funding · City of Gold Coast
Gold Coast keeps rates steady and backs 12-month waste levy pause
City of Gold Coast councillors said there are no proposed changes to the 2025-26 adopted differential general rates and backed a call to pause State Waste Disposal Levy increases for 12 months.
The City of Gold Coast special budget committee met at the council chambers on Bundall Road, Surfers Paradise, on 30 March and voted 11-4 to note there are no proposed changes to the 2025-26 adopted differential general rates. Councillors also said they will consider continuing the 2025-26 retirement village rating structure for 2026-27.
The rates item came after petition feedback. The committee asked that the chief petitioner be advised of Council’s decision and that the other petitioners be informed.
Budget papers will stay confidential for now. The committee recommended that all budget documentation be treated as confidential under the Local Government Act 2009 until the 2026-27 budget is adopted, unless chief executive officer decides otherwise.
The committee also noted Queensland Treasury Corporation’s economic update and credit review. The City’s credit rating of Strong with a Neutral outlook was reaffirmed.
A separate note on the City Budget Survey 2026-27 was also kept confidential. The report and attachments were redacted in full.
Rates and separate charges are not finished yet. The committee noted the analysis and overview used to inform the 2026-27 rates strategy and asked for a further update at the next Special Budget Committee meeting on 22 April 2026.
Councillors endorsed service integration and demand-led operating changes, but removed items 5, 6, 7 and 8 from Attachment 1. They also said discussion on funding mechanisms for Item 8 should be included in the City’s operational budget process.
The committee backed the Waste and Resource Recovery Services financial sustainability report and endorsed the pricing and bulky kerbside-related elements for inclusion in the 2026-27 budget.
It also supported the 2032 Games Infrastructure Plan as a planning and coordination framework. The Pizzey Park Action Sports Hub and the Damian Leeding Memorial Park / Regatta Waters Lake Upgrade are to progress to reports and funding consideration in the 2026-27 budget deliberations. Other legacy projects will be considered through future annual budgets.
In general business, the committee recommended that Mayor Tate write to the Queensland Government asking for any further increases to the State Waste Disposal Levy to be paused for 12 months. The committee said fuel price pressures and cost-of-living impacts were behind the request.
Reference minutes
City of Gold Coast Special Budget Committee meeting, 30 March 2026.
Key facts from the minutes
- The meeting was the City of Gold Coast Special Budget Committee on 30 March 2026.
- Councillors noted there are no proposed changes to the 2025-26 adopted differential general rates.
- The committee said it would consider continuing the 2025-26 retirement village rating structure for 2026-27.
- The City’s credit rating was reaffirmed as Strong with a Neutral outlook by Queensland Treasury Corporation.
- The committee endorsed a request to the Queensland Government for a 12-month pause on further State Waste Disposal Levy increases.
- Pizzey Park Action Sports Hub and the Damian Leeding Memorial Park and Regatta Waters Lake upgrade are to progress to reports and funding consideration in the 2026-27 budget.
- A further update on general rates and separate charges is due at the 22 April 2026 Special Budget Committee meeting.
Why it matters
- The committee kept Gold Coast’s core rates settings unchanged, preserved secrecy around much of the 2026-27 budget work, and advanced waste pricing and Games-related planning before the next budget meeting on 22 April.