The government’s new emergency services fund bills homeowners and farmers every year.
United Firefighters Union Secretary Peter Marshall has heavily criticized the Victorian government for using volunteer firefighters as new tax cover aimed at dealing with the state’s ongoing debt crisis.
Emergency Services and Volunteer Fund (ESVF) taxes are expected to charge farmers $63 and $678 per year homeowners.
In fact, S&P Global Ratings is to issue another warning to the state, bringing the finances under control or risking a downgrade to credit ratings.
“I’m not an economist. But this (collected) will be land tax, property tax, COVID tax. This is just another tax,” Marshall told the Epoch Times.
“And you can quote me about this – it’s very offensive. They (the government of Alan) absolutely hate to try and hide behind the goodwill and good names the community has for emergency service workers in order to raise money to retire their debts.
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“That’s very dishonest.”
To pass the bill to the Senate, Labour agreed to lower the property tax rate on main produced land. This said Jaclyn Symes treasurer would save the average farmer $3 a week.
The expanded collection was initially projected to raise another $2.14 billion over the next three fiscal years, but this concession means it will bring in less dollars.
“It’s a desperate government, and I’ve spent so much money on it. It’s all about retiring from this government’s debt,” Marshall said.
Prime Minister Jacinta Alan said she understands the “difficult climate conditions” facing farmers in the ongoing drought statewide, but she has made it clear she wants to move forward.
“That’s what the state emergency services want, and they’re also volunteers,” she said.
“We have introduced this change because we want to increase emergency services support: to fund state emergency services for the first time in a way similar to fire services.”
It was previously known as the firefighting facility levy (FSPL).
Volunteer firefighters protested the Victorian Legislature’s steps against taxation on May 13, and the bill was expected to be debated and expected to pass on May 15.
According to the Victoria Department of Treasury and the Finance Office, the new fund “will expand services funded by the existing FSPL and include further funding for Victoria’s emergency and disaster response services.”
Responding to the increase in natural disasters
The Victoria Treasury Department and the Finance Office say the state has experienced an increase in floods and storms in recent years, resulting in an average of 35,000 callouts per year.
“Our emergency services ensure that we have the resources needed to maintain Victorian safety and help us recover from natural disasters,” the Victorian Department of Treasury and the Finance Office said on its website.
Volunteers and Life members do not need to pay ESVF in their primary residence, but this is subject to eligibility checks.
“This brings Victoria’s funding arrangements for emergency services alongside other states,” the office said on its website.
This was not a consolation to President Brett Hosking of the Victorian Agricultural Federation. Brett Hosking told ABC that some farmers could still face an increase in bills of $40,000, which could lead to more farm accidents as tax wages work more vigorously.
Marshall said the Alan government is engaged in “hand-on-hand” actions by raising taxes under the ESVF.
“The integrated revenue tax will not be reduced. So it is a decisive hand and it is very dishonest and offensive for the government to come out and say, “We need to do this to take care of volunteers and emergency services,” he said.
David Limbrick, a libertarian member of the Southeast metropolitan area, said the ESVF is yet another blow to Victorians who are already struggling under cost-of-living pressures.
“If the government wants to fund this, they need to fund it through savings in other regions. We can’t pay taxes anymore,” he said.
