May 1, 2009.
The first mailout of new re-designed Tamworth Regional Council rates and water bills is underway.
The account notices have been revamped to give ratepayers more detailed information about what they pay, how to pay and how to save money doing it.
The fourth instalment of this year’s rates notices are being distributed this week. There are 21,384 notices in the postal system now - totalling $12,169,146.
Besides being a completely different design, they’re also more noticeable, echoing the corporate colours of the council and with highlighted sections making it easier for readers to see the main financial and payment details. The new notice also includes some latest news about council activities.
The fourth and last instalment payment for the 2008/2009 year is due on May 31.
The new water accounts have more detailed information contained in them than ever before and are designed to help water users conserve supplies and save money doing it. The first of more than 19,000 for the latest water period, about 4,500 in the Oxley Vale and North Tamworth areas, go out early next week.
They have guides to help water users cut their consumption and comparative data so they can measure whether they’re using more or less at different times of the year. They can also get a good guide to what target consumption levels are and what the industry average for a person in a household is.
TRC finance manage Mark Crompton says it will allow households to roughly calculate how much each person should be using each day.
The new bills also will give users their information on the tiers of water usage – there are three tiers, and the more you use, the further up the tiers you go, and the more you pay for it at that level.
These accounts will also have details about the water rebates program TRC has and the savings people can make by installing water efficient products at home and at work.