Nick Bruining: Squeezed WA seniors call for rise in council, water rebates to combat higher cost of living

As cost-of-living pressures continue to bite into household budgets, WA seniors are asking why a special discount available to pensioners and other concession card-holders hasn’t been increased since a cap was imposed nearly seven years ago. A discount of up to 50 per cent on local government and water supply charges was amended in 2016 when an upper limit was placed on the amount. For local government charges, the cap was set at $750 per household and for water supply charges it’s $600. The amount you are entitled to receive depends on the concession cards held and the services provided. The maximum rebates apply to holders of the Centrelink-issued Pensioner Concession Card, which is granted to age pensioners, and seniors who together hold a Commonwealth Seniors Health Card and a WA Seniors Card. The CSHC is granted to most seniors who don’t otherwise qualify for an age pension, but a generous income test still applies. The WA Seniors Card is issued to residents in the State who work less than 25 hours a week. For those born before July 1, 1959, the eligibility age is 64, otherwise it is 65. Those with a WA Seniors Card only can get a council rebate of up to 25 per cent, capped at $100. The rebate on water charges is also capped at a maximum of $100. Association of Independent Retirees national vice-president Margaret Walsh said the State Government had ignored repeated calls for the rebates to be increased. “In our pre-Budget submissions to the Government, we have been regularly calling for the rebates to be increased. In the last year or two it’s been really noticeable, these big bills have all been rising with inflation,” Ms Walsh said. Old local government notices provided by Your Money readers across Perth show that when the policy was set in 2016, the top rebate of $750 paid for roughly 50 per cent of the total bill sent to ratepayers. For example, one Mandurah reader was levied $1503 in 2016. But this year the same reader’s bill was for a total of $2060, meaning the $750 only reduced the total charges payable by about 36 per cent. It was a similar story for a Wanneroo reader, with the rebate now accounting for only 34 per cent of the total rates payable. Had the cap been increased by 30 per cent — a figure roughly in line with these examples — the rebate for local government charges would now be $975. For water supply charges, it would be $780. A Department of Premier and Cabinet spokesman said the State Government understood the cost of living challenge faced by many in WA, including seniors, and it “has been regularly assessing a wide range of options and mechanisms for providing financial relief”. He said the seniors cost-of-living rebate would rise with inflation over the next four years, but that does not include local government and water supply rebates. The $28 million cost-of-living rebate paid to 310,000 seniors in WA this year was worth $104 for singles and $156 for couples. “Any changes to existing rebates or concessions would be considered as part of standard Budget processes,” the spokesman said. Nick Bruining is an independent financial adviser and a member of the Certified Independent Financial Advisers Association