Ryan Bridge: Rate caps are happening, but will they work?

This rates cap is popular politics, no doubt, and local government needs a good kick in the pants. 

But does a 2-4% band simply mean we're going to pay more in other fees? 

Rates aren't the only way these guys make money off us, we also pay for specific things like resource and building consents, LIM requests, dog registrations, and campgrounds. 

Will hairdressers have to pay more to register under the Health Act? Yes, this is a thing, and in Kaipara, for example, it'll cost your business $423 bucks, thank you very much. 

Will we pay more for a burial plot at the local cemetery? That's another fee. 

Will we pay more to register out dogs? 

The options are endless. 

Waikato District Council has a document setting out the fees it whacks ratepayers with. It's 45 pages long.

The government may take a revenue lever away from councils with one hand, but councils will no doubt get creative and hit us up from another angle. 

Actually, this is exactly what the Government itself has been doing. We're seeing the rise of the fee. 2026 will be the year of the fee. 

Yes, the Coalition may have cut taxes, but they're also overseeing one the biggest hikes in fees and charges of any government in recent history. 

Road user charges, user-pays, road tolls, congestion charging is coming, fines are going up, immigration fees, airport fees - you name it, chances are it's heading north. 

It's a strategy. The top line number comes down, but all the little bits they hope we won't notice go up. 

Councils will be no different. Add in the Water Done Well fee, which will be massive in some places, and the reality is that no ratepayer will feel like they're getting a batter a deal post-cap band.

The question is whether this a reason not to do it. And the answer is probably not. 

But it should come with tempered expectation that we won't feel fleeced when the council emails those pesky quarterly rates bills or charges you for sending a hard copy by snail-mail!

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
This rates cap popular politics, no doubt about it, and
local government needs a good kick in the pants. We
all know that. But does a two to four percent
band simply mean that we're going to pay more? In
other sneaky little fees? Rates aren't the only way these
guys make money off us. We also pay for specific
things like resource and building consents, limb requests, dog registrations, campgrounds.

(00:22):
Will hairdressers have to pay more to register under the
Health Act? Yes, this is a thing in Kaipitter for example,
I had a look this morning. It'll cost your business
four hundred and twenty three bucks, thank you very much
to do that. Will we pay more for a burial
plot at the local cemetery? That's another fee? Will we
pay more to register our dogs? The options are endless.

(00:42):
Waikato District Council has a document setting out the fees
that it wax on rate payers. It's forty five pages long.
Four five The governments, you know they've done this too.
They can change the revenue levers and stop them one,
but they haven't stopped them pulling the other. And actually,

(01:03):
if you look at it, this is exactly what the
government itself has been doing. We are seeing the rise
of the fee. Twenty twenty six will be the year
of the fee, the surcharge. The Coalition may have cut taxes,
but they are also overseeing one of the biggest hikes
in fees and charges of any government in recent history.
Road user charges, user pays, road tolls, congestion chargings, coming

(01:28):
fines are going up, immigration fees, airport fees, you name it.
If you can name it, chances are it's heading north.
It's a strategy. The top line number comes down, but
all the little bits that they hope we won't notice
go up. Councils will be no different. Add in the
water done Well fee, which is separate from this, remember,

(01:49):
which will be massive also in some places. And the
reality is I think that no ratepayer will feel like
they're getting a better deal post cap band. The question
is whether this is a reason not to do it,
of course, and the answer is probably not. But it
should come with tempered expectations that we won't feel fleeced
when the council emails those pesky quarterly rates bills to us,

(02:12):
or worse, still charges you for sending a hard copy
by snail mail. For more from early edition with Ryan
Bridge listen live to news talks it'd be from five
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