Last year, in November, the new Local Government Bill was introduced to Parliament. The bill will become law imminently, and will take effect in a progressive motion across 2020, and into 2021.
The bill is the result of many years of extensive engagement with Victoria’s 79 councils, ratepayers, stakeholders and communties, and seeks to reform and improve the way local government works in the state of Victoria. With a focus on training for councillors, and strategic planning in the areas of financial management, community vision and good practice guidelines, the introduction of the bill brings in a new era of local governance.
Significantly of interest to the Asset Management Council’s membership base is the introduction of an Asset Plan, the scope of which is a period of at least ten years. The asset plan for each local council must include ‘information about maintenance, renewal, acquisition, expansion, upgrade, disposal and decommissioning in relation to each class of asset under the control of the council’1. This therefore includes, parks and buildings, ovals and community infrastructure, roads, paths and bike trails, as well as playgrounds, tools, vehicles and equipment, data and other information assets.
This will undoubtedly bring many challenges to local governments that are not already working in line with strategic asset management plans. The good news is that the Asset Management Council, even in these times of uncertainty, can provide the training and guidance that each of the local government councils will need to embed this new law into their policies. With online Asset Management Fundamentals training, each councillor and staff member can be well equipped to face the challenge.
Have a look at our affordable membership rates by clicking here. Once a member you’ll have access to our online body of knowledge through technical papers and presentations, reduced rates to training, events, and find new avenues to expand your network.
1 Sourced: https://content.legislation.vic.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-03/591055bs1.pdf