Victorian real estate owners to be hit by rising fire services property levies

The Victorian State Government plans to collect 10 per cent more or $709 million with its higher fire levies on every Victorian’s property in 2019-20.

The levy will rise to $738 million in 2020-21, with further hikes to $756 million in 2021-22 and $776 million in 2022-23.

Treasurer Tim Pallas is due to announce the FSPL rates this month, the Weekly Times reports.

Opposition emergency services spokesman Brad Battin said the Andrews Government had “lost control of fire services costs, due to pandering to UFU demands”. 

The fire services property levies on all the state’s households and businesses.

The rises are designed to cover the ever-growing cost of funding restructured fire services and union demands for higher pay and allowances.

The rises reflect a 20 per cent hike on the $645 million they paid on their properties this financial year. 

The surge is being driven by the growing cost of funding the state’s fire services as the Government moves to carve off the CFA’s 38 integrated stations into a new career-only firefighter service with the MFB, to be called Fire Rescue Victoria.

Until now the Government has protected Victorians from the impact of rising cost of the fire services, including a 19 per cent hike in paid firefighter allowances, by capping the FSPL.

But from July 1 the cap comes to an end.