City of Newcastle\u2019s confirmed 2019\/20 financials show it delivered a record investment in capital works of $92.5 million while running the first deficit in seven years of $3.6 million due to the impacts of COVID-19.
\nThe financial statements show the City remains in a strong financial position with net assets of $1.72 billion and total cash reserves of $353 million, including unrestricted reserves of $22.6 million.
\nThe Audit Office of NSW\u2019s assessment has shown the City outperformed in all audited financial key performance ratios for 2019\/20 reflecting the high standards of governance of the City\u2019s finances, including oversight by the independent Audit and Risk Committee.
\nActing CEO Ken Liddell said the latest financial statements demonstrate City of Newcastle\u2019s capacity to respond to rising service expectations and unforeseen events.
\n\u201cThe prudent financial management of City of Newcastle means we have weathered the impacts of COVID-19 well and are in a position to deliver a stimulus budget for 2020\/21 from existing reserves, without borrowing money.
\n\u201cBecause of our robust financial position, City of Newcastle was able to respond quickly to the social and economic disruption of COVID-19 including a $5 million community and economic resilience package and additional community infrastructure investment to support 700 local jobs.
\n\u201cThe total financial impact of COVID-19 reduced City of Newcastle\u2019s operating position for 2019\/20 by $9.9 million, including a reduction in user charges of $5 million, interest revenue of $2.9 million and additional expenditure of $2 million.
\n\u201cDespite this impact, the City delivered a net operating deficit of just $3.6 million, less than the forecast deficit predicted in March of $8.3 million.
\n\u201cThe fact City of Newcastle has produced net operating surpluses for the last six financial years reflects a positive pattern of financial performance and a commitment to long-term financial sustainability.
\n\u201cThe Audit Office\u2019s assessment of City of Newcastle\u2019s financial statement shows a clean bill of health across all performance ratios which is further evidence of the City\u2019s strong financial management.
\n\u201cWhen it comes to major economic downturns through global crises such as COVID-19, governments at all levels have a responsibility to accelerate investment to both keep people employed and uplift economic activity.
\n\u201cWe have continued to deliver high-quality services and projects in a financially responsible way.\u201d
\nThe City of Newcastle delivered a record investment in works across the Local Government Area in 2019\/20, including:<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, City of Newcastle is bringing its method of calculating infrastructure in need of renewal in line with best practice to ensure ratepayers\u2019 money is spent where it is needed most.
\nAll NSW councils are required to estimate the total cost of bringing existing assets up to a satisfactory standard, however the methods for calculating this cost vary and the results are not audited by the Audit Office of NSW unlike other financial key performance ratios.
\nThe condition of the City\u2019s roads, stormwater drainage, footpaths, bridges, buildings and recreational assets are measured against an Office of Local Government (OLG) five-point scale, which rates infrastructure condition from excellent, to very poor.
\nFollowing a change to the Local Government Code of Accounting Practice, City of Newcastle now considers assets rated 3 out of 5 on the OLG key to be satisfactory and therefore these assets are no longer included as infrastructure in need of renewal, also known as a \u2018backlog\u2019.
\nCity of Newcastle Interim Chief Financial Officer Scott Moore said other leading NSW councils, including City of Sydney, factor in assets rated in poor and very poor condition when calculating their ratio whereas City of Newcastle previously also included assets rated as satisfactory.
\n\u201cAllocating personnel and expenditure to renew infrastructure in satisfactory condition takes away from City of Newcastle\u2019s ability to deliver a works program that meets the community\u2019s needs,\u201d Mr Moore said.
\n\u201cInfrastructure rated as satisfactory is fit for purpose and therefore does not need replacing.
\n\u201cBy using this best practice model, we are freeing up funds to be used where they deliver the best value for our community, including key renewal projects such as the Newcastle Ocean Baths.
\n\u201cOur infrastructure in need of renewal is calculated at only $37 million using this best practice OLG method, which is much more accurate than the $126 million recorded last year as it also including $101 million related to assets rated as satisfactory.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
City of Newcastle\u2019s confirmed 2019\/20 financials show it delivered a record investment in capital works of $92.5 million while running the first deficit in seven years of $3.6 million due to the impacts of COVID-19. The financial statements show the City remains in a strong financial position with net assets of $1.72 billion and total … Continue reading “City\u2019s 2019\/20 financials confirm record infrastructure investment and impacts of COVID-19”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8818","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-newcastle"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8818","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8818"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8818\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8818"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8818"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8818"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}