From the VAGO website:
Business Planning for Major Capital Works and Recurrent Services in Local Government
Under Section 136 of the Local Government Act 1989 (the Act), all councils are required to implement principles of sound financial management; including managing financial risks prudently having regard to economic circumstances; ensuring that decisions and actions have regard to financial effects on future generations; and to ensuring full, accurate and timely disclosure of financial information relating to the council.
The 2006 Inter-governmental Agreement Establishing Principles Guiding Inter-Governmental Relations on Local Government Matters further commits councils to demonstrating sound public governance through good fiscal management; to consider available resources and competing priorities when making service-delivery decisions; and to improve their strategic planning and development of appropriate pricing regimes.
It has been six years since the Act was amended to shift away from annual planning to longer-term four year Council Plans and Strategic Resource Plans. It is timely therefore to determine whether this has strengthened business planning and budgeting.
The audit will review the business planning and budgeting practices for selected capital works and recurrent services in a sample of metropolitan and non-metropolitan councils.
The report is expected to be tabled by end of September 2011.
Glen Eira Debates 
August 4, 2011 at 10:50 AM
I pray that the auditor general goes through this council like epsom salts. I got my rates notice and hit the roof. It’s up nearly 400 again. This is unforgiveable given the state of the world at the moment and its sure to get worse. But we’ve got these lousy people in charge who clearly don’t give a hoot about residents and the waste of money. Now we’ve got gesac and a loan that will cripple people for years and years. Its disgusting. The bit that really gets me is when the report says that they’ll be looking at available resources and competing priorities. I’m sick to death of all this spending on sport when theres far more important things that need paying for.
August 4, 2011 at 12:03 PM
100% agreement there on the spending on sport in Glen Eira, its must be behind the jump in rates. All the ovals I see being stripped backed a replanted with new grasses is an experimental gamble at the best, and what $350.000 each. Considering that only 16% of people living in Glen Eira partake in active sport. I would surly like to see the postcodes of the clubs memberships as well. All this needs to be gathered back under control and balanced with the rest of the residents that get squat all for there efforts. The amount of hard rubbish laying around our streets is disgusting, one street I ventured up yesterday was just about wall to wall with dumped mattresses, many look like they had been there for weeks if not months. This is what GE is developing a sporting culture that has no regard for the environment.
August 4, 2011 at 12:51 PM
We have been lumbered with a $25 million dollar debt which I’m sure will only escalate when other costs such as higher purchase agreements, car parking provisions, and other bills start coming in. As a direct result rates will keep increasing as will costs. We’ve already seen the evidence for this in the last budget. The last minute drop of 0.45% in rate increase is a pittance, especially when these councillors are still planning to spend over a million next year on regrassing a couple of ovals. Then there’s the 8.8 million for Duncan McKinnon. This is not planning in line with community expectations. Nor is it fiscally responsible when other services are being cut and buildings allowed to run into the ground. The latest leases are also questionable and finally we have the unbudgeted expenses of lawyer fees over the allocations at gesac. It’s obvious that much of the planning has been ad hoc and that councillors have been left in the dark as to what is really happening with gesac. This is what the Auditor General, the Municipal Inspector and the Ombudsman really needs to get their teeth into.