Water debt debate for Waitomo District as reforms loom

Waitomo district mayor John Robertson is challenging the Home Office to acknowledge its water debt as national water reform accelerates.

The Mayor’s Call Comes As Public Entries Are Made On The Invoice for water services entities currently under scrutiny by MPs.

The bill is the first in a series of accounts from Three Waters to reform New Zealand’s drinking water, wastewater and stormwater services†

Robertson says the Department of the Interior has not recognized the magnitude of the municipality’s water debt.

READ MORE:
† Council seeks clarity on government plans to manage three water debts
† Manawat City Council questions the benefit of water reforms to taxpayers
† Manawatū District Council urges pause and review of Three Water reform

“Our debt related to water is about $23 million,” he says.

“(The) government says the new entities will take over the water-related debt. But the problem in our case is that the DIA (Department of Internal Affairs) analysis claims that we have no water-related debt. They are wrong, but will not recognize this,” he said.

“The councils have been promised that the government would pay off the water-related debts. Agreeing what the debt is is critical to solving this.”

If the water debt isn’t settled, it would stay in the “council books” and fall back on taxpayers, Robertson said.

The Council’s water debt rose when it borrowed to build a drinking water and wastewater plant for Te Kūiti.

However, the Department of the Interior told Local Democracy Reporting that it has never “concluded that the district has no water debt”.

“Information from the municipality shows that the municipality has $26 million in water debt. This is reflected in the Financial Impact Tool that the Home Office provided to all municipalities last year, including Waitomo.”

The bill will create four public water services entities that will provide safe, reliable and efficient water services instead of local authorities.

Each water services entity would assume responsibility for providing water services to a specific geographic area from July 1, 2024.

Robertson confirmed that the board is seeking consultation before applying for the $3.5 million available as part of the first tranche of Three Waters’ “Better Off” funding.