The Gross rental value (GRV) is an estimate of the rent a property could earn in a year. Vacant properties are valued at 5% of the current market price of the entire property.

Each property's GRV is determined by Landgate, an independent agency of the Western Australian Government, and reviewed every 4 years. The most recent review was undertaken in 2015/16. The next review is scheduled for 2019/20.

Property valuations are sent from Landgate to the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, and we are not able to alter the GRV without the advice of Landgate.

To check the accuracy of the GRV (found in the top right of the rates notice), divide the total by 52. This should give you the weekly rental rate of the property, as determined by Landgate.

If you wish to dispute the value of your property, and thus your rate payment, please visit the Landgate Website which provides more information, including a downloadable Objections to valuation form. Hardcopies of the form are also available at the City's Administration Office.

The completed objection form must be lodged within 60 days of the issue of your annual rate notice.

The rate in the dollar value is set by the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder Council as part of the annual budget. The budget process determines the cost of all our services, facilities and operations, and thus the total amount of revenue required.

About 30% of our total income comes from rates, with the rest coming from interest, grants, fees and charges, and reserve transfers. The rate in dollar is then calculated based on the income required to be raised, and the total value of all the properties in the City.

Objections cannot be made against the rate in the dollar value or other charges levied by the Council.

The City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder’s aim is to ensure that rate revenue is collected on an equitable basis from all properties. For this reason Council has adopted differential rates for the 2018/19 financial year.

Differential rating allows Council flexibility in the level of rates being raised from specifically identified properties or groups of properties within the community. It is common for councils to base differential rating for properties on Town Planning Scheme zonings however other criteria such as land use may be used.

The rates in the dollar ($) for GRV & UV rate categories are calculated to provide the shortfall in revenue required to make up the budget deficiency to enable the City to provide the level and range of works and services required in the 2018/19 financial year after taking into account all non-rate sources of revenue.

The Emergency Services Levy (ESL) is a State Government charge applicable to all properties in WA, which is invoiced and collected by local governments on behalf of the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES). The ESL provides the majority of funding required for career and volunteer Fire & Emergency Services brigades, DEFS multi-function brigades/units, Bush Fire brigades and State Emergency Service units.
 
The amount of ESL to be collected, and the applicable rates and charging parameters, are declared annually by the Minister for Emergency Services.
 
For more information please refer to the ESL section of the DFES website or enquire on (08) 9395 9300.

The sanitation charge covers a 240 litre bin collected weekly and a 240 litre yellow lid re-cycling bin collected fortnightly.

2018/19 Rubbish Bin Charges (per annum)
 

The City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder will charge sewerage rates to the owner of land (including vacant land) where wastewater services are available for connection.
 
Utility services (i.e water closets, pedestals, slophoppers, U.R.C) are made against the owner or occupier of the land to which the services are available or supplied.
 
2018/19 Utility Service Charges (per annum)
 
 

The amount you pay in rates (i.e. general land rates, sewerage rates) each year depends on the basis of valuation applied to the property. The property’s valuation is determined by the Valuer-General  who is responsible for ensuring valuations remain as accurate as possible. 
 
The basis of valuation is either Gross Rental Value (GRV). The GRV is an estimate of the rent a property could earn in a year. GRVs are reassessed every four years with 2019/20 being a revaluation year. It is to be noted that the GRV revaluations are based on the property market as at August 1, 2018.
 
Based on the GRV valuation and the rate in the dollar (determined by Council when adopting its annual budget) general land and sewerage rates are calculated and an Annual Rate Notice is generated and mailed to you. You will receive your rates notice in September of each year. More detailed information about property valuations is available from Landgate. 
 
What can I do if I wish to lodge an objection to my property’s  GRV valuation?
The Valuer General revalues all properties within the City’s townsite once every four years. 2018/19 is our next revaluation year, with the new values to take effect 1 July 2019.   
 
Under the Valuation of Land Act you have the right to object to the value that is used to determine your rates and taxes.  For more information regarding land valuations we refer you to Landgate - Valuations for rating-and-taxing online information service.
 
Prior to lodging a formal objection your property valuation can be discussed with Landgate’s Analytical Property Team by phoning (08) 9273 7373 or emailing vs@landgate.wa.gov.au. Many issues can be resolved without the need to lodge a formal objection.
 
