From the Mayor

Council have just finished hearing submissions to this year’s annual plan.  While the number of submissions received was modest (probably reflecting the ‘business as usual’ nature of the Plan) the increase in requests for grant funding was noticeable. 

It appears that as other avenues of funding become increasingly tight, organisations are turning to Councils for assistance.  The arguments for supporting these causes are always around the good of the district. 

Now obviously we want Wairarapa to be a vibrant place but where do we draw the line?  Councils and the Inland Revenue Department are the only two institutions in New Zealand that can take money off people who don’t want to give it and have legal avenues to back up this right. 

The changes to the Local Government Act also make it much harder to fund things that happen outside your territorial authority district unless you have tangible proof of the benefit to your people.
 
All in all it is a balancing act between fiscal responsibility and creating a district where people want to live, work and play.  This year however there will be a lot of disappointed grant applicants.