Annual Budgets
The budget for the 2025/26 financial year was adopted by Council at the Ordinary Council meeting held 30 July 2025.
2024/25 further consolidated a number of legacy projects and for the first time in many years, the shire has caught up with the Road Construction Program, some of the backlog dating back to 2018.
Highlights of achievements from the Strategic Community Plan includes:
• Community – Local Heritage Survey, Sport and Recreation quick wins, reinvigoration of the Local Emergency Management Committee.
• Economy - budgeted road construction completion of the Mogumber-Yarrawindah Rd, Calingiri – New Norcia Intersection and Toodyay - Bindi Bindi Rd, Water Projects and successful Housing Support Program funding.
• Environment – Progress on Waste Transfer Stations, Corella Management.
• Civic – Computer system improvements, Compliance improvements, strategic planning reviews.
For the longer term, there has been significant progress and advocacy in energy transition with wind farms, Caravel Mining and the European Space Agency (ESA), all major projects that will have a once in a generation impact on the shire.
Given the scale of upcoming major projects, the next five years will be financially challenging for the Shire, with economic benefits likely to follow only after these projects are established through the multiplier effect on the local economy.
For 2025/26 council was advised that the Local Government Cost Index (LGCI) a measure of inflationary costs to local governments and calculated independently, forecast a 3.3% increase. In order to continue momentum, deliver strategic outcomes and position the shire, it was necessary to increase rates by 7% for the 2025/26 financial year.
Accordingly, the CEO's focus will be in four key areas:
• Housing
• Renewables
• European Space Agency - Tourism
• Mining
Which in time and success, will see a very different Shire of Victoria Plains in both landscape, employment and industry development.