Objections can be lodged with the Valuer General’s Office (not the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder) by mail to PO Box 2222, Midland WA 6936 within 60 days of the issue of your rate notice. 
You can download the objection form by clicking on the link Landgate - Lodging an Objection or from the quick links panel to the right of the screen.
 
Objections should be made in writing and must include: the full address of your property, the local government in which your property is located, the valuation to which the objection relates, and the detailed reasons and evidence in support of the grounds for the objection.
 
The objection form must be lodged within 60 days of the issue of your annual rate notice or interim notice. 
 
Rates must be paid as assessed irrespective of whether you have lodged an objection. If the valuation is amended then a refund will be issued accordingly.
 
How do I lodge an appeal against information contained in the City’s rates book in relation to my property?
Objections to the Rate Book must be made in writing to the City within 42 days of the date of issue of a Rates Notice. The grounds on which objections may be made are outlined in section 6.76 of Local Government Act 1995.  The Local Government Act 1995 sets out the manner in which persons may object or appeal against the Rate Book as it relates to their own Rate Notice
 
Service charges may include  rubbish collection, utility charges, swimming pool inspection fee or special payment administration fee.
 
Rates must be paid as assessed irrespective of whether an appeal has been lodged with the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder.  
 

We (the city) will review your rates account at your request in accordance with clause 20 of the Water Services Code of Conduct (Customer Service Standards) 2018.   After conducting a review of the rates account, if we are satisfied the account is correct, we may:

• request payment of any unpaid amount 
• provide you with information about the operation of our internal and external complaints process, which includes your right to refer any complaint to the Energy and Water Service Ombudsman (sewerage.

Adjustment of Rates Account

If you have been overcharged, we must tell you and follow the procedures for repayment in accordance with clause 20 of the  Water Services Code of Conduct (Customer Service Standards) 2018.
We will:

• tell you if an overcharge has occurred within 15 business days of becoming aware of the overcharging
• provide you with options on how to have the overcharged amount credited to your account or refunded to you
• provide the refunds of any overcharged amount within 15 business days of your lodged request.

 
If you have been undercharged, we may recover the undercharged amount from you in accordance with clause 20 of the Water Services Code of Conduct (Customer Service Standards) 2018.
We will:

• only recover the amount undercharged for a service provided in the 12 months prior to the date we notified you of the undercharging
• list the amount undercharged in a special bill or as a separate item in the next bill with an explanation of that amount
• not charge a late payment fee or bill interest on any undercharged amount
• offer you the opportunity to pay this amount in interest free instalments over the same period of time you were undercharged.

Our service commitment

• We (the city) will issue an annual rates notice in September to the owner of the property or their nominated agent at the last notified postal or email address. The annual rates notice will be either mailed or emailed, depending if you have registered for eRates.     

We will provide a detailed rates bill, showing general land rates, sewerage rates, emergency state levy, pensioner concessional entitlement, relevant service charges (i.e. rubbish fees, swimming pool levy, utility charges, payment arrangement fees) and any prepayments.  

• A property may be billed more frequently if the owner chooses to pay by the instalment payment options.
  • Option 2 – x 2 (September, November)
  • Option 3 – x 4 (September, November, January, March).
• We will issue an interim rates notices to properties when there has been significant changes made to the property that affects it valuation. The property’s rates account will be adjusted and an interim rates notice will be issued, providing you 35 days to pay the interim amount.    
• Examples of where a valuation would be amended include:
  • a new building has been built
  • a pool has been installed
  • a new room has been added
  • a property has been demolished
  • an additional rubbish service requested.
• As a service to property owners, we will issue accounts to either the property agent or tenant at the owner’s request. If an account is sent to a third party (i.e. anyone other than the owner) and remains unpaid after the due date, recovery action will be taken against the owner. To update your account details or add a managing agent, complete our Change of Details Request or email us mailbag@ckb.wa.gov.au.

 

Property Owner’s responsibilities

• notify us of any change in circumstance, such as a new postal or email address and change in ownership or land use

• pay your account by the due date.  We understand it can sometimes be difficult to pay bills on time.  We have flexible payment arrangement options available that can be tailored to meet your financial situation, so if you are having trouble paying by the due date please contact us.  Late payments will result in interest being charged on the overdue amount.  To view the different bill payment methods available, visit our website page Pay your rates

 

Liability for charges

• as the property owner, you are responsible for all service and water use charges. Any arrangement between an owner and a tenant regarding the payment of charges is a private matter between those parties  
• if the property is sold, any outstanding charges are usually deducted from the proceeds of the sale by your settlement agent. If these charges are not cleared, the debt will transfer to the new owner.  When appointing your settlement agent you may wish to confirm that they will finalise your rates account on settlement.

 

Pensioner and senior concessions

If you receive a rebate or concession, you should:

• notify us of any change in circumstances that may impact your eligibility
• pay your account by the due date to retain the service charges rebate. 

Non-payment will result in the rebate being reversed and the full amount being placed into deferral if you are eligible to defer.
 

Services to be provided without charge
The City will provide a customer with the following on request and at no charge to the customer:

1. services for account, payment and general enquiries for use by customers with hearing or speech impairment;
2. interpreter services for account, payment and general enquiries;
3. a large-print version of any of the licensee’s publicly available documents.

Our service commitment

• If you would like to lodge a complaint, we encourage you to contact us directly to enable a quick and effective resolution free of charge. Your complaint will be investigated objectively, equitably and in an unbiased manner.
• Our complaints handling process is available on our website. The Complaints Handling Policy and form are available by clicking on the links provided.
• Complaints will be handled in accordance with the Australian Standard on Complaints Handling and if sewer related in conjunction with the Water Services Code of Conduct (Customer Service Standards) 2018.
• We will investigate and attempt to resolve all complaints within 15 business days of you contacting us, but will keep you updated on the progress along the way and if it will take longer. If you aren’t satisfied with the final response from the City you can take your complaint to the Ombudsman.

1. The agency for Local Government issues is the Ombudsman Western Australia

The Ombudsman Western Australia contact details are:
PO Box Z5386
St Georges Terrace, Perth WA 6831
Ph: 08 9220 7555
Freecall: 1800 117 000
Fax: 9220 7500
National Relay Service.
TTY 133 677       TTY or modem users phone 133 677 and quote 08 9220 7555 
Voice-only (speak and listen) users phone 1300 555 727 and quote 08 9220 7555
SMS Relay text 0423 677 767 and quote 08 9220 7555
To make a Internet Relay Call click on link and quote 08 9220 7555
Translating and Interpreting Service
 (TIS) 131 450     A telephone interpreter service is available on request. It is suggested that complainants who do not speak English use a representative from the Department of Immigration and Citizen’s approved Translating and Interpreting Services (TIS) National which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week for any person or organisation in Australia requiring interpreting services.
Email: mail@ombudsman.wa.gov.au
Website: www.ombudsman.wa.gov.au

2. The agency for water services issues is the Energy and Water Ombudsman

The Energy and Water Ombudsman will investigate the complaint and may mediate the dispute between you and us. 
The Energy and Water Ombudsman’s contact details are:
PO Box Z5386
St Georges Terrace, Perth WA 6831
Phone: 08 9220 7588
Freecall: 1800 754 004
Fax: 9220 7599           Freefax:  1800 611 279
National Relay Service.
TTY 133 677       TTY or modem users phone 133 677 and quote 08 9220 7588 
Voice-only (speak and listen) users phone 1300 555 727 and quote 08 9220 7588
SMS Relay text 0423 677 767 and quote 08 9220 7588
To make a Internet Relay Call click on link and quote 08 9220 7588
Translating and Interpreting Service:
(TIS) 131 450      A telephone interpreter service is available on request. It is suggested that complainants who do not speak English use a representative from the Department of Immigration and Citizen’s approved Translating and Interpreting Services (TIS) National which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week for any person or organisation in Australia requiring interpreting services.
Email: energyandwater@ombudsman.wa.gov.au
Website: www.ombudsman.wa.gov.au/energyandwater.

Please make sure you have lodged your complaint, and have been provided with a response from the City before you contact the Ombudsman.

If your complaint is about a property record, such as the classification of your property, and you are not satisfied with our decision, you may notify us that you would like the matter referred to the State Administrative Tribunal for review.