser and internet access. Registrations can be made online.

• Museums Australia (Victoria) has released a Local Government and Cultural Collections in Victoria report. The report is the first of its kind in Victoria and is the culmination of a two-year research project into Victorian local government activities with art, public art, history, and civic collections. It includes findings about council collections and displays, and draws attention to how councils assist community collecting groups such as historical societies.