The 2025 Statutory Review of the Local Government Rate Cap Mechanism is underway
ACIL Allen has been engaged by the Victorian Government’s Department of Government Services (DGS) to complete the 2025 RCM Review on an independent, arms-length basis from the Department and the broader Victorian Government. Dr Jerome Fahrer and Dr Matt Butlin AM, two of ACIL Allen’s most senior economists and public policy thinkers, are leading the Review, supported by a team of experienced economists and analysts.
A summary of the scope of the Review as defined in the Terms of Reference (ToR) is provided below.
DGS has administrative responsibility for delivery of the RCM Review. The Review itself, including research, stakeholder consultation and analysis, is being completed by ACIL Allen.
The ToR require the review to include consultation with relevant stakeholders and the production of a final report by December 2025. Information regarding the 2025 review is available on the Local Government Victoria website at https://www.localGovernment.vic.gov.au/our-programs/council-rates-and-charges.
Consultation is now open
ACIL Allen has prepared a range of engagement tools to capture feedback from all interested parties as part of the Review. This includes a Discussion Paper, a Response Form, and a short Online Survey. Interested parties are encouraged to respond to either or both of the Discussion Paper (via your own template respond such as a letter or paper, or via a Response Form) and the Online Survey to share your views.
Discussion Paper
Click here to download the Discussion Paper
This Discussion Paper provides further guidance beyond the Terms of Reference through a series of questions designed to capture broad perspectives on the RCM and its impacts over the last ten years. You are encouraged to read the Discussion Paper and prepare a written response which addresses some or all of the questions as appropriate, providing evidence and anecdotes to support your views as necessary.
You can choose to respond in your own preferred document format (such as a letter or paper), or can elect to respond directly to the questions in the Response Form which you can download here.
Click here to download the Response Form
Submissions should be emailed to RCMReview2025@acilallen.com.au, with your organisation’s name clearly identified in the email and document title. All responses to the Discussion Paper will remain confidential and will not be provided to DGS or made public. We encourage frank and open engagement, and are seeking input which will provide our team with the evidence base required to address the Review’s Terms of Reference.
Submissions close on 12 September 2025. No extensions to this date will be available, due to the time available to complete the Review. If you are not in a position to prepare a response to the Discussion Paper we encourage you to consider completing a response to the Short Survey, which provides open ended questions and opportunities for free text input.
Online Survey
Click here to access Online Survey
The Online Survey provides a way to share your views as part of the Review without having to write a response to the Discussion Paper. The survey contains a mix of open and closed questions, and is geared towards individual ratepayers. Responses to the Online Survey are confidential, and ACIL Allen does not and will not ask for names or contact details to be provided to fill out the Survey.
The Online Survey will close on 12 September 2025. No extensions to this date will be available, due to the time available to complete the Review.
Our Process
In delivering the Review, ACIL Allen is making use of a range of stakeholder engagement and analytical techniques, including but not limited to:
- Seeking submissions from all interested parties to a public Discussion Paper (this document)
- Seeking input from all ratepayers via a short online survey
- Targeted[1] bilateral stakeholder consultation with sector representative organisations and select Victorian Government Departments
- Analysis and modelling of financial data and outcomes in the Local Government sector
- Other desktop analysis and assessment tools as appropriate to respond to the Terms of Reference.
ACIL Allen will undertake the Review at arms-length of DGS, meaning all direct materials, submissions and commentary provided as part of the Review will only be available to ACIL Allen. ACIL Allen’s report will be provided to DGS and the responsible Ministers at the conclusion of the Review, at which time the Victorian Government will prepare a response to any findings and recommendations made. The Review is scheduled to be complete prior to the end of 2025.
[1] Due to time and scope limitations for the Review, direct stakeholder meetings are limited to representative organisations. Individual Local Government Authorities are encouraged to provide a written submission, respond to the survey, and / or engage with their representative organisations to provide input into the Review